We are connected by stories.
They started as soon as we were born.
To name a few (many more in my memory) … The very hungry caterpillar, Oh the places you go, The little prince, Where the wild things are … and so on.
A few themes* through some of these are:
- growth, transformation and routine (The very hungry caterpillar)
- love, loss, responsibility and seeing with the heart (The little prince)
- identity through experience (Oh the places you go)
(*assistance provided by Chat GPT)
But, what about the stories of loyalty programs and the members who engage?
Ok, from stories that we grew up with to stories about loyalty program members… now that is a stretch!
Well, yes, it is… however that’s where the opportunity is, that’s where we find the gold (silver and platinum).
That’s where we find uniqueness.
Here are a few where we find a touch of humanity, heart, laughter, quirkiness and what the data reveals.
1. Cancer detection
2. Loyalty saves lives
3. Loyalty program helps to reveal cheating husband
4. Stories of your members…be they top <20> or any with a story
5. 125 punnets of strawberries, 93 banana’s and 81 cucumbers
6. Princess Polly, the wishlist (and other stories)
7. Gifting the 10th free coffee to a stranger
A little more detail on the above with references/links for more detail
1.Cancer detection: A story of how loyalty program data can prevent cancer
Boots loyalty card data analysed in new cancer detection study.
“Over a quarter of the UK population has a Boots Advantage Card, and this study represents the potential for everyday shopping data, when used responsibly, to be a powerful tool in helping customers spot and act on early healthcare warnings.”
2.Loyalty saves lives
A story shared by Jacqui Solly, Loyalty Manager at Australian Red Cross Lifeblood, and how their Gifts Program has literally saved 270,000 additional lives through a loyalty reward program
3.Loyalty program helps to reveal cheating husband
A story of how a cheating husband got caught through Coles and Bunnings Flybuys
4. Stories of your members…be they top <20> or any with a story
Flybuys 50 2022. Stories from the Squillionaire, Connoisseur, Host, Hacker, Agent, Underdog
5. My story of 125 punnets of strawberries, 93 bananas and 81 cucumbers
My wife is obsessed with Flybuys (this is not a sponsored story nor am I working with them) however I need to tell the story of when she received her ‘Year 2025 Wrap-Up’.
When the most popular purchased products were revealed, it set us all into a wow moment…125 punnets of strawberries (some kind of addiction), 93 bananas …about 1.4 kms lined up end to end and 81 cucumbers (school lunches).
But the story extends to a game of trivia that came from this when we sat as a family and she asked us to guess what the most purchased products were and how many…many LOL moments (now there’s an idea)
6. Princess Polly, the wishlist (and other stories)
In my series on Loyalty Leaders and back in October 2024 I interviewed Chloe Buxton of Princess Polly and to this day I recall the stories she shared on how they added Joyalty* Moments of Magic to their members for stories members will always share!
7. Gifting the 10th free coffee to a stranger = 63 stories
Unapologetically this is my story of a coffee card loyalty program that gave me the opportunity to gift the 10th free coffee to a stranger.
Why bother with stories?
Three very good reasons for stories:
Stories create deeper emotional connection.
Stories are remembered.
Stories are shared.
A challenge to loyalty program managers: Find ‘em. create ‘em. tell ‘em
Find stories of your program and of your members in the data and in their own words.
Create stories (use a story telling structure – there are many to choose from – here are 8 https://tinyurl.com/yb7sapbu
Tell more stories.
Have a happy loyalty day!
