Loyalty: The technology that Makes or Breaks the Experience

nventive

May 22, 2024

4 minutes

Strategy

CX, Loyalty

How can you protect your investment and ensure that our loyalty app becomes the common thread that strengthens the relationship with our client? Simply put, we must make the user want to come back again and again through a smooth interaction that enriches their experience with your brand. And it starts by making the right technology choices.

To equip yourself with a global vision during the design or redesign of a mobile application, you must know your client well and take into account their habits. Tying these insights to your operational reality and technological environment can immediately eliminate potential friction points related to performance or experience breakdown. Even better, we define the vision of the app by bringing together complementary talents in technology and creativity at the same table. It is by combining expertise and divergent viewpoints that we can generate amazing ideas that will transform into distinctive features. A deep understanding of the technological ecosystem is the key to creating a well-orchestrated user experience that is easy and exciting to navigate. A brainstorming workshop to define the vision of your app not only allows you to detail the necessary features but also to identify the technological needs that support the desired experience. By viewing the app through the prism of experiences – those of the client, the employee, the user, and the technology –, we cover all the bases: speed, accuracy, personalization, and intuitiveness of the application.

In a pre-design framework or when defining the product vision, our experts will conduct a thorough analysis of the features that will be essential for the proper functioning of your application, identify any potential technological needs or gaps, and then determine solutions to address them. For example, they might undertake to improve the speed and reliability of the application, enhance personalization to better meet the specific needs of each user, review the interface to ensure smooth navigation, or conduct a technological audit to detect constraints of the current system. These steps aim to enrich the mobile experience, focusing on the efficiency and engagement of your users.

The activators and accelerators of your success

A smooth experience is just the beginning. The effectiveness of the mobile loyalty program then relies on the ideation and implementation of solid technological activators and accelerators. Innovation then acts as a powerful lever of engagement. By judiciously targeting activation and acceleration mechanisms within the application, it is possible to propel the loyalty program to a whole new level through an ambitious and innovative approach. For example, features such as ephemeral games to win additional points, activation of in-app offers, barcode scanning, location-based promotions, shared accounts among family members, or competitions, can further enrich the experience by surpassing user expectations. There are no limits to creativity here; it is about extending the experience and pushing its boundaries.

However, if they are poorly planned, the activators and accelerators can let us down, not because of their design, but because they are not properly supported by the client context or the digital solution implemented. A poorly orchestrated gamification element or a notification that arrives at the wrong time may minimize, or even compromise, the impact of good ideas.

Case study: the difference between success and failure

Consider the case of an airline seeking to encourage the frequency of point exchange. To encourage consumers to adopt a new behavior (spending vs. accumulating), enticing incentives and bonuses are displayed at the right time, such as adding a promotion for car rental in the confirmation email for a flight reservation. This is a fairly standard modus operandi that will have some success, but to truly triumph, the app is an important vector to consider for boosting the value and use of the program. It can allow you to:

Reach the customer through notifications at times when they would not even think to click on their app—in winter, during the planning stages of summer vacations, or even during their trip;
Highlight partnerships in the app with complementary services for point exchange, like restaurant orders, taxis, tourist sites, etc.;
Encourage content sharing through a forum and reward contributors;
Celebrate the accumulation or exchange of points through animations or haptic feedback to confirm the transaction and create a micro-moment of success for the user;
Demonstrate the value of the program with visible milestones and goals in the app.

By collaborating with our community of multidisciplinary experts, you will benefit from an in-depth assessment of your users’ needs, precise ideas, and a clear strategy to meet the most complex requirements to identify the necessary technological and human needs. This is what will allow us to guarantee your users a digital experience that is essential, powerful, and specific.

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