In today's fiercely competitive business landscape, standing out has become more crucial than ever. A loyalty program for your lash store is no longer a mere luxury; it's a critical strategy for ensuring customer retention and loyalty. To maintain a loyal customer base, implementing an engaging loyalty program that aligns with current trends and customer preferences is essential. This could be the transformative tool your business needs to build strong, enduring relationships with your customers and keep them returning time and time again.
With the loyalty insights, customer retention ideas, and loyalty marketing strategies detailed in this guide, you'll be well-equipped to create an enriched digital rewards program for your lash store.
Let's dive in and outline a path to sustained success and customer satisfaction for your lash and brow store.
Why Having A Lash Store Loyalty Program Is Important
Image of a lash technician and a woman on a spa bed. Image source: Canva
Before we explore how to implement a lash store loyalty program, let's first understand why your business needs one in the first place.
First and foremost, you might be surprised to learn that acquiring a new customer costs five times more than retaining an existing one. This means that the regulars with whom you're on a first-name basis, or the ones who visit every few weeks for a new set of lash extensions, are the perfect target audience for a successful loyalty program.
Moreover, a quality lash store loyalty program serves as a magnet, attracting potential customers and strengthening the bond with existing ones. When your customers enjoy your program, they naturally become advocates; in fact, 74% of consumers consider word of mouth a key influencer in their purchasing decisions.
A loyalty program can transform a routine lash appointment into an engaging experience, encouraging repeat business through exclusive perks, surprises, and personalized offers.
Furthermore, going digital with your lash store loyalty program provides you with insights into customer preferences, buying patterns, and behavior. This allows you to tailor both your program and your business to meet their needs. This is crucial since only 45% of consumers feel understood by a brand. A digital loyalty program sets your brand apart and strengthens your relationship with your customers.
Now that you understand the benefits of a lash store retention program, let's delve into how to go about it.
Designing Your Lash Store Loyalty Program
Understanding your target market is the first step in crafting your lash store loyalty program. To offer enticing and exciting rewards, it's vital to understand your customers' preferences.
Engage with your customers through surveys, online reviews, and personal interactions to gather essential insights. Regular customers can provide direct feedback on preferred services and desired rewards. After all, who knows your business better?
Analyze customer data, such as purchasing trends and habits, to pinpoint patterns, further customizing the program for your specific customer base. With a deep understanding of your customers, you can begin the enjoyable task of designing your lash store loyalty program.
When choosing a reward structure, you have several options: lash store loyalty program ideas such as tiered rewards systems, point accumulation, or referral bonuses can provide a starting point for creating a program that attracts more lash clients and keeps them coming back.
Spend-based model: In this model, customers earn loyalty points in proportion to their spending, creating a clear and straightforward program that is easy to manage and understand.
Examples:
Item-based model: This model rewards customers for repeated purchases of the same product or service, motivating them to return for their favorite offering. This is typically the most suitable loyalty model for lash & brow services, considering that the service is repeatable.
Examples:
Crafting a simple yet effective loyalty program structure for your lash store is more important than ever, as a staggering 53% of customers prefer a loyalty program that is easy to use, and nearly 40% appreciate simplicity. Your clientele is more likely to engage with a program that offers clear and immediate benefits, without convoluted terms and conditions.
We advocate for a digital stamp card platform, an easy yet effective method for customers to earn stamps with each qualifying purchase or visit, leading to delightful rewards. Simple and effective for your lash store loyalty program!
When shaping the reward structure of your program, leverage customer research to identify enticing rewards. Here's a brief overview of various types of rewards to consider for your lash store's loyalty program.
Discounts: Discounts are a great reward option as they give your customers the freedom to apply their reward to any product or service they desire, rather than being limited to a specific item. For example, "20% off your next lash lift after five purchases."
Free services/products: Offering free services or products as a reward is a tried-and-true method for a lash store loyalty program because, let's be honest, who doesn't love getting something for free, especially when it's something they regularly purchase? For instance, "collect five stamps and get a free lash tint!"
Exclusive access: Your loyal customers want to feel special to your business, and exclusive access rewards are a great way to show them how much they mean to you. This could come in the form of exclusive samples of new products for your customers to try.
Experiential rewards: Experiential rewards can give customers access to exclusive in-store, virtual, or live events. Perhaps an "earn ten stamps for an Ultimate Lash & Brow Experience" would make a great experiential reward, as it goes beyond just discounts or free items and offers customers a special day of luxury and relaxation.
Within your lash store's loyalty program, your rewards should reflect the value to your customers and show them why they should engage with it. Think about potential sign-up and interim rewards as well, which can further distinguish your lash store loyalty program and make the path to the main reward more engaging.
Embracing a Digital Loyalty Strategy
In the digital era, the shift from paper-based programs to mobile apps and online platforms is evident. Digital loyalty platforms and apps offer numerous benefits, including heightened customer engagement, lower costs, and access to valuable customer data.
Importantly, 75% of consumers are more likely to engage with loyalty programs that are easily accessible through smartphones, which is why it's crucial for lash stores to cater to the digital demands of their clients.
If you're looking to run a stamp-based program, "Yummy Loyalty" is the perfect solution. Beyond just a loyalty app, it offers scalability and customization options for your lash store, while also providing a seamless and engaging experience for users. With communication features, engagement campaigns, gamification, and access to customer data, it is the ultimate digital solution.
What Can You Do with a Digital Lash Store Loyalty Program?
A digital lash store loyalty program offers a myriad of possibilities for enhancing customer engagement, driving sales, and reinforcing brand loyalty.
Here are some simple and effective ways you could engage with your loyal customers through a digital loyalty platform like "Yummy Loyalty":
Targeted communications & offers: Having a digital loyalty platform opens up a direct communication channel between your lash store and your lash loyalty clients, as you can communicate via push notifications and SMS directly to your members. Send real-time updates about new products, exclusive sales, and events directly to customers' devices. For instance, you could encourage customers to come in on days when appointments are lacking by sending a time-based reward, i.e., "Come in this Tuesday for 40% off lash tints!"
Gamification: Gamification builds excitement around your program while giving members a new, different way to earn prizes. For example, you could implement "Yummy Loyalty's" Scratch & Win feature into your loyalty program and give someone the chance to win a free eyelash extension each time someone collects their stamp for a service.
Birthday Club Campaign: Creating a Birthday Club campaign for your lash store loyalty program will have your loyal customers feeling appreciated on their special day. You can customize it to include a reward: "Happy Birthday! Here's 10% off your next appointment!" Or simply a nice message to give your customers a more personalized experience with your lash store.
Surprise & Delight: "Yummy Loyalty" allows you to send random rewards via our mobile app to surprise and delight your customers. Why is this such a good loyalty marketing tactic? Because unexpectedly rewarding customers strengthens emotional bonds and boosts brand engagement. For lash stores, surprise tactics can include free product samples, exclusive event invitations, complimentary services, discounts, and unexpected service upgrades. Incorporating these surprise elements significantly enriches customer experiences, transforming occasional shoppers into devoted brand enthusiasts.
Implementing a Marketing & Launch Strategy
Once you've designed and set up your loyalty program, it's critical to plan and execute a marketing & launch strategy to ensure its success.
Here are some ideas:
Hype it up on social media: Give your customers a sneak peek of what's to come. Share updates, post special offers, and continually encourage your followers to join your program.
In-store signage: Use simple signs and posters for customers to read when booking their next appointment or walking by. When marketing your lash store loyalty program, inform your customers how to sign up, what rewards will be available, and how they can redeem their points with you. For "Yummy Loyalty" businesses, within your Merchant Console, you have access to a plethora of downloadable marketing materials for you to use for hyping up your loyalty program.
Train your staff: Comprehensively train your staff on your loyalty program and make sure they're comfortable onboarding your customers. As they are the first point of contact, this is crucial.
Create an email campaign: Integrate your loyalty program with an email marketing platform, like Mailchimp, to spread the word about your lash loyalty program and monitor the response.
Host a launch event: Throw a special launch event to introduce your lash loyalty program to your existing and potential clients. Seize this chance to highlight the program's perks, offer initial rewards, and possibly showcase testimonials to create excitement. Promote the event via social media and email newsletters to engage a broader audience.
Ongoing Loyalty Program Analysis & Customer Feedback
Monitor data such as reward redemptions and stamp accumulation rates, in addition to analyzing customer spending patterns. If activity is low, it's critical to implement strategies to drive participation. Make it a point to ask for and welcome feedback from your members. You can even incentivize them with a free stamp for doing so!