A brand lives and dies by its customers– especially its repeat customers. Developing a repeat customer base is also typically less expensive and time-consuming than attracting new customers. 

The question then becomes, how can businesses turn their existing customers into loyal customers? 

One simple and effective way is to offer a customer loyalty card.

Punch Card Loyalty Programs 

Rewards programs come in all shapes and sizes. A tried-and-true customer loyalty card idea used by business owners is a punch card. 

This approach encourages customer retention by giving customers a reward after making a certain number of purchases. For example, a coffee shop may offer a loyalty card that earns a customer a free beverage after their card is punched ten times. 

Punch card loyalty programs can become a key part of a business’ marketing strategy. Repeat customers become like unofficial brand ambassadors, spreading priceless positive word-of-mouth and becoming an important source of new referrals. 

How to Make a Successful Customer Loyalty Card Program

If you’re considering different customer loyalty card ideas, you should know that creating a punch card loyalty program is extremely cost-effective and simple.

Best of all, the potential return on investment is huge. Punch cards add to your bottom line for years to come by incentivizing both current and first-time customers to make more purchases.

Decide on the Reward

The first step is choosing which perks or freebies to offer as the reward for your loyalty program. This will depend on what type of business you run and who your prospective and current customers are. Some loyalty program examples include:

• A clothing store offering a 10% discount on a purchase after eight purchases
• A yoga gym offering a free personal session after a customer has paid for ten classes
• A bed and breakfast offering a free night’s stay after five previous bookings and check-ins

In choosing which rewards to offer, remember that gamification, which uses game-like elements to drive consumer behavior, is a powerful addition to your marketing strategy. The rewards you offer should be worthy of working towards so you can generate that all-important return business. 

The right rewards elevate the overall customer experience. They can make your current customers feel like VIPs, as well as give first-time shoppers a reason to come back later.

Design

In creating your loyalty rewards program, don’t overlook the importance of the punch card itself. It should have a look and feel aligned with your branding to create a cohesive brand image and take advantage of brand recognition.

Colors, fonts, images, and design elements all should be selected to highlight and emphasize your company and its unique value proposition. 

Ideally, the card should feel personalized and stand out from those of other retailers. When your reward customers go into their wallets to fish out their punch cards for your business, the cards should be immediately recognizable. Your customers should also feel a sense of pride when they use them, which is an important part of developing brand loyalty.

Print and Promote

The final steps in the process are printing and promoting your business’s loyalty program punch cards. 

Don’t be shy about getting the word out. Display the printed cards in your brick-and-mortar shop, if you have one, so they catch customers’ eyes when they’re shopping and at the checkout counter. Have your employees offer to sign customers up for the program as they are ringing up purchases. This also gives your staff a chance to explain the details of the points system and generate interest in it. 

Email marketing and social media are also fantastic ways to attract loyalty program members. Many brands like to build an air of exclusivity around their loyalty programs by offering repeat customers special offers, such as early access to new products. You may also wish to encourage word-of-mouth by offering an extra reward to customers if they refer people to the program. 

Bring Your Customer Loyalty Card Ideas to Life

A punch card is one of the best customer loyalty programs to implement, allowing you to take your business to new levels of success by building a base of loyal customers who consistently support your brand and make purchases month after month, year after year.

You can start building your program today with Banana Print’s design and printing services for loyalty cards. No matter what type of loyalty program you choose, Banana Print makes it easy to create, design, and print loyalty cards. Design your own or choose a pre-built template and have your cards printed and dispatched within 24 hours.