Brand Awareness and Loyalty
The primary objective of marketers and advertisers is to present ideas in a manner that is so convincing that consumers will not just purchase a product or service once, but will do so repeatedly over time. Companies must thus remind customers of their product’s unique benefits using messaging that resonates with consumer needs and values. Branding, product marketing, and loyalty marketing all form part of the customer proposition – the subjective assessment by the customer on whether to purchase a brand based on the value they receive from each of these marketing elements.
As companies compete for consumer attention across print, television, radio, and the Internet, promotional tools such as reward and discount programs are repeatedly offered to loyal customers in return for their continued business. The airline industry’s frequent flyer program is a successful example of loyalty marketing. These programs rely on the earned loyalty of current customers to attract new loyalty from future customers. However, exclusive incentive programs must strike a balance between increasing benefits for new customers over any existing loyalty plan they are currently in and keeping existing customers from moving to new plans.