The document discusses the evolving nature of customer rewards as essential motivators for loyalty, emphasizing the need for personalized and relevant incentives to capture consumer interest. It highlights the importance of understanding customer psychology, experimenting with new reward models, and maintaining transparency in rewards systems to adapt to changing consumer demands. Additionally, it stresses that creating meaningful customer experiences in every interaction with the brand is critical for successful reward programs.

1. THE KEY TO REWARDS
© 2014. All Rights Reserved.

2. 1 // THE KEY TO REWARDS
Rewards are a key motivator for customer loyalty. The way
brands can offer rewards continues to evolve, requiring more
personalized incentives to ensure your company is kept top of
mind.

3. 2 // WHY REWARDS MATTER
In our always-on world, it is harder than ever for companies
to reach their customers, let alone get on the radar of new
customers. Rewards provide an opportunity for businesses
to create personalized experiences that resonate with their
target audience, driving customer relationships that lead to
action

4. 3 // FUTURE OPPORTUNITIES FOR CUSTOMER REWARDS
Although technology has made it more difficult for companies
to break through the noise, it has also provided far more
opportunities to build reward systems that scale and provide
tangible value.

5. 4 // THE PSYCHOLOGY BEHIND REWARDS SYSTEMS
Different rewards trigger different emotions, which marketers
must take into account when choosing rewards to offer
customers.
"In the coming years, those marketers who know why
consumers respond to rewards, rather than simply knowing
how they respond, will win the battle for building real
relationships."
-Eric Monteiro, Chief Strategy and Analytics Officer at Aimia

6. 5 // PERSONALIZATION IS THE FUTURE
Personalized rewards are the key to developing bonds with
your customers. Focus on your customers and design your
programs around their motivations. Trying to appeal to
everyone is not going to drive results in the years ahead.
“Relevance, in particular, is the one compelling reward that
marketers don’t yet take advantage of — the idea that you
can use one or two data points to deliver a reward that is very
powerful.”
- Marshall Stanton, Senior Vice President, Head of Customer
Loyalty, United States at Aimia

7. 6 // SOFT BENEFITS MATTER MORE THAN EVER
The devil is in the details, which requires your organization to
be clear on every touch point a customer has with your
business. This requires offering smaller, consistent incentives
along the way, instead of focusing on big, infrequent rewards

8. 7 // EXPERIMENT WITH NEW MODELS
According to Aimia research, 67 percent of marketing
executives consider increased customer retention as the top
goal of their rewards programs. This requires consistently
experimenting with new models to cater to what fuels
customers: rewards and recognition in new formats.

9. 8 // TODAY'S REWARDS CHALLENGES
Changing customer demand and an evolving technology
landscape has also brought many new challenges, requiring
businesses be strategic with their approach. From conflicting
definitions of rewards to changing customer awareness, keeping
your reward systems on course is more difficult than ever.
“There’s been a debate, more in the industry than by consumers,
about the efficacy of cash-back rewards versus points programs.
Cash-back programs seem to be growing, but actually cash-
back seems the opposite of loyalty.”
— Principal, Marketing and Loyalty Agency (Australia), from
Aimia CMO research 2014

10. 9 // HOW DO YOU DEFINE REWARDS?
Clearly define what rewards are for your organization.
Conflicting definitions can scatter your efforts, diminishing the
success of your future campaigns. Setting clear goals can also
better clarify what they mean for your organization.
.

11. 10 // REWARDS ARE UNDERVALUED AND UNDERESTIMATED
Marketers tend to not give rewards the credit they deserve. For
example, they often choose rewards solely based on price or fall
victim to the hype around big data. Instead, offer rewards that
matter to your audience and use a strategic approach that
provides tangible value.

12. 11 // CONSUMERS ARE SAVVIER THAN EVER BEFORE
Customers are more aware of marketing than ever before, which
requires transparency in your rewards systems. Consistently
adding value to your rewards system will help your company
better match consumer demand.
“Redemption behaviour will increasingly add value to our data
assets. Analytics will inform the delivery of the ‘right’ rewards
much more so than today, and will become the key to delivering
an element of ‘magic’ in reward design and delivery.”
- Kevin O’Brien, Chief Business Development Officer, Canada
at Aimia

13. 12 // INCREASING DEMANDS FOR INSTANT REWARDS
Our always-on culture has also created an expectation of instant
gratification. To combat this, your rewards system must be agile
across devices to match expectations and drive action.

14. 13 // HOW DIFFICULT SHOULD EARNING REWARDS BE?
The ease of earning rewards dictates the engagement your
reward system will encourage, which requires finding a strong
balance between motivating short-term behavior and delivering
long-term customer value. Test different ways of delivering
rewards to understand what works for your business.

15. 14 // DRIVE LONG LASTING RESULTS
To develop a rewards system that drives long lasting results and
strong customer relationships, understand the motivations of
your customers and then personalize your program around those
preferences.
“We all appreciate being thanked by the words, actions and
rewards we receive from others…This level of personal
recognition creates emotional engagement — the very basis of
loyalty.”
- Nicola Walker, Vice President, Global Rewards at Aimia

16. 15 // REWARDS ARE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCES
From start to finish, the experience a customer has with your
brand is critical to the success of your rewards system — every
detail matters.
"We won't just deliver rewards as treats — the concept of
rewarding consumers will become much more profound than
that."
-Jan-Pieter Lips, Regional President, Europe, Middle East, and
Africa at Aimia

17. For an extended view of our perspective, see Develop
Meaningful Customer Relationships at
www.aimiainstitute.com
© 2014. All Rights Reserved.