Monday, December 3, 2012

WHICH LOYALTY PROGRAM IS RIGHT FOR YOU?

In today's economy, even industry leaders have to fight hard to keep their existing customer base, never mind acquire new purchasers of their products and services.  More and more companies are implementing customer loyalty programs of some sort or another in order to build and maintain their client base.

Customer loyalty programs usually provide participants to accumulate 'points' or 'miles', by purchasing products or services at a list of participating retail partners.  These points or miles can then be exchanged for goods or service, either outright, or at a reduced cost.

A good website where you can check out a variety of these programs is www.customerloyaltyprogramcards.com    You will see that some programs have a narrow focus in terms of where and what you can purchase to earn points, and what you can redeem them for.  The AMC Stubs rewards program, for example, allows you to earn points at AMC movie theaters at the box office or at the concession stand.   Similarly, Stouffer's Rewards lets you earn points by purchasing Stouffer's products.

On the other side of the coin Air Miles Rewards, includes a wide-range of participating retailers and products to choose from, while Club Sobeys allows Canadian consumers the change to earn points on everything purchased at Sobey's Supermarkets.

Here are a list of the other loyalty programs available...

HBC POINTS

HARRAHS TOTAL REWARDS

WYNDHAM REWARDS

VIRGIN ATLANTIC FLIGHT CLUB

SOUTHWEST AIRLINES RAPID REWARDS

AIRCANADA AEROPLAN

BRITISH AIRWAYS EXECUTIVE CLUB

JCPREWARDS

SHOPPERS OPTIMUM

GNC GOLD CARD

OFFICE DEPOT WORKLIFE REWARDS

WELLS FARGO REWARDS

QANTAS FREQUENT FLYER REWARDS

AEROFLOT BONUS

AIR BERLIN TOPBONUS

AEROMEXICO CLUB PREMIER

AIR NEW ZEALAND AIRPOINTS

FLYING BLUE KLM

LUFTHANSA MILES AND MORE

PHILIPPINE AIRLINE MABUHAY MILES

US AIRWAYS DIVIDEND MILES

STARWOOD PREFERRED GUEST  

AMERICAN EAGLE AEREWARDS

AUTOZONE REWARDS

AVEDA PURE PRIVILEGE

BEST BUY REWARD ZONE

MYCOKE REWARDS

PAMPERSGIFTSTOGROW

SAFEWAY CLUB CARD

SEPHORA BEAUTY INSIDER

LEAN CUISINE DELICIOUS REWARDS

AMTRAK GUEST REWARDS

Most customer loyalty programs are free to join, however keep in mind that some, especially those which combine loyalty points with credit card offers, can carry a fee.   A quick read of the terms and conditions of each loyalty program (and associated costs) will help you determine whether it is worthwhile for you to join a given program.  You will know the degree to which you might choose to shop at a given company, and it should be easy to determine how much in return you receive in terms of points or miles for each dollar you spend.