How to Enhance Customer Loyalty with Location Intelligence
February 7, 2021
As more consumers are vaccinated, most will go back to in-store shopping, while others will continue to shop both instore and online. The new customer buying journey is here, but how can companies keep up? Consumer data enrichment is key. Online consumer data only provides part of the picture in a post-COVID world, and real-world data solutions are needed to fill in those gaps. Location intelligence can help companies get the insights they need to connect the dots between offline and online consumer behavior.
Customer Data Enrichment
To keep up with the latest consumer trends, businesses can invest in enriching their online data with offline data such as in-store foot traffic. By enriching online customer data with location intelligence, marketing teams can have a 360-degree view of customers.
For example, an outdoor retailer’s customers are now only shopping online. Their most loyal customers were always enthusiastic about camping and hiking gear, especially tents. Based on the online data they have, the retailer can anticipate that this trend will continue in 2022.
The company is trying to figure out how to bring back these customers to their stores, so they start by analyzing online data. However, they’re just not getting the full picture of their customers’ new shopping habits. They decide to invest in enriching online data with consumer insights from foot traffic. Only then does the brand learn that many of their loyal customers have been visiting a retailer specializing in RV equipment.
With these insights, the outdoor retailer can now adjust their inventory of camping and hiking gear to include some RV-related equipment. Once they have that inventory, the company’s marketing and advertising department can create personalized messaging that appeals to former customers who are now interested in RV camping.
Customer Loyalty Revisited
Loyal customers are repeat buyers – whether they purchase products and services online or in-person. According to an Accenture study, “57% of consumers spend more on brands to which they are loyal.” Before the coronavirus pandemic, the customer journey for loyal customers may have been pretty consistent. They might have alternated between shopping online and going to a physical store location. But during the COVID-19 lockdowns, many of those loyal customers stopped shopping in-person and kept the online shopping habit even after restrictions were lifted.
Now, many companies are left wondering: “How can we reconnect with our loyal customers if their shopping habits have changed?” Foot traffic data is one way that businesses can understand the preferences and interests of their customers. By understanding where their most loyal customers are now spending their time, brands can adjust their marketing and advertising messages to reflect those new preferences.
We analyzed return visits to Starbucks to determine how loyal their customers are. Based on our data, we found that 10% of Starbucks visitors return again within 1 day and 16% within 2 days. How can Starbucks use this customer loyalty data? They can advertise discounts to customers who return within 2 or more days via their mobile app to encourage more frequent visits.
Enhancing Customer Loyalty in 2022
This year, many businesses will be balancing customer loyalty initiatives with meeting consumer demand amid supply chain issues. Data enrichment is going to continue to play a critical role in building customer loyalty. With real-world data like location intelligence, companies across different industries can measure customer loyalty and determine how to rebuild customer retention. For more information on using location intelligence to measure customer loyalty and data enrichment, speak to an expert at Gravy Analytics.
