By Adam Posner, A Point of Loyalty
*Joyalty
A word I found in the book Brand Currency by Steve Susi. I loved it so much (for obvious reasons), I have borrowed it and redefined it to bring new meaning to loyalty programs and to inspire program managers to add a Joyalty* Program to their Loyalty Program!
(For those brands who choose not to have a loyalty program, perhaps consider a Joyalty* Program instead).
My definition of Joyalty* is:
“Your members’/customers’ feeling of maximum joy and delight from one or a series of Moments of Magic (MoMs) delivered by your loyalty program/brand”
How do you turn the idea of Joyalty* into the reality of a Joyalty* Program?
We have defined Joyalty* above. Therefore, a ‘Joyalty* Program’ is a
“Defined structure (planned spontaneity) of recognition, rewards and benefits delivered as one or a series of Moments of Magic (MoMs) to your members/customers without any expectation from them (surprise is critical) to generate the feeling of maximum joy and delight. The outcomes are social sharing, referrals, revenue and advocacy + a deeper emotional connection to your brand.“
Let’s look at the elements of a Joyalty* Program in order give some direction for turning the idea into a reality.
A defined structure of planned spontaneity – Seven Principles to consider
A Joyalty Program* can be spontaneous random acts of kindness without any planning, budget or results reporting, however the practical reality (and recommendation) is to plan your spontaneity!
Planning spontaneity (yes, it is an oxymoron) is a formal plan and designed program of MoMs (also known as surprise and delight.
Here are Seven Principles to consider:
1. Why a Joyalty* Program?
- Establish your goals and measurable objectives. The definition provided is a guide.
2. Who is the audience?
- Is it for all customers or for valuable segments of the customer base (see IKEA example below).
- An A/B selection of the base is an unbiased and randomised segmentation option.
- There’s also a signal in the data stimulating a MoM (see McDonalds example below)
3. What is the frequency of the Moments of Magic?
- Are they one-off or always-on?
4. What is the Moment of Magic (MoM)?
- Creativity is the key. ’Unexpected’ is fundamental.
- The not so secret, ‘secret sauce’ of a Joyalty* Progam’s success is your customers/ members NOT knowing or expecting the ‘Joyalty* Moments of Magic’. Sometimes it can become expected eg TimTam from Adore Society (see below), however there is still delight when it’s there!
- A hint is also to look into your Brand’s values and tone of voice.
5. How will you measure success?
- Word of mouth/ referrals
- Social sharing
- PR
- Incremental revenue – increased visitation and/or spend
6. What’s the cost vs revenue and the ROJ*I?
- How much budget will you allocate? Start with simple formula –audience volume x frequency x the cost of the Moment of Magic
- Then allocate costs to operationalise
- What is the revenue in less cost to deliver = Return on Moments of Magic Investment (RoMoMi) or I prefer – ROJ*I (Return on Joyalty* Investment).
7. Operationalise and report
- Strategy is one thing, execution is everything (enough said). Sometimes, although the intention is good, the unintended consequences can be tricky – be prepared for reactions such as ‘why did they get it and I did not’ calls to customer service or social media chat
- Report the success and the lessons learned
Team Empowerment
Consider how to empower your team with Joyalty* MoM’s they can give to customers. Maybe it’s a ‘Joyalty* MoM budget’ to use at their discretion at moments they feel it is required. (The monitoring of this can be captured through POS or CRM). The flow on positive impact on how your team feels when delivering these MoMs is another powerful outcome.
A few case studies
To bring to life the reality of the above, here are few examples of Joyalty* Programs, some on-off, some a series. (You will find more with a little searching).
- Good Acts Program from Woolworths
- The Baller Card campaign from IKEA
- McDonalds gifting an order to a sick customer (for those cynics out there commenting on this brand doing that act of kindness, please just see this as a moment of Joyalty* for the recipient)
- Adore Beauty and their TimTam with every order – watch the video of Kate Morris, founder of Adore beauty, sharing “why the TimTam” …it has some great insights. Spoiler alert – watch out for the words ‘surprise and delight’, word-of-mouth, a treat for you and ‘the moment of opening a box’…!
- Coles – “gifting thousands of its most engaged Flybuys members with a range of surprise presents”
- Urban Brew Coffee Pods customers voicemail (watch this video)…a few Joyalty* Moments of Magic as described by a customers
- An oldie but a goodie – classic Westjet Christmas surprise
While the above examples are focused on a B2C audience, a Joyalty* Program is also relevant to B2B audiences. The same principles apply as above with variations based on audience and relevance of the MoM (plus budget).
From transactional interaction to an emotional connection.
The purity of a Joyalty* Program is to give without expectation of measures of success.
I know this is a bit ‘lala-land thinking’ however a giving without getting (back) mindset is true abundance and genuine care for the customer!
The emotional connection generated is the essence of enhancing emotional loyalty and building the love for your brand!
From Loyalty Program to a Joyalty* Program
As you consider your Loyalty Program strategies for 2023, consider where a Joyalty* Program will deliver more MoMs for your members!
In summary, perhaps the ultimate power and proof point of a Joyalty* Program is the feeling your customers have from the Moment of Magic (MoM) – a feeling of maximum joy, delight and happiness.
Have a happy Joyalty* day!
P.S. If you are interested in our Joyalty* Program workshop (brand specific), please let me know (adam@thepointofloyalty.com.au)
P.S.S. In 2015 I gave a five-minute presentation on “building customer loyalty one surprise at a time”. Pity I did not have the Joyalty* word at that stage!
