Customer engagement is underrated. Most brands, especially new ones, focus on getting more sales and revenue while undermining the importance of engaging their customers.
Sadly, engaging your consumers is not easy. The human attention span is reducing, and brands need to be increasingly creative to keep their consumers engaged.
Loyalty programs and gamification are two effective ways to engage customers and encourage them to keep buying from you. And with a QR code generator, you can take your loyalty programs and gamification efforts to the next level.
Here’s how to use QR codes for loyalty and gamification.
How do gamification and loyalty programs go hand in hand?
Several studies and reports have confirmed that customer retention is cheaper and more profitable than acquiring new customers. The problem, however, is that retaining customers is no walk in the park. With so many brands offering amazing products and services at competitive prices, convincing customers to stick with your brand can be challenging.
Loyalty programs can help you retain customers and increase loyalty. 72% of US adults belong to at least one loyalty program, and over 70% of consumers will recommend a brand to others if it has a good loyalty program.
A loyalty program is a marketing and customer engagement strategy in which you incentivize customers to shop with you. Loyalty programs engage customers to buy more, resulting in more sales and revenue.
Gamification and loyalty programs
A study by Bond showed that gamification is the key driver of engagement and enjoyment in loyalty programs. Over 80% of users said they’d participate in a loyalty program if it has gamification.
For the uninitiated, gamification refers to introducing game-like elements like puzzles, quizzes, point-scoring, etc., in non-gaming environments to make the experience more immersive and enjoyable.
For example, in a loyalty program, users can complete tasks (like buying products) to earn points. Once they accumulate enough points, they can exchange them for purchase credits or real money.
Where do QR codes fit in the puzzle?
Though implementing a loyalty program is crucial for your business, encouraging offline customers to join your loyalty program can be challenging. You’ll need to make them download your app or visit your website to sign up for the loyalty program.
QR codes make your loyalty programs more accessible by bridging the gap between online and offline channels. For instance, you can print a QR code on your product packaging to redirect users to a web page where they can register for the loyalty program.
Hence, joining a loyalty program becomes faster and more convenient with QR codes.
Furthermore, QR codes can help you add an element of gamification to your loyalty program. You can use QR codes to gamify offline events, give away coupons and rewards, and make your marketing campaigns interactive.
How to use QR codes for loyalty and gamification?
You can use QR codes in multiple ways to enhance your loyalty program. Here’s how to use QR codes in your loyalty programs and gamification efforts:
Enable effortless joining for offline users
Brands can allow offline users to seamlessly join loyalty programs with QR codes. You can create a Landing Page QR code that redirects users to a landing page where they can register for the loyalty program. If you want users to download your mobile app to join the program, you can use an App Download QR code to redirect them to your mobile app.
Offer rewards and discount coupons
Brands regularly offer freebies, discount coupons, and other rewards to loyalty program members to keep them engaged. With QR codes, you can distribute rewards across online and offline channels and make them easier to claim. For instance, you can use a Coupon QR code to redirect users to a web page where they can obtain the coupon
Gamify activities and offer immersive experiences
If you want more users to engage with your brand, implementing gamification in your marketing and customer engagement strategy can help. For example, you can conduct a quiz about one of your products, and someone who gives all the right answers would win a special reward.
QR codes can help you redirect offline users to the quiz and increase participation. For example, you can create a Google Form for the quiz and use a Google Forms QR code to bring users to the quiz form.
Integrate AR into your campaigns
Augmented Reality (AR) is redefining customer engagement. Prominent brands like L’Oreal, Sephora, Lacoste, Coca-Cola, and IKEA have all used AR to offer immersive experiences to their consumers. AR also takes gamification to another level by making it more realistic.
QR codes make AR more accessible. You can deploy AR QR codes to allow users to access AR experiences on their devices.
Final thoughts
Loyalty programs are one of the most powerful strategies to increase customer retention and drive repeat purchases. When combined with gamification, loyalty programs can help you cultivate customer loyalty and increase sales and revenue. And with QR codes, you make your loyalty programs more accessible and improve customer engagement and satisfaction.