One of the most common question marketers ask me when building a loyalty program is, “Should I offer a discount in my loyalty welcome email?” The answer might be “yes” if you’re in a high-margin or commoditized business, but I always urge marketers to get creative and consider ways outside of discounting to differentiate your brand and reward your loyal customers.

Remember: The cardinal sin of running a loyalty program is creating discount-seekers if that mindset isn't already prevalent. To avoid this pitfall, I suggest marketers think first about how to use margins to fund epic experiences for your customers (think VIP meet-and-greets) and consider discounting as a last resort.

In this short video, I outline some of the factors to think about when deciding what type of reward to offer and provide examples to get you thinking as you’re building your loyalty program.

Related Resources:
1) Tip Sheet: “7 Tips for  Creating an Effective Modern-Day Loyalty Program”
2) Blog: “Purchase Behaviors, Promo Codes and Offers, Oh My!”
3) Blog: “Taking Loyalty Beyond the Discount”