Shoppers Enrolled In Loyalty Programs Spend More Money

A recent study by the marketing firm, Maritz, determined that consumers who are enrolled in customer loyalty programs are more likely to spend more money than non-members. The study was performed over a six-month time span and across 11 retail categories including home improvement, electronics, grocery and book stores.

Tim Clark, director of product management for Maritz Loyalty Marketing, said "It is interesting to see that rewards program members are spending more. However, we need to keep in mind that the programs might not directly cause shoppers to increase their purchases. It could be that those who spend more join programs to obtain rewards for purchases they would have made even if they weren't members."

Who Carries Loyalty Cards?

According to the study, those who carry loyalty cards are more likely to be one or more of the following: female, young, living with children under the age of 18 in the household or from the Northeast.

Another interesting comparison was that 62 percent of the women surveyed carried loyalty cards and 54 percent of the men.

"The significant difference between the number of men and women who belong to a store or membership program isn't shocking because most people expect moms to be the primary purchaser in the household," said Crank. "What should be of interest for retailers is that more than half of the male population carries around plastic loyalty program cards in their wallets. Based on this finding, retailers should tell their employees not to hesitate to ask men about joining a program."

Who is Missing From Retail Loyalty Programs? "It's important to know who is likely to join a program so that stores can adjust their merchandise offerings, layout and product adjacencies, and customer service to cater to their most loyal customers," said Crank. "However, knowing which demographic groups are likely not to be members offers retailers an opportunity to identify and interact with other potentially valuable customers who may not be interested in being a part of a loyalty program."

Non-members tend to have one or more of the following characteristics (by retail category):

Specialty Apparel - Large Premium Specialty Stores (e.g., Nordstrom, Gap), from the South.

Home improvement (e.g., Home Depot, Lowes) -- Single,widowed,divorced -- no children under the age of 18 in the household - women.

Electronics (e.g., Best Buy, Circuit City) -- 65 years old and older - no children under the age of 18 in the household - women.

Department store or mass merchandise (e.g., Macy's, Sears) -- Older (age 35 and over) - from the West, South and Midwest.

Drug stores (e.g., Walgreens, Medicine Shoppe) -- Men - from the West - living in a suburb, town or rural area.

Discount mass merchandisers (e.g., Target, Wal-Mart) -- Single,widowed,divorced - no children under the age of 18 in the household.

Grocery stores (e.g., Kroger, Safeway) -- From the Midwest.

Toy stores (e.g., Toys R Us; FAO Schwarz) -- Women.

Office supply stores (e.g., Office Depot, Staples) -- From the Midwest.

Book stores (e.g., Barnes & Noble, Borders) -- Women with incomes less than $30,000 per year.

Home furnishing stores (e.g., Pottery Barn, Linens 'n Things) -- Women with children under the age of 18.

The Most Popular Loyalty Program Nationwide?

Not surprisingly it is the grocery store programs. In this study over 77 percent of those surveyed were members of grocery store loyalty programs.