Business-to-business (B2B) companies should implement and manage B2B loyalty programs a little differently than B2C companies do. That’s not a bad thing. B2B companies can influence customers in ways B2C programs can’t. Here are a few of the most important B2B loyalty program distinctions, and what those distinctions mean about managing and marketing your B2B customer loyalty program.

1. B2C vs. B2B CUSTOMER
LOYALTY PROGRAMS

2. Business-to-business (B2B)
companies should implement and
manage B2B loyalty programs a
little differently than B2C
companies do. That’s not a bad
thing. B2B companies can
influence customers in ways B2C
programs can’t.
Here are a few of the most
important B2B loyalty
program distinctions, and
what those distinctions
mean about managing and
marketing your program:

3. B2B LOYALTY PROGRAMS NEED
MORE PERSONALIZATION
Because B2B companies tend to have smaller customer bases, B2B loyalty programs
should cater to participant experience and personalization.
CONVENIENT COMMUNICATION
EXPERIENCES
Your loyalty program software should be
able to send alerts, updates, news and
more through multiple communication
mediums, including:
• Text
• Email
• Push notifications
• Website content
&
PERSONALIZATION
If you use an online loyalty program with
reward points that can be spent in an
online rewards catalog, personalize the
shopping experience! Online rewards
catalog profiles should:
• display customized avatars
• retrieve reward redemption history
• track reward points balance
• highlight items from the participant’s
reward wishlist
NEED
HELP?

4. B2B COMPANIES SHOULD OFFER VIP
LOYALTY REWARDS FOR VIP CUSTOMERS.
Most B2B companies have less than five truly loyal customers who have massive sway
over your business’ health. Invest in them accordingly!
INCENTIVE TRIPS UNIQUE REWARDS
Plan incentive travel events with your top
customers to:
• show them appreciation
• create long-term positive associations with
your brand
• provide a relaxed environment where you
can get to know them while sharing
marketing insights
Imagine surprising a top customer with a
home renovation, college tuition payment or
indoor pool installation. Unique loyalty
rewards in this vein have immense, specific
and personal impact on customers’ lives.

5. B2B LOYALTY PROGRAMS SHOULD
INCLUDE TRAINING INCENTIVES.
In B2B, your customers and salespeople are often one in the same.
You depend on your customers knowing your products or services.
Online loyalty programs can deliver training content and
distribute reward points through the same software. You
customers can:
• complete surveys
• pass quizzes
• participate in daily trivia questions
• immediately receive rewards for doing so!

6. B2B LOYALTY PROGRAMS CAN BE
MAJOR DIFFERENTIATORS.
o Only recently has online loyalty software evolved to handle the
many demands of marketing, communicating, rewarding,
authenticating and redeeming all in the same platform.
o B2B companies are often limited in how much product
differentiation they can offer due to set industry standards.
These two facts mean that B2B loyalty programs can have
a much bigger impact on customer bases than B2C.

7. B2B LOYALTY PROGRAMS SHOULD
HAVE CLAIMS VALIDATION FEATURES.
Your dealers and contractors are the ones selling to your end-users, so you
often need claims documentation to validate purchases. Traditionally, this is
time-consuming and a burden on administration, and a major reason B2B
companies avoided loyalty programs.
A B2B loyalty program should be equipped with tools that
speed up the claims verification and reward redemption
process. With documentation uploading, for instance, sales
reps can upload invoices, receipts, warranty registrations and
other information directly to your program. This helps you
authenticate claims faster, while participants get their loyalty
rewards sooner.
VERIFIED

8. While a B2B customer loyalty program isn’t usually as simple
as swiping a grocery store rewards card, the differences
aren’t negative.
Managed effectively, B2B loyalty programs have the
potential to make a much bigger impact on sales and
marketing than B2C programs do.