Key takeouts• Two in three companies in Asia Pacific plan to invest heavily in marketing technology infrastructure to support loyalty innovation • Only one in four Asia Pacific companies have progressed to higher levels of maturity in their loyalty programmes, using targeted and personalised marketing to engage their customers • Global companies are turning to emerging technologies such as blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) to deliver enhanced customer loyalty programmes |
ASIA PACIFIC. Collinson, which specialises in consumer loyalty and benefits, and Salesforce a provider of customised loyalty management solutions, have released a joint Future of Customer Engagement and Loyalty report (click here to download).
The report showed that despite the numerous benefits and widespread acceptance of loyalty programmes, only one in four Asia Pacific companies has progressed to higher levels of maturity on their programmes.
According to the report, on average companies across the region have been using loyalty programmes to engage with their customers at a more basic level.
This includes offering general rewards and incentives, extending benefits through a points platform and communicating with them through traditional marketing channels.
The report contends that the use of targeted and personalised marketing to engage customers, offering time-relevant incentives and leveraging collaborations to offer rewards beyond their own brand, is largely absent from most programmes.
Across Asia Pacific, brands are most likely to use loyalty programmes to retain their customers (51%) or improve levels of engagement and member activity (46%).
The research also revealed that companies are looking to scale up investments in technology infrastructure to support loyalty innovation and to meet the challenges of changing customer expectations.
In addition, brands in Asia Pacific, particularly in Hong Kong, have shown a keen interest in investing in loyalty management systems and data management architectures. Almost one-third of respondents said that deploying cloud-based ecosystems will enable them to drive the largest return in the future.
This includes harnessing cutting-edge technology such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), the latter offering new value for customer engagement and loyalty programmes in the future.
Additionally, many companies are increasingly looking for ways to stand out by offering sustainability-focused benefits such as carbon offsets, digital rewards like cryptocurrency and special digital content as part of their loyalty offerings.
Collinson President Asia Pacific Todd Handcock said: “The growing digitisation of customer experiences combined with changing consumer preferences has made it increasingly difficult for brands to engage and retain the loyalty of even their most valuable customers. Brands need to constantly have a finger on the pulse of their customers to understand their expectations and deliver meaningful experiences that look and feel bespoke to them.
“Our enhanced relationship with Salesforce and full-spectrum loyalty expertise of nearly 35 years, allows us to leverage the power of Salesforce’s platform to unlock data-driven insights and help brands across Asia Pacific evolve their loyalty programmes to better engage their customers and truly add value to their lives.”
The research took the form of an online survey of 350 respondents in Singapore (100), Hong Kong (100) and Australia (150) working within the following sectors in each market: Financial Services (30%), Insurance (10%), Retail (30%) and Travel, Transport and Hospitality (30%).
The full report is available online: Future of Customer Engagement and Loyalty
