BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - July 8, 2008) - Aberdeen, a Harte-Hanks Company (
NYSE:
HHS),
surveyed 231 retail enterprises between May and June 2008 to determine the
current state of loyalty technology and process integration in retail.
Aberdeen data reveals that the top business pressure impacting
loyalty-related decisions of 58% of Best-in-Class companies in retail is
the need to develop lifetime customer value, which is defined as the
present value of future cash flows through long-term customer
relationships.
"In times of stagnant growth, retailers need to develop lifetime customer
value through improved customer retention, re-activation, and acquisition
strategies. This will improve long-term stakeholder value and ensure an
assured revenue stream for the retailer through customers who are expected
to spend for several years," says Sahir Anand, senior analyst and chief
author of the customer loyalty benchmark report.
Aberdeen data reveals that 93% of retailers execute loyalty programs as a
standard offering for their web, store, or catalog channel customers. Such
campaigns include, but are not limited to, point perks, rewards, coalition
marketing, frequent buyer offers, or private label credit cards. The
reports also indicated that lifetime customer value in retail is being
overshadowed by the tactical nature of loyalty campaigns that target
short-term demand. "Loyalty campaigns are executed without due
consideration to ideal customer segments, tools, coordinated cross-channel
marketing needs, and long-term customer relationships," says Anand.
The measurement of ROI on customer loyalty programs is a continuous action
at retail headquarters. Moreover, determining such an ROI is a much simpler
process compared to other retail solutions such as POS, merchandising or
pricing. There are substantial and recurring cost factors associated with
loyalty in retail. Survey results show that cost-benefit issues surrounding
loyalty scenarios are top-of-mind for retail marketers. Repeat visit (61%),
incremental sales (58%), and overall satisfaction (57%) have emerged as the
three most significant factors used by retailers for justifying spend on
loyalty elements, operational costs, and upgrade / deployment of loyalty
software applications. All three ROI criteria can lead to sales uplift,
retention improvement, and reduced attrition for retailers.
A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the
following underwriters: Loyalty Lab, Agilysys, Vesdia, Marketlive, and
Tectura. This report was also supported by Wise Marketer and Retail
TouchPoints. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit:
http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?cid=4890.
About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company
Aberdeen is a leading provider of fact-based research and market
intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having benchmarked more
than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is uniquely
positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating
demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment
analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets,
corporations turn to Aberdeen™ for insights that drive decisions.
As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in
context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's
analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of
Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement -
Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role
Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit
Aberdeen
http://www.aberdeen.com or call (617) 723-7890, or to learn more
about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748 or go to
http://www.harte-hanks.com.
© 2008 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
451 D Street, Suite 710
Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617)854-5200
Fax: (617) 723-7897
www.aberdeen.com
Contact Information: Media Contact:
Sahir Anand
Aberdeen Harte-Hanks
(617) 854-5271
Sahir.Anand@aberdeen.com