LT
Business
Let's Talk Loyalty
Paula Thomas
“Let’s Talk Loyalty” is an industry podcast for loyalty marketing professionals.
If you work in loyalty marketing, join us every week to learn the latest ideas and marketing insights from loyalty specialists around the world.
Check out our website on: http://www.letstalkloyalty.com/
- 793 episodes
- Updated Thursday
Episodes793
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Jun 2, 2021 · 38 min#112: Loyalty Challenges and Trends with Comarch's Bart Demczuk
With over fourteen years in loyalty and consulting roles from a technology perspective, Bart Demczuk is today leading the Middle East region for Comarch, who power loyalty programmes around the world for brands like BP, Old Mutual and Puntos Colombia, as well as regionally for industry leaders like ADNOC and ENOC. Bart shares his strategic view on some of the current key challenges for loyalty professionals, firstly to ensure they measure truly commercial metrics to ensure they are running a successful loyalty programme. He shares his views on the risks posed by industry disruptors offering short term marketing channels for restaurants and retailers, but at the expense of creating and owning long term direct relationships with their customers. He also highlights the risk of "excessive personalisation" - a trend which has become increasingly prevalent on social media channels, and the importance of balancing privacy and personalisation in a way that customers truly value. Listen to this episode of "Let's Talk Loyalty" for a helicopter view of insights from the Middle East from this leader in loyalty. This episode is sponsored by Comarch. Show Notes: 1) Bartosz Demczuk - Senior Vice President at Comarch Middle East 2) Comarch Loyalty Marketing Solutions
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May 31, 2021 · 7 min#111: Skywards Insights - Expansion and Inspiration Pre-Covid
As one of the largest airlines in the world, Emirates Airline last year celebrated the 20th anniversary of its loyalty programme Skywards, which had just passed a global membership base of over 27 million members, many in International markets. Just two shorts weeks before the global pandemic forced an almost total shutdown of the world's aviation industry, I had a fascinating conversation with Dr Nejib Ben Khedher who has led the digital transformation of Skywards in recent years. This short show summarises his incredible insights on what was working so well for Skywards already and some exciting new ideas emerging in the industry. For me, Skywards and Emirates are inspiring brands given their premium position in the global aviation market, and my own fond memories of working in the same company many years ago. Listen to this episode of "Let's Talk Loyalty" for a truly exciting perspective on what's possible when a global brand invests in its loyalty strategy with a clear intention of delighting its members. Show Notes: 1) Emirates Skywards 2) Dr Nejib Ben Kheder
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May 26, 2021 · 44 min#110: For Love or Money? Australian Loyalty Perspectives 2021 with Adam Posner
"For Love or Money 2021" is a powerful, independent and comprehensive research report on customer views of loyalty marketing programmes that operate in Australia and New Zealand. Hot off the presses, Adam Posner, the loyalty brains behind the report, talks me through the lessons learned from this year's panel of customers - from the surprising (plastic card anyone?) to the delightful (here's looking at you Woolworth's Rewards) and one result that's downright disappointing! Listen to this episode to understand the highlights of this latest loyalty research that includes insights and comparisons on Covid-related behaviour changes, and find out more about how you can access your own copy of the 2021 report. Show Notes: 1) Adam Posner 2) For Love or Money 2021 Reports
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May 24, 2021 · 5 min#109: Let's Talk Loyalty Partners with The Wise Marketer
In this short episode, I showcase my partnership with my friends in "The Wise Marketer™" - the world's most widely read source of news, and insights for loyalty marketing professionals. The guys in The Wise Marketer and I are equally passionate about sharing loyalty knowledge so this content partnership is the perfect way to do that. In this five minute episode, I summarise key insights from the CEO of The Wise Marketer, Bill Hanifin, and how proud I am to be working with The Wise Marketer group, adding my "voice" to be part of the world's biggest loyalty community. Show Notes: 1) Bill Hanifin 2) TheWiseMarketer 3) The Loyalty Academy 4) Full interview with Bill Hanifin - episode #24
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May 19, 2021 · 30 min#108: Australian eCommerce Loyalty with Adore Beauty
As Australia's top online pure-play beauty retailer, Adore Beauty has had incredible growth and success in recent years, even throughout the pandemic. Not only did the company successfully go public in 2020, but it also launched an innovative non points-based loyalty programme called the Adore Society. With a goal of education, a clear set of benefits for each loyalty tier based on member's spend, and simple yet exciting rewards, Miranda Bliss is the brains behind this compelling customer-focused loyalty programme that's already proving incredibly successful. In this episode of Let's Talk Loyalty, Miranda explains the programme proposition, the focus on education and entertainment for customers, as well as their powerful content strategy - together which are driving incredible growth and loyalty for this inspiring business. Show Notes: 1) Miranda Bliss 2) Adore Beauty 3) Adore Society 4) Beauty IQ Podcast 5) Skincare School Podcast
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May 17, 2021 · 6 min#107: Using Loyalty Levers for a Higher Purpose
My favourite loyalty stories are programs or platforms that serve a higher purpose that benefit us as people as well as the companies we are customers of. In episode 23 of LetsTalkLoyalty, I was thrilled to meet Dan Gipple, who is the founder of a loyalty platform called “Better Points” that uses loyalty psychology and mechanics to change consumer behaviour such as improving their health. I had met Dan through an inspiring story that the BBC did on a loyalty programme in Italy called Bella Mossa – a programme designed by the city of Bologna to address the problem of pollution. Listen to learn a summary of key insights on human behaviour & the psychology of consumer loyalty and some fascinating programmes that serve an even "higher purpose". Show Notes: Episode #23 of Let's Talk Loyalty BBC News - Clip featuring the city of Bologna's loyalty programme. Bella Mossa - Using Rewards to incentivise citizens of Bologna to drive less frequently, Dan Gipple. Better Points Platform.
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May 12, 2021 · 27 min#106: Intense Competition Driving Loyalty Innovation by South Africa's Old Mutual
South Africa is famous for the innovative "shared value" business model that has created extraordinary loyalty within the insurance industry for more than twenty years. So how does a financial services firm like Old Mutual compete against the market leader? The answer is innovation, a clear intention to add value and be loyal TO members, enhancing their financial understanding, while ensuring their products and loyalty programme are accessible to customers in every segment of society. In this show, Brett Cameron, Head of Rewards at Old Mutual in South Africa, shares the ideas and insights that are driving growth, connection and financial wellbeing with Old Mutual's members and customers. This episode is sponsored by Comarch. Show Notes: 1) Brett Cameron - Head of Rewards, Old Mutual 2) Old Mutual
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May 10, 2021 · 6 min#105: Creating Customer Loyalty Through CX Excellence
This short show is an introduction to CX – or “customer experience” - a field that has exploded in recent years as a powerful way to drive customer loyalty. I'm summarising my episode featuring Michael Killeen, founder of the “CX Academy” to figure out what customers expect from brands, why so many companies are appointing CX professionals, and how loyalty professionals can lead CX initiatives. Show Notes: 1) Episode 22 of Let's Talk Loyalty 2) CX Academy 3) Michael Killeen
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May 5, 2021 · 6 min#104: Australian Loyalty Expertise with Sarah Richardson, Founder of the Australian Loyalty Association
Today's episode is a summary of my interview with Sarah Richardson, Founder of the Australian Loyalty Association. In our original interview, Sarah had showcased the impressive loyalty marketing industry in Australia, so this short summary highlights some of the amazing things I learned from her expertise in that market. Sarah now runs a boutique loyalty consultancy firm called SCIENSA, advising on loyalty strategy and helping programme owners measure and improve the value of their loyalty programmes. Listen and learn for a masterclass in the Australian loyalty market. Show Notes: 1) Sarah Richardson 2) Let's Talk Loyalty - Episode 21
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May 3, 2021 · 6 min#103: Movies, Music and Sport - Passion Points to Drive Loyalty
Film, music and games are all assets that loyalty programme owners can leverage to drive emotional engagement with members. In this episode, I summarise my previous interview with film partnerships expert Tom Sugg, who explains how to leverage the power of the world's most popular entertainment brands as partners to engage your customers around their passion points. Show Notes: 1) Brand Culture 2) Tom Sugg 3) Let's Talk Loyalty #20 - Leveraging Customer Passions to Drive Loyalty
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Apr 28, 2021 · 47 min#102: The Science & Psychology of Human Engagement for Customer Loyalty
Dr Anil Pillai is a human engagement expert, with experience advising some of the world's top firms across Europe, India and the Middle East. He is passionate about applying a deep understanding of human psychology to consumer's behaviour - whether it's to communicate effectively or change a desired behaviour. In today's show, we discuss concepts such as the 'Effort Assessment Score" as a framework that evaluates the effort needed for a customer to complete a task, our concerns about "loss of control" and the need to design our customer's loyalty journey with speed and simplicity in mind. We also discuss insights around the perception of various communications channels for audiences and how these may be perceived by users. For anyone interested in the neuroscience of either business or loyalty, Dr Pillai offers some superb insights to include in your approach. Show Notes: 1) Dr. Anil V. Pillai 2) BuyerBrain.com 3) Terragni Consulting 4) EAS - Effort Assessment Score Framework 5) Don Peppers 6) Customer Fest Virtual Conference 7) https://hbr.org/2012/05/to-keep-your-customers-keep-it-simple 8) https://faculty.washington.edu/jdb/345/345%20Articles/Iyengar%20%26%20Lepper%20(2000).pdf
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Apr 26, 2021 · 5 min#101: How You Can Leverage Independent Loyalty Experts for Your Loyalty Programme
Running a loyalty programme can be challenging in many ways so who can you turn to for advice, a second opinion and access to global loyalty brain power when you need it? One place is the "Customer Strategy Network" or CSN, of which I'm delighted to be a member. CSN is a global organisation of loyalty practitioners and in this short episode I summarise my conversation with Nick Chambers who leads the CSN and share the types of loyalty projects the CSN typically supports. Show Notes: 1) Customer Strategy Network 2) Nick Chambers 3) Let's Talk Loyalty Episode #19 with Customer Strategy Network
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Apr 21, 2021 · 50 min#100: Star Alliance's Latest Loyalty Insights, Ideas and Innovation
As the world's first ever airline alliance, the Star Alliance is an extra-ordinary example of how global partnerships can be created to ensure a compelling, consistent and seamless experience for airline customers and earn their loyalty. With the alliance about to celebrate its 25th anniversary, I was delighted to learn some fascinating insights from their group Director of Loyalty, Renato Ramos who shares some superb ideas from his years of global airline loyalty experience. We discuss the evolution of loyalty for airlines in a pandemic and post-pandemic world, including the importance of non-airline partnerships, the challenge and opportunity to extend airline loyalty programmes to leisure travellers, as well as innovative possibilities such as cash back and pre-paying for loyalty points. Show Notes: 1) Renato Ramos 2) Star Alliance 3) Star Alliance Innovation Hub Announcement 4) Starbucks as a Banking proposition
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Apr 19, 2021 · 5 min#99: Paula's Predictions for Loyalty Marketing in 2020 - Summary Show
This is a summary of an already short show where I spoke about my predictions for the loyalty industry for 2020! It was recorded and released pre-Covid and featured my three big trends ideas, including the increasing role of CX for loyalty marketing, the importance of building an emotional connection with customers as well as my personal passion for using the human voice as a way to access key services, like my loyalty programme updates. Show Notes: 1) Episode 18 of Let's Talk Loyalty
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Apr 14, 2021 · 50 min#98: Innovative Technology Driving Loyalty - Whatsapp, Voice Marketing & Payment-led Loyalty
What are some innovative new ideas you could use to build consumer loyalty if you were brave enough to try them as one of the first? In this episode of Let's Talk Loyalty, I'm discussing MY absolute favourites - Whatsapp for Business/loyalty, the power of a voice marketing strategy and my all-time favourite, payment-led loyalty. These I believe are three of the most powerful tools available to loyalty marketers in 2021! To help me understand these innovative ideas, I chatted to Lisa Brightwell, the founder of one of the UAE's top loyalty agencies Bright Insights Consulting who has studied how these powerful tools can be used to differentiate your brand in this era of dramatic changes in consumer behaviour. Listen for a masterclass in innovative loyalty marketing and the powerful tools that you can use to connect with your customers. Show Notes: 1) Lisa Brightwell - Managing Director 2) Bright Insights Consulting 3) World Health Organisation Uses WhatsApp for Covid for Health Information 4) KLM - First Airline Leveraging Whatsapp for Business 5) Whatsapp for Business 6) Esteé Lauder Voice-Activated Sampling Campaign 7) Forbes Article on Loyalty
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Apr 12, 2021 · 5 min#97: South African Loyalty Insights with Loyalty Expert - Deon Olivier
In this short episode, I summarise my discussion with Deon Olivier, a well-known loyalty expert in South Africa He shares some of the extraordinary powerful concepts that this sophisticated loyalty market has launched, including Discovery's famous Vitality program, some unique concepts within retail banking as well recent developments in fuel retail and convenience stores in the South African market. Show Notes: 1) Deon Olivier - Certified Loyalty Marketing Professional
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Apr 7, 2021 · 28 min#96: IAG Loyalty Shares New Trends including eStore, new Banking Propositions and Employee Loyalty
As the currency originally created and famously known as "Air Miles", Avios is now the loyalty currency of the five airlines of the IAG airline alliance, operated by IAG Loyalty Limited, which now boasts over 35 million members across airlines including British Airways, Aer Lingus and Iberia - airlines that together typically carry over 118 million passengers a year. Adam Daniels, CEO of IAG Loyalty Ltd, shares both the expected and unexpected changes that have emerged through the global pandemic, with major behaviour changes including how consumers and retail partners have discovered the extraordinary power of awarding Avios points for online shopping. We also discuss some new ideas for banking partnerships and also the power of the currency as a tool to drive employee loyalty, with concepts such as "Get Fit With Avios" proving hugely successful! This episode is sponsored by Valuedynamx (Part of the Collinson Group) Show Notes: 1) Adam Daniels Chief Executive Officer 2) IAG Loyalty 3) Collinson Group
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Apr 5, 2021 · 5 min#95: British Gas Rewards - Summary of Insights from this Award-Winning Loyalty Programme
This episode of "Let's Talk Loyalty" summarises my top insights from British Gas Rewards - an award-winning UK loyalty programme that's loved by millions. With a goal to make customers feel recognised and rewarded in an intensely competitive sector, British Gas Rewards developed an innovative concept without using points. With customers asking for simplicity and exclusivity, British Gas in partnership with their agency Mando Connect developed a concept that combined core rewards from British Gas in the form of "loyalty days" with exclusive partners offers across key categories that customers love. Listen to hear the highlights of my learnings from the British Gas Rewards loyalty programme or listen back to the full interview in December 2019. It's episode #16 of "Let's Talk Loyalty". Show Notes: 1) British Gas Rewards: https://www.britishgas.co.uk/rewards.html 2) British Gas Rewards Partnership Agency: www.Mando-Connect.co.uk 3) British Gas Rewards on Let's Talk Loyalty - Episode #16
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Mar 31, 2021 · 49 min#94: Global Coalition Loyalty Insights with Payback's CEO Bernhard Brugger
Recently voted one of the most innovative companies in Germany, Payback is a world-famous coalition loyalty programme, headquartered in Germany, that boasts over 80 million members. The company actually operates coalition programmes in six international markets, and enjoys extraordinary levels of engagement, with an extraordinary performance and over 95% of Payback Points redeemed by members! Berni Brugger is the CEO who has led the company for over twenty years from its humble origins as a simple multi-partner programme, through its acquisition by American Express, now to its current positioning as a global marketing technology and services company. In this show of "Let's Talk Loyalty", Berni highlights the amazing successes achieved over the last twenty years, the (surprising) continued popularity of postal mailings with members, as well as the retail sectors that are thriving despite the challenges of Covid 19. Show Notes: 1) Bernhard Brugger - CEO PAYBACK Global Loyalty Coalition 2) Payback Global Loyalty Coalition 3) Comarch Loyalty Marketing Platform