1.1. The problem of staff loyalty So, what is loyalty? What does the term itself mean, which is very pleasant to the ear. Loyalty (English and French Loyal - “faithful to duty and circumstances, committed to authority”) - respect for authorities and loyalty to existing laws. Besides,

2.4.4. Working conditions and loyalty Working conditions are a very loose and amorphous concept. This is not a salary or fear of administrative sanctions. This is something else... In connection with the issue we are considering, it is appropriate to turn to F. Herzberg’s theory of motivation, which received

Suppliers manage to retain customers for various reasons. There are five types of loyalty. Most of them have little to do with the original meaning of the word, not including fidelity, devotion, or duty.

(a) Loyalty to monopoly

This is an extreme case, which nevertheless illustrates our point well. If the client has little or no choice, his "loyalty" has nothing to do with devotion, because it is forced and often dissatisfied. Our experience with hundreds of satisfaction surveys has shown that customers who don't have enough choice tend to be completely dissatisfied.

(b) Loyalty due to difficulty of transition

There are suppliers who are in a competitive situation, but only nominally. A customer may only switch to another supplier "in theory" because the costs, complexity or anxiety associated with such a switch are too great. In such cases, consumers resort to changing suppliers only as a last resort. According to our research, they tend to tolerate levels of satisfaction that are well below normal. However, such reluctance to change suppliers can hardly be considered true loyalty, and certainly does not imply fidelity, duty and devotion.

(c) Loyalty by Interest

The strategy of building loyalty through a loyalty rewards program is perhaps the most popular in recent years. It may have some effect on consumers who don't spend their money, such as those who regularly fly on business, but the success of US Southwest Airlines and UK EasyJet debunks this myth. Most UK citizens have discount cards from more than one of competing supermarkets, chain stores, airlines and petrol stations, and view the accumulation of benefits as merely an addition to the main benefits of one or another provider. It is characteristic that in recent years the British market has been dominated by the ASDA supermarket, which offers a very wide selection of products and operates under the motto “low prices every day”, however, like the other three large supermarkets, it does not have a system for accumulating discounts! At the end of May, Safeway followed suit, canceling its ABC Points savings card.

(d) Loyalty by force of habit

Habit is perhaps the most common reason that a client turns to the same supplier. Consumers have less and less time, and habitual routine decisions become part of their lives. Groceries for the week are bought at the same supermarket because it is convenient and familiar. The car fills up with petrol at the same station on the way to work, and after work colleagues meet at the same pub. As a result, companies with a large proportion of repeat customers are sometimes given a false sense of security when in fact true commitment to a particular supplier may then be very low. If a new supermarket, pub or petrol station comes along that is more convenient, modern or cheaper, the old supplier may find that the previous high level of customer loyalty was no longer based on any solid basis.

(e) Commitment

Compare "loyalty, devotion and duty" in the four previous cases with the loyalty of fans of a football club. The latter have loyalty, devotion, and a sense of duty, often rooted in core values ​​- from childhood they believe that, for example, “Manchester United is the best!” - and not in external circumstances.

However, a business is not a football club; it cannot inspire purely emotional, irrational commitment. Companies must continually earn customer loyalty, day after day, by delivering products and services that meet their needs every time they meet with a customer.

True customer loyalty involves more than just repeat purchases. It must contain a positive commitment from the customer to the supplier, and a high degree of this commitment distinguishes truly loyal customers. It can be used in measuring customer satisfaction to segment the customer base and identify groups of customers whose loyalty is at risk. Customers in different loyalty segments perceive your organization's activities differently and therefore require different strategies.

Thus, when striving to retain customers, one should focus on commitment rather than loyalty. The latter often manifests itself in consumer behavior: they tend to recommend their preferred supplier to others, are willing to travel further than necessary or pay a higher price, and believe that their chosen supplier is the best on the market. Our research, however, shows that most "loyal" customers do not rate their existing suppliers above other companies, thus making them easy targets for competitors.

Although it is naive to expect “loyalty” in the full sense of the word from clients of commercial structures, their commitment can be achieved. Most organizations have these best clients, but often the number is very small. According to our research, in many cases their number does not exceed 10% even for the most well-known suppliers. However, the importance of such “faithful” clients is difficult to overestimate. Having worked with a supplier for a long time, they are more likely than others to purchase goods and services, and, as a rule, a wider range of them, are less sensitive to price and are willing to pay an average of 9% more. They are more likely to recommend the company to their friends and pay less attention to competitors. Of course, there is no point in expecting true devotion and a sense of duty from a client, but constant affection can be earned by making certain efforts, the reward for which will be enormous. However, strategic and tactical decisions must be made based on reliable information about customer loyalty and the optimal approach to achieving it, which is contained in the remaining three articles in this series.

Customer retention and customer loyalty are not the same thing. The consumer may remain constant due to habit or the high costs of switching suppliers without experiencing any loyalty.

The concept of loyalty has roots in the past, suggesting qualities such as fidelity, devotion and a sense of duty. It is unreasonable for a business enterprise to expect such feelings from customers.

Loyal consumers have a high degree of positive commitment to the supplier.

To effectively influence customer loyalty, an organization needs reliable means of measuring the level of customer loyalty, a good understanding of its main driving motives and business benefits.

Today, there is a unclear distinction between the terms “consumer loyalty” and “brand loyalty.” They were developed at different times and within the framework of different concepts: the term “brand loyalty” was introduced in the early 20s in the USA and was developed within the framework of the concept of branding, and the term “consumer loyalty” began to actively develop in the 80s years within the framework of the concept of relationship marketing. Brand loyalty is one of the types of consumer loyalty that developed primarily for consumer goods, therefore the methodology developed for this area has limited application, and the concept that defines the entire category of customer loyalty should be considered “consumer loyalty.”

Different approaches to the interpretation of the nature and structure of consumer loyalty lead to different definitions, which leads to the absence of a unified approach to measurements and ways to increase consumer loyalty. In general, customer loyalty can be represented as a combination of two components - behavior and attitude. Depending on their presence, three types of loyalty are distinguished: behavioral, perceived (perceptual) and complex (Fig. 1).

Rice. 1.

The most complete, taking into account the nature of consumer loyalty, are the definitions of complex loyalty, as combining both components, behavior and attitude. An analysis of approaches to determining complex consumer loyalty showed that it is a consequence of high satisfaction and high switching barriers. This made it possible to clarify the existing definition of Jacobi and Chestnut: complex consumer loyalty is a stable (not rare) behavioral response (purchase), lasting for a certain time, made by a person making an independent purchase decision, which consists in choosing one product (brand, company) from a number similar products (brands, firms) and is a consequence of satisfaction and high switching barriers.

Different industry specifics also influence the definition of consumer loyalty. Each product, having its own characteristics, implies a different loyalty profile, i.e. different characteristics in the behavior and attitude of loyal consumers. This, on the one hand, enriches the concept of consumer loyalty, and on the other hand, makes it difficult to unify and use the same tools for researching and increasing consumer loyalty indicators in different industries.

Analysis of the works of foreign and domestic researchers on the nature and structure of consumer loyalty in different industries made it possible to systematize indicators of consumer loyalty for both components of loyalty, behavior and attitude (Table 3):

Table 3

Indicators characterizing types of consumer loyalty

Complex loyalty does not have its own separate indicators, because is a combination of behavioral and perceived loyalty.

The work determines the dependence of loyalty types on two groups of factors: industry specifics and consumer specifics. (Table 4)

Table 4

Factors that determine the type of consumer loyalty

These factors are also responsible for the need to manage loyalty.

Industry factors determine the overall feasibility of customer loyalty management and do not determine the choice of loyalty type:

• - intensity of competition. Loyalty management is required when competition is high and not required when competition is low;
• - stage of the life cycle of the market for a product or service. At the growth stage, new consumers are more important, and at the maturity and saturation stages, existing consumers are more important;
• - degree of differentiation of the product category. In non-branded product and service categories, it is impossible to establish a link between loyalty and profitability, so loyalty management is impractical. On the contrary, for brands, i.e. goods and services with a high degree of differentiation, consumer loyalty is one of the most important indicators of their strength.

Consumer factors determine the choice between types of loyalty:

• - switching barriers. Companies that have been able to achieve high switching costs by creating switching barriers can monitor the “basic” level of satisfaction, or focus on indicators characterizing behavioral loyalty. When switching barriers are low, the relevance of managing perceived loyalty increases;
• - product involvement. The higher the product involvement, the more significant the perceptual or perceived loyalty is, and, accordingly, the lower its level, the more important the formation of behavioral and, to a lesser extent, perceptual loyalty;
• - the frequency of purchases and the frequency of other types of interaction with the seller (for example, contacting technical support) determine the importance of behavioral loyalty. With a high frequency of purchases, it is necessary to ensure high values ​​of indicators for behavioral loyalty, and with a low frequency - high values ​​of indicators for perceived loyalty;
• - number of buyers. If the product is intended for a narrow circle of consumers, then the loss of one such buyer can be a significant loss for the company, and therefore it is necessary to constantly monitor satisfaction and brand image (company reputation). For goods and services of mass demand, in most cases, it is possible to limit ourselves to measuring only behavioral loyalty - a decrease in its level will be a sign that the company has problems associated with consumer perception of its activities.

The situations that determine the choice of loyalty type depending on industry and consumer factors are described: (Table 5)

Table 5

Situations for choosing the type of loyalty depending on industry and consumer factors

If you prefer complex consumer loyalty, when not all of the above factors are expressed to the required extent, it is advisable to use behavioral indicators to analyze the “attitude” component of loyalty in order to reduce research costs.

Analysis of the most well-known approaches of foreign authors to the use of consumer loyalty in the formation of management decisions made it possible to highlight the principles of customer loyalty management: .

• - differentiated offer - the main factor causing loyalty is offering unique value to the consumer. It is almost impossible to cultivate loyalty to a product that has no competitive differences;
• - selection of consumers with a high level of internal loyalty - socio-demographic characteristics such as gender, age, social status, income, etc. influence the initial propensity of consumers to change suppliers. Accordingly, the enterprise’s task is to identify for its industry consumers who are capable of being the most loyal based on socio-demographic and psychographic characteristics. The methodology for assessing customer lifetime value (CLV) can serve as a tool for diagnosing the internal level of customer loyalty;
• - differentiation of work with clients - the most loyal and profitable clients deserve greater privileges than less loyal and less profitable clients;
• - control of customer migration indicators - the most sensitive blow to the company’s income comes from customers whose consumption patterns change - reduction and irregularity of purchases. Efforts aimed at preventing even small reductions in consumer spending are ten times more effective than measures with only one goal - to retain the consumer;
• - motivation of all employees - increasing customer loyalty is impossible with the help of one marketing department, this should be one of the top priorities at the management level, the entire company should be
• - customer-oriented;
• - creation of switching barriers - along with increasing satisfaction and quality of service, it is also necessary to simultaneously create high switching barriers, one type of which is loyalty programs.

The book describes various important aspects of customer loyalty. The book is intended for serious established and potential specialists, teachers, retailers, graduate students, etc., interested in obtaining systematized practical knowledge. The book was prepared by an author who has many publications in the field of practical marketing. The material in the book is well structured; it is aimed at a comprehensive and multifaceted understanding of the nuances of the problem of customer loyalty.

I CONSUMER LOYALTY

1.1 The concept of consumer loyalty, its main types

The concept of consumer loyalty (customer loyalty)

Sacred sentimentality Stings a dream at the temple. And easy loyalty will laugh, Spilling the moon with the carelessness of a stroke.

(Yana Barsukova)

Consumer loyalty (customer loyalty) is understood as consumer commitment to a particular company, its brand, its brand. It is motivated by the habit, firmly ingrained in the subconscious and consciousness of a person, of purchasing a product (service) of a given specific company that creates and/or sells it, and rejecting alternatives (even if sales conditions, such as prices and material benefits received, worsen).

This is why well-known and financially strong companies value their existing loyal customers so much, who cost them 5 and even 10 times less than new customers. After all, loyal customers spend on average 67% more of their money on company goods or services than new customers.

Loyalty is more than the cold and rational calculation of the client. It is, rather, his love and devotion to the company, its brand, its products. It's something more heartfelt and sentimental than just buying and selling.

Forward-thinking companies think seriously about what they do and can do to ensure that their customers return to their business again and again, and not change it to another business (another company, another store). They develop and implement loyalty programs and take care of increasing their effectiveness.

Loyalty is usually divided into:

a) behavioral, determined by the client’s behavior when making a purchase;

b) perceived (shaped by the client's preferences and opinions).

There are different classifications of both loyalty and customers. Company employees need to know them in order to better understand different aspects of loyalty and customers, since the success of companies and stores largely depends on this.

Components and measurement of loyalty

Behavioral loyalty consists of a number of components:

Cross-selling of goods and services (cross-selling) and upselling. The determination of the component is ensured by calculating the number of additional company products purchased by the client in a specific time period and the cost of the average bill.

Upselling, if we consider it in a simplified way, is a sales technique that involves putting forward an offer by the seller (merchant) addressed to the buyer. It consists of the latter purchasing something additional to his main purchase, or purchasing a more expensive product (a more expensive version of the product) with improved properties (qualities). The idea of ​​the technique is to gently push the client to go beyond the amount of money that he was initially willing to spend on purchasing a product in the name of improving his own life and receiving pleasure (satisfaction).

People often confuse upselling with cross-selling. If we talk about cross-selling, then this technique involves offering customers goods (services) that can complement the main products. For example, if a buyer is offered an offer for a media player or game console (these are additional products) for a TV (this is the main product), the cross-selling technique is used.

If a store/company offers the buyer the purchase of additional options or a more expensive version of the product he liked (or purchased), we can talk about the upselling technique. Also, offering to purchase an additional warranty is an example of upselling.

Increasing the size of your purchases. The determination of the component is ensured by calculating the growth in the size of the customer’s purchase of goods (share or amount) in a certain time period.

Repeat purchases. Determination of the component is achieved by counting the number of repeat purchases made by the customer.

Maintaining a good level of customer interaction with the company. Determination of a component is achieved by identifying the level of relative constancy in the purchase amount of a product for a specific time period.

Measuring behavioral loyalty in a company (store) is carried out by:

– share of wallet (it is necessary to identify the relative share of purchases of a particular brand in comparison with the total number of purchases of products in this category);

– level of cross-selling;

– share of visits (it is necessary to ensure a comparison of the number of visits by a client to a given retail outlet/company with the total number of visits by him to all stores/companies);

– client values ​​(it is necessary to determine the client’s contribution to the profit/income of a given company/store);

– the frequency of the client’s relationship with the store/company, the duration of this relationship and their monetary value (requires finding out how much money the client pays for purchases, how often he buys, and when he made his last purchase).

Measuring perceived loyalty is achieved through surveys among experts and/or customers. Indicators such as customer awareness and satisfaction are taken into account.

AWARENESS. Defining an awareness indicator is essentially identifying the degree to which a company is known in the market (its target market). It can also be determined by counting the number of recommendations from existing clients that help attract other (new) clients.

SATISFACTION. The determination of the satisfaction indicator is based on the client's assessment of such components as: the quality of the most important benefits provided to clients and the company's process of selling its goods and/or services; the value of the services provided and products sold. It is taken into account that consumer satisfaction is influenced by numerous factors (both social and personal, and factors considered as situational). Atmospheric marketing has a particular impact on customer satisfaction in retail.

Types of customer loyalty, differing in the criteria for its presence

There are several types of customer loyalty, differing in the criteria for its presence:

Loyalty that is absolute. This type of loyalty is characterized by a situation where a high level of behavioral loyalty corresponds to the same high level of perceived loyalty. This type of loyalty for the company is the most favorable in terms of the chances of retaining the client due to only sufficient maintenance of the developed quality standards.

Loyalty that is not explicit (that is, it is hidden). With hidden general loyalty, perceived private loyalty is high, but the same high level of behavioral loyalty is not observed. The company stands out among others. However, the purchase of its goods by clients is not very frequent and large-scale, primarily due to the influence of external factors, for example, insufficient income of clients. In such a situation, it is important for companies to strive to strengthen the achieved position by developing behavioral loyalty, say, through the use of price (cost) incentives.

Loyalty that is false. With such loyalty, the level of behavioral loyalty is high, but there is not the same high level of perceived loyalty, which is most likely low. The situation may be considered dangerous in a certain sense due to the lack of attachment of the client to the company. A client may purchase the company’s products due to insufficient supply on the market or the presence of some habits, for example, the habits of his family members to use them. But he will easily refuse these acquisitions, finding a company that suits him more. If this type of loyalty exists, it is recommended that a company actively work to increase the perceived loyalty of its customers.

Loyalty that is virtually non-existent. If there is no loyalty in general, it is very difficult to retain customers. In these conditions, a company can come to terms with the fact that it is impossible to retain customers (even the most profitable ones). But still, the best way out for her would be to take measures to increase loyalty, especially perceived loyalty.

1.2 Levels of needs, satisfaction, stages of the customer life cycle and their loyalty

Levels of customer needs and levels of loyalty

Both consumer loyalty and customer needs are multi-level. When basic perceived needs are satisfied, conscious loyalty increases. This is a level when the client has a clear understanding of why he prefers this particular company (or this particular retail outlet).

Any client has a desire to be considered extraordinary, special and unique. When this (higher level of need) is satisfied, customer loyalty also rises to a higher level. At the same time, the importance of rational needs (material plane) decreases, but there is an increase in irrational (emotional) needs. It becomes important for the client to experience pleasant emotions, for example, from the process of purchasing goods, from participating in programs, from receiving prizes for participating in a competition organized by the company for customers.

The highest level of satisfaction of consumer needs is achieved through friendly personal communication. And customer loyalty increases significantly. This loyalty will not have a purely rational basis. It will be based on an irrational (emotional) foundation. Therefore, the client will invariably come to make purchases only at this company (this store), and, accordingly, leave his money (paid for goods) with it.

Don't think that achieving high levels of customer loyalty is cheap. However, it can bring many benefits to the company. After all, loyal customers are, in fact, carriers of positive and favorable information about it. Such information can serve the purpose of attracting new promising customers to the company; it can be considered as effective indirect advertising.

The relationship between customer satisfaction with the company's goods and services and their loyalty

Many people believe that customer loyalty is entirely dependent on customer satisfaction. However, this is not entirely true, since increased satisfaction does not in all cases lead to repeat purchases and increased sales of the company. Satisfied customers often resort to changing companies (about half of the total number of customers, according to many studies conducted in different countries and companies).

The fact is that consumer satisfaction is determined by a number of assessments given by the client to the individual characteristics of the product and/or service. Moreover, these assessments can be both positive and negative. These assessments depend on individually perceived and expected quality characteristics.

If the product (or service) is assessed positively by the client (the client is satisfied), there is an increase in the strength of the client’s intention to make a repeat purchase. However, this assessment does not fully determine intention, since the intention in question is determined by variables such as:

linking the client to the company (whether it is a technical-functional or economic link);

the general attractiveness of goods and services provided by competing companies;

integral assessment of the company's business.

When customers are satisfied, repeat purchases are not always observed and sales increase. Satisfaction can be considered only the basis (as if a “starting point”) for realizing the possibility of building consumer loyalty. Moreover, the degree of customer satisfaction matters. If satisfaction is complete, then creating loyalty is easier. When satisfied with the simple, the company requires more effort to build loyalty. It is important to study this degree, including taking into account such a phenomenon as consumer dissatisfaction.

Achieving customer loyalty through customer satisfaction

When a company focuses on customer loyalty by satisfying their needs, it can usually be said that it is rooting for both its employees and customers. But sometimes companies over-focus on quantity rather than quality: more sales, greater customer retention, more cross-selling, higher average check. Sometimes this “focus” can be so strong that employees feel they can bypass customer satisfaction and focus directly on loyalty metrics. This is a “trick” that is harmful to loyalty.

Customer satisfaction is the basis of their loyalty; increasing it is beneficial for the company. When customers are satisfied, they will naturally tend to become loyal to the company. This provides a chance for continued growth in both customer satisfaction and loyalty.

A 2016 US study examined data from 4,643 companies from 1994 to 2010. The purpose of the study was to identify the relationship between a company's employee-oriented achievements and customer-oriented achievements. Only those companies that achieved both superior customer-oriented and employee-oriented achievements had strong long-term financial results. This suggests that companies need to satisfy the interests of both customers and employees, without sacrificing one interest for the other.

The point is to incentivize employees to participate in activities that increase customer satisfaction, rather than fake loyalty that has little or no relationship to customer satisfaction.

Life cycle stages and customer loyalty

A client of a certain company has his own life cycle, through the prism of which it is advisable to consider the process of forming consumer loyalty. This helps both to determine the list of factors on which the emergence and increase of customer loyalty depends, and to correctly formulate lists of marketing activities, the implementation of which should occur in accordance with the stages of development of the relationship between the client and the company.

The customer life cycle consists of a number of stages:

1. Stage of start of client’s interest in the goods and/or services of the company/store. This is the stage of the company (or store) taking actions aimed at ensuring that the client receives the information he needs, and he has a favorable impression of interacting with the company/store. The client thus begins to become interested in the company’s (or store’s) products and services.

2. Stage of the purchasing process. This is the stage at which the client compares his impressions of the experience gained during interaction with the company/store with his own expectations regarding this experience. The company (or store) must take measures to ensure that the client becomes loyal, and all his functional needs are satisfied in it. The client begins to interact with the company (store). And the company (or store), naturally, must take care of the convenience of this interaction, and the high quality of goods and services provided to the client.

3. Stage of the process of consumption by the client of goods purchased from the company (or use of these goods). It is at this stage that customer loyalty arises and grows. And it is precisely this stage that companies/stores should pay special attention to, providing the client with a variety of opportunities (both tangible and intangible) to ensure his loyalty and their own growth (sales growth, profits, etc.).

1.3 types of customers differing in terms of their loyalty, loyalty in the focus of behavior and customer attitudes

Types of customers considered from the perspective of their loyalty

There are different types of clients according to loyalty levels:

Potential type client. Such a client does not have a conscious need for the product or service of this company or brand. The company must take steps to convince the customer that this particular company can best satisfy him, or this is the brand that he needs most. Companies work with clients of this type through various types of promotions (advertising and promotions).

A random client. This is a client who, quite by accident, “wandered into the light” and bought a company’s product or used its service. The company needs to take good care so that his visit does not turn out to be an isolated one, so that he continues to “pop in” to her and continues to purchase her goods.

Client treated as “just a client”. This kind of client is a client who purchases a company's product (service) (its brand product) on a regular basis. The company should strive to turn this customer into a permanent one. This requires the creation of emotional and psychological added value provided to the customer when he makes a purchase.

Regular client. This type of client is characterized by the purchase of products from a particular company or brand, and the desire to use the services of this particular company. Companies are recommended to identify the reasons for such consumer constancy and personalize relationships with the client, as well as to clarify his hidden (located in the deep layers of his subconscious) needs and requirements.

Client considered committed. Such a client is considered loyal to the brand or company absolutely and unconditionally. It is absolutely not recommended to disappoint him. On the contrary, it is advisable to indulge him in everything. Because this client is particularly loyal and reliable. He will not leave the company in difficult times, he will not “jump” to its competitor. He can put up with some of her temporary shortcomings. This is the best client for the company.

Types of customer loyalty, varying depending on their behavior

There are a number of types of customer loyalty, varying depending on their behavior:

Loyalty that is transactional. When identifying it, it is practiced to consider changes in purchasing behavior. For example, this means considering:

Repeat purchase rates;

Share of a specific brand in total sales by product category;

Number of brands purchased.

Moreover, the factors that provoked the changes are not described. This type of loyalty seems very convenient from the standpoint of studying current situations and planning.

Loyalty that is perceptual. When considering this type of loyalty, it is envisaged to focus on consumer assessments, their subjective opinions, which are a reflection of a fairly wide range of feelings fed by the client to the company or brand. These may include: admiration, interest, trust, pride, etc.

To measure this loyalty, it is practiced to use surveys that help predict changes in demand for goods in the future.

Loyalty that is complex or combined. This loyalty is essentially presented as a combination of perceptual and transactional loyalty.

Subtypes of complex type loyalty

Complex loyalty has subtypes:

Loyalty seen as true. Its occurrence occurs when the customer is satisfied with the brand, and he willingly purchases it again and again. If a company has many truly loyal customers, it may not be particularly afraid of the “intrigues” of competitors. Customers are usually also in the black because the company has taken good care of the truth of their loyalty (carried out certain events, behaved honestly and openly with customers). Thus, with true loyalty, there is mutual mutual love between the client and the company.

Loyalty that is invalid (i.e. false). The manifestation of such loyalty is observed when the client ensures the purchase of a brand, but he does not become attached to it either emotionally or in any way. In this case, consumers go to purchase a brand because of discounts, or because of the temporary unavailability of a brand they are interested in. They stop using the purchased brand immediately after the appearance of another one that is more attractive to them. Companies need to not get too excited about this type of loyalty. It can only bring short-term benefits and an imaginary competitive advantage

Loyalty that is implicit (hidden, latent). This type of loyalty occurs when a customer values ​​a brand highly, but does not have the opportunity to purchase it frequently. If the opportunity arises, he purchases the brand. Companies are encouraged to take steps to remove barriers for customers so they can purchase what they truly love. Maybe it’s worth lowering the price of the brand, or making its delivery easier, etc.

Loyalty viewed as both an attitude and a behavior

There is a distinction between loyalty viewed as an attitude and loyalty viewed as a behavior.

Loyalty as an attitude. Building this type of loyalty requires that the client is interested in the brand, and his desire to purchase this particular product (this particular brand) is clearly visible. He is, as they say, “100%” involved in the brand, and deeply sympathizes with the brand. In the absence of “his” brand, he does not agree to any other brand. I'm willing to wait a long time for it to go on sale.

Loyalty as behavior. This is unsupported loyalty to a brand for which the customer has no attachment. The client purchases the brand. But not because of his special affection for her. He just has no choice. However, he does not receive deep satisfaction from the purchased brand because of his deep-rooted attachment to another brand that he has already fallen in love with.

There are sometimes barriers that prevent customers from buying the brands they love and enjoying owning and using them. Such barriers could be, for example, the lack of the right sizes among your favorite brands, or unique technologies, or unique formats.

The loyalty in question is actually not the customer’s loyalty, but simply his agreement to purchase something that is not exactly what he would like to have, due to the presence of barriers. And it is useless to explain to him that his new choice is the best if he has no internal connection to this choice. Of course, he can get used to something different over time, but for this the company should make too much effort. Usually, when a favorite brand goes on sale, the client returns to it.

Models of the client's relationship to the company

There are a number of models of the client’s relationship with the company:

Emotionally positive model. This is a model in which customers are especially loyal to the company due to their special emotional state. They are aware of their level of commitment to the company (or brand), believing that it is optimal for them. They most often do not pay too much attention to the price aspect. It is difficult for them to give up what they really love and what suits their tastes and preferences. They are not inclined to think for a long time if they see something that emotionally attracts them. They simply acquire it in the shortest possible time. Emotional mood can be achieved through atmosphere marketing.

Model indifferent. This is an attitude model in which clients are not particularly emotional and not very rational. They may have a preference for a particular company or brand, but not to the extent that they are particularly loyal. The price aspect is important to them, but they also have their own preferences that are not too tied to companies or brands. They may think about their purchases, but not for too long.

Evaluative-rational model. This is a model in which customers show little or no loyalty. For them, the price aspect and price/quality ratio are most important. They weigh the pros and cons for a long time and carefully. They compare different offers, trying to find the most profitable ones, and make a fully informed decision regarding the purchase.

1.4 Pyramid and loyalty marketing research

Loyalty pyramid

The “Loyalty Pyramid” is a system that classifies factors related to behavioral and perceived loyalty.

Behavioral loyalty. There is a factor of activity and stability in the use of products and/or services of a given company.

Perceived loyalty. Here the influence of the factor of high value for the client in his relationship with this company takes place. Also influenced by: the factor of all client expectations (including open ones), and his satisfaction in relation to functional needs; factor of the client’s perception of both the company itself and its trading offers; factor of consumer awareness of the company’s products and itself

According to the system under consideration, loyal customers include those who have a positive attitude towards the company (all its activities) and are informed about the chances of receiving benefits it provides. Such customers actively consume the company's products and services because they know them well. This is, in fact, a factor of behavioral loyalty, manifested in the stability and duration of client transactions, or in the growth of consumption of the company’s goods and services. If the client is satisfied with the company's offer, this is a prerequisite for a good emotional background to be created and consumer loyalty to be successfully formed.

If a company uses the Loyalty Pyramid system, it can determine the most important factors that it needs to take into account in order to focus its marketing activities on building mutually beneficial “long-lasting” relationships with customers. And also consider the stages of building customer loyalty in coordination with the stages of his life cycle.

Stages of building customer loyalty using the “Loyalty Pyramid”

Formation of customer loyalty using the “Loyalty Pyramid” occurs in stages:

STAGE ONE. This is the stage at which the client forms an image of the company, and the client begins to contact (interact) with it. He develops a perception of the company's image. The company must focus its efforts on ensuring that its customer perception is positive, so that the customer receives the information he needs and consumes its products and services. The company must intensively engage in branding and ensure effective communications with the client.

STAGE TWO. At this stage, the company must ensure a high level of customer consumption of its goods and/or services. To do this, it needs to provide clients with financial privileges. Clients must participate in various types of bonus promotions, receive discounts for using the company’s services, and all kinds of gifts for purchases made. The company must seriously engage in its loyalty program (its construction and improvement), which helps customers gain experience interacting with it and consuming its products. The company should ensure that the experience is consistent with customers' expectations and that they consistently purchase high-quality products from it.

Marketing research in the field of consumer loyalty management

Understanding the reasons for a client’s visit to a particular company (or store) is facilitated by conducting qualitative and quantitative marketing research. Through such studies, the importance of the company (or retail outlet) and the degree of consumer satisfaction with its various characteristics are determined. But it is often difficult to get consumers to clearly justify their choice of the place where they are ready to make purchases. In a competitive environment, it is difficult for customers to determine the competitive advantages of various retail outlets (or companies), since these advantages are clearly not visible to them.

With the help of marketing research, such advantages of stores (companies) are often considered as convenience of location, prices, assortment (its balance and stability), etc. At the same time, buyers often see the advantage not in some variables (such as prices), but in how warmly they treat the store (or company) and its staff. Therefore, when conducting consumer research (their surveys), it is necessary to focus on aspects of customer relationships, their feelings and emotions. They are the ones that can serve as indicators of loyalty.

Consumer loyalty can be, as already noted, behavioral and perceived. Therefore, monitoring of the relevant types is carried out:

Behavioral loyalty monitoring. Monitoring the level of loyalty of the behavioral type is carried out on the basis of using the method of monitoring the client (his behavior) and a retrospective study of his activity.

Monitoring perceived (emotional) loyalty. If we talk about emotional loyalty, we can say that the expression of such loyalty occurs:

in customer awareness of the company itself, the nuances of its activities, its ability to meet customer needs with the help of its products and services;

the level of customer satisfaction with the company’s (or store’s) offerings in terms of their quality, price, service;

in the level of emotional and psychological perception by clients of the company itself.

From the standpoint of the most complete assessment, it seems reasonable to implement monitoring of both perceived variables of consumer loyalty and behavioral ones. Moreover, the analysis should be segment-by-segment and regular (preferably annual). In this case, it is advisable to conduct a comparative analysis of both perceived and behavioral parameters. This analysis is carried out using data on behavioral loyalty obtained from the company’s database, and materials from special studies on perceived loyalty.

1.5 Customer loyalty system, its factors and elements

The concept of a customer loyalty system and measures to increase it

Achieving loyalty by a company must be subject to a special system, including measures and consideration of factors to increase it. The measures in this case are:

1) increasing the utility (value) of certain groups of benefits received by customers by providing them with economic advantages by the company (they provide utility-driven loyalty);

2) strengthening, through communication (both formal and informal), the intensity of mutually beneficial contacts between the company and the client, increasing trust, and stabilizing satisfaction (they provide contact-driven loyalty).

If we talk about factors that increase loyalty, they are primarily divided into factors:

1. Material, providing the client with significant benefits (factors: financial; consisting of saving time; conveniences provided by customer service, etc.);

This group of factors includes traditional and program factors. Traditional factors are the convenience provided to customers regarding the availability of the company's sales offer. Program factors appear to be a full range of opportunities related to financial benefits for buyers.

2. Intangible, contributing to the client’s development of a sense of emotional satisfaction from his interaction with a company that provides quality service and ensures a high level of atmospheric marketing.

These factors are procedural and personal. Personal factors relate to the level of customer service provided by the company, procedural factors relate to the convenience of customer interaction with a given company.

The division of factors into tangible and intangible is advantageous in that it makes it possible to distribute factors according to the criterion of impact on the formation of a certain type of loyalty. Material factors cause behavioral loyalty, and intangible factors cause perceived loyalty.

Alternative groupings of loyalty increasing factors

Another grouping (alternative) provides the identification of a number of factors that ensure (or increase) customer loyalty:

1. Factors that are financial. These are factors influencing behavioral loyalty. This group of factors includes factors that are the company’s efforts aimed at providing its customers with benefits of a material nature.

2. Factors that are functional. These are factors that are significant from the standpoint of their influence on both perceived loyalty and behavioral loyalty. This group of factors includes those related to interaction with clients and regulation of business processes for servicing them. And also related to the availability for clients of the information they are interested in and the ease of carrying out transactions.

3. Factors that are emotional. Thanks to these factors, only perceived loyalty is ensured. This occurs through actions such as providing customers with special status, providing benefits in the form of personalized service, and other non-financial benefits. These are also factors of atmospheric marketing.

Elements of a system for increasing customer loyalty and the use of incentive schemes in retail trade

The system for increasing customer loyalty in retail trade consists of a number of elements:

Managing the customer relationship process using basic methods. The basic ways to increase consumer loyalty include cleanliness in the store premises, polite and attentive staff, and beautiful design of the sales area. Family customers are often attracted to a retail outlet due to the presence of a children's playroom. Motorists become loyal customers provided they have parking and convenient access to the outlet. With proper arrangement of goods and their categories in the hall, and with proper organization of the work of cashiers and salespeople, the loyalty of all customers can significantly increase by reducing their time searching for what they need and making the necessary calculations. This will make it easier to select products and simplify the shopping process for customers. Also, customers are usually more loyal to stores that offer price reduction promotions.

Managing the process of creating a joyful feeling in customers from receiving gifts or benefits, or from participating in games. Such management concerns the wide distribution of bonus, club or savings loyalty programs. For example, with the help of club cards, it is possible for their owners to get the impression that they are not a “crowd”, that they are some kind of “exclusive” individuals. Through bonus and accumulative systems, clients are attracted to participate in long-term projects to accumulate points and move to higher levels that give them advantages. This is somewhat like a game that many clients want to be involved in. Clients can also participate in programs of companies providing various types of services. Thus, retail chains can team up with travel agencies, or restaurants, or other businesses to provide benefits to people.

Managing the process of relationship with the client in such a way that he feels involved in the life of the retail outlet. In order for customers to be loyal, the store must be considered by them as approximately the same value as a family or a group of friends, like-minded people. The store should be associated with such concepts as coziness, joy of communication, care, comfort, etc. In order for the client to be satisfied, atmosphere marketing should be included. To achieve this, the loyalty program needs to be carefully analyzed and thought out. First of all, you need to personalize your attitude towards the client. This also applies to advertising, which should not be merely informational. Customers need to not only feel the importance of the store, but also the importance of their own person, respect for her, as well as their involvement in the life of the store. The store can congratulate its regular customers on the holidays or ask them to fill out questionnaires regarding their satisfaction with the outlet and its staff.

Companies can involve customers in evaluating, for example, their new design, conducting tastings while simultaneously assessing the quality of the product, etc.

A good initiative is public quality control, which promotes both quality control of service and goods, and the involvement of the client in the business process, creating a sense of involvement and strengthening his loyalty.

When controlling in business, some forward-thinking companies use their customers as controllers. Attracting customers is cheaper (you can give them, for example, coffee or candy, and pay them small amounts of money). Involving many client controllers will give a much more visible result compared to the result of one controller, and it will cost significantly less.

Managing the process of directly providing customers with fixed discounts on discount cards. Many retail stores today organize programs to provide customers with fixed discounts using discount cards. Organizing them is not difficult. And it is also not difficult for clients to understand and accept them. If customers have plastic cards that are identified when paying at cash registers, then trade and retail companies have the information necessary to personalize customers. Even if a simple discount system is used, the store has the opportunity to contact customers and inform them about the appearance of new products in categories that are preferred by each of them

Using customer loyalty incentive schemes, a retail company has a chance to create a database of its customers. Thanks to these databases, companies make offers to customers taking into account their purchasing habits. According to research, if a client is regular, then, as a rule, there are fewer problems with him compared to a client who is not persistent. In addition, a retail company, using the schemes under consideration, can switch to personalized advertising, which reduces communication costs. In fact, in this case, it switches to using direct marketing instead of paid advertising. Personalized advertising is designed to encourage customers to visit a given outlet. And through loyalty programs, the transformation of attracted customers into regular, loyal ones is ensured.

Consumer loyalty- positive attitude and emotional commitment of buyers, based on the habit of purchasing goods or services of a particular manufacturer or brand, regardless of price, excluding alternative offers.

Achieving consumer loyalty- a continuous and long-term process of interaction with the target audience, which is aimed at creating a strong connection between the company and consumers of its goods and services. Typically, a purchase is perceived as an exchange of time and money for an item that has corresponding practical and emotional value. A high level of loyalty has a positive effect on the company's performance.

There are several sequential stages of achieving a strong connection with customers; they correspond to the types of consumer loyalty.

Types of loyalty

Transactional (basic) loyalty is aimed at retaining the client and consists in providing mutually beneficial terms of interaction. Buyers know about the real advantages of the company; they are completely satisfied with the sales system and level of service. The choice of services offered by the company in this case becomes obvious and familiar.

Emotional loyalty is based on sensitivity to the specific needs of the consumer, which makes him feel special and important. Providing personalized offers and the ability to meet wishes triggers the psychological mechanism of “anchoring” - a comparison of the initially proposed conditions with new ones, which tips the scales in favor of your company.

Example: Harley Davidson has organized motorcycle safety courses where potential customers learn how to ride while they become emotionally attached to the brand and more connected to the motorcycle culture. These courses lead to additional sales of motorcycles, and as a result, both parties benefit.

Personal loyalty- the most durable and often irrational type of loyalty. Consumers are so attached to a brand that neither high prices nor better offers from competitors can make them abandon it. The comparison here is with football fans, who are committed to their favorite team regardless of its wins or losses. You and your customers should share a common experience in which the product plays a supporting role.

The costs of creating a circle of regular customers are usually lower than the costs of attracting a new client.