Incentive - April 2008 - (Page 68)

Make a Splash PAGE 70 Worth a Thousand Words PAGE 72 From inflatable tubes to waterproof gadgets, waterrelated leisure awards deliver Does your winner prefer wasabi green or bohemian brown? These colorful cameras make for memorable awards Building Loyalty New white paper asks where rewards programs fit into consumer engagement puzzle By Alex Palmer That Homemade Taste M new white paper from Allegiance, the South Jordan, Utah–based customer loyalty research and consulting company, encourages corporations to cultivate a relationship of open communication and positive interactions in addition to their points-based rewards programs. In the white paper, titled “Buying Loyalty: Do Rewards Programs Translate Into Customer Engagement?” market statistician and Allegiance loyalty expert Kyle LaMalfa discusses the high popularity and value of rewards programs, while exploring where they are most effectively used to strengthen bonds between customer and brand. “Rewards programs have become a business in and of themselves,” writes LaMalfa. “What was once seen as a unique marketing strategy…has become a common or ‘must-have’ part of an overall marketing strategy.” LaMalfa draws on the work of several loyalty experts, and particularly on Colloquy’s Loyalty Census, released last May, that pegged U.S. rewards program membership at a whopping 1.3 billion—a point of A “saturation,” according to Colloquy magazine. Allegiance’s white paper suggests that with the expansion of loyalty programs, companies must review where their rewards programs are most effective. He warns against using programs to aid customer service in ways for which they are not ideal, such as in responding to a customer complaint—by giving bonus points, rather than ensuring the mistake does not happen again. The paper argues that greater value can be gained in areas like gathering customer data. Ongoing rewards programs allow companies to learn about their customers and their spending habits over time, in ways that sporadic sales or discount offers do not. LaMalfa says that for a program to be effective, this data should be used to predict customer preferences and spending behavior, decide which customers are the high-value loyal ones and which are only occasional shoppers, and to determine where marketing efforts can most effectively be aimed. Send comments to alex.palmer@nielsen.com rs. Fields Cookies recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. For its three decades in business— about seven with a specific corporate gifting arm, Mrs. Fields Gifts—the company has worked to maintain the homemade appeal that’s been its trademark. When it comes to its incentive gift options, this personal touch is especially evident. “Employers really want to make the gift receiver feel as if they went out and did something special for them,” says Cassie Alvey, director of sales for Mrs. Fields. “You can take any one of our standard or classic baskets or tins and add a sentiment to it. You can really go that extra mile to make it look like it was specifically selected for that person and that occasion.” The people at Mrs. Fields Gifts, working with their inhouse artists, can develop packaging and decorations from scratch. A pet store client was able to get a box shaped like a dog bone, a professional sports team got one in the shape of a jersey. A company doing a sales incentive program with the theme “You’re a Star” ordered a custom-made selection of star-shaped sugar cookies. One of Mrs. Fields’ newest offerings is the Logo Cookie, which allows clients to print their full-color logo onto the treat with edible ink. “One of the things that sets our [Logo Cookie] apart from our competitor is the taste and the texture,” says Alvey. “Instead of being a standard shortbread cookie, this is actually a butterbased cookie that tastes really nice [and] the sweet frost makes it taste extra good.” —ADP For more information, visit www.mrsfields.com/ categories/corporate_gifts 68 | Incentive | April 2008 | incentivemag.com http://www.mrsfields.com/ http://incentivemag.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Incentive - April 2008

Incentive - April 2008
Contents
Editor’s Note: Publicity-Shy Pharmaceuticals
In The News
Cover Story: AstraZeneca on Incentives and Giving Back
Incentive Interview: Hotelier Stephanie Sonnabend
Case Study: U.S. Cellular Celebrates Coming of Age
De-Stressing the Workplace
Incentive Primer: Social Networking On the Job
Original Research: Incentive Merchandise IQ Report
Travel News
San Diego’s Gaslamp District Gets Hotter
Voluptuous Vienna
potentials Here and Now
Make A Splash With Water Sports Awards
Zoom In On Digital Cameras
Gift Cards: Resellers Add More Than Choice
Advertiser Index
Off The Cuff: Secrets of the Mayflower Spa
Special Supplement-Las Vegas Incentive Planners Guide

Incentive - April 2008