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The report identifies 26 notable vendors. B2C marketers can leverage this report to grasp the benefits they can anticipate when engaging with a loyalty services provider. They can also gain insights into the distinctions among various providers and explore choices based on factors like their scale and target market.
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GLOForrester published 3Q 2023 The Loyalty Services Providers report.
Key Takeaways:
- According to Forrester, loyalty services providers are defined as marketing service firms that offer specialized consulting services to assist companies in conducting market research, formulating loyalty strategies, creating and overseeing programs, evaluating performance, choosing execution partners, and providing operational support.
- Investment in loyalty initiatives continues to be robust as brands aim to expand their community of dedicated customers, especially in the face of changing consumer preferences, increasing advertising expenses, and global economic unpredictability.
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Different groups of providers were identified inthe report.
- Providers offer a wide array of capabilities: 10 business scenarios for which brands engage loyalty services providers, supported by 15 necessary capabilities. Out of the 26 providers in the study, 22 offer almost all of these capabilities.
- Providers offering platform-agnostic technology consulting. Given the complexity of the loyalty and marketing technology ecosystem, brands must optimize their tech stacks to provide exceptional customer experiences and maintain cost-effectiveness. Service providers assist marketers in selecting the right loyalty technology platform, overseeing platform implementation, ensuring a streamlined martech ecosystem, and recommending suitable partners to address all their loyalty-related needs.
- Providers offering data and analytics analysis: All four core business scenarios necessitate services such as loyalty business insights, data science and analytics, and emotional loyalty measurement and optimization. Nearly all providers included in the study offer these services. Additional data and analytics capabilities encompass database management and processing, customer data and privacy services, CX (customer experience) design, journey mapping, orchestration services, and campaign and offer measurement and optimization services.
- Loyalty marketers collaborate with loyalty services providers to deliver a comprehensive approach to brand engagements, considering strategy, personnel, processes, data, and technology. They often combine management, marketing, and technology consulting to drive improved business results. Traditional services of loyalty services providers include:
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- Develop loyalty initiatives: While every loyalty endeavor should commence with an organization-wide strategy, many brands initiate their loyalty journey by designing a loyalty program. Service providers assist in designing both strategies and programs, helping brands periodically assess and adapt their initiatives to align with competitive dynamics, economic conditions, and evolving consumer behavior. This undertaking involves tasks like market research, analysis of customer data, segmentation, and establishing a clear value exchange between brands and consumers.
- Analyze customer data for actionable insights: The majority of providers in this study offer data science and analytics services to more than half of their clients. These services encompass tracking and evaluating the behavior of both loyalty program members and non-members, utilizing customer segmentation, measuring emotional loyalty, and identifying opportunities to enhance initiative outcomes. Customer data is collected from various sources, including loyalty program platforms, customer profiles, zero-party data, and traditional sources like cookie data.
- Enhance the customer experience for loyal customers to boost engagement: Customer experience and loyalty share a direct relationship, as the ease, effectiveness, and emotional impact of a consumer’s interactions with a brand directly influence loyalty outcomes. According to global B2C marketing decision-makers, increasing customer engagement throughout the customer lifecycle is one of the most frequently cited priorities in their organization’s marketing strategy for the upcoming year. Most loyalty services providers possess expertise in mapping and analyzing customer journeys, as well as devising strategies to enhance and sustain customer engagement.
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Forrester researched and metnioned the following companies for the report.AnsiraAscendant Global NetworkBBD Perfect StormBold OrangeBondBoston Consulting Group (BCG)BounteousCapgeminiCapillary TechnologiesCollinsonConcentrixdunnhumbyebboICF NextJakalaKobieKognitivThe Lacek Group, an Ogilvy Experience CompanyMaritzMastercardMaterialMcKinsey & CompanyMerkleMRMPublicis GroupePwC
Source: Forrester
