The customer loyalty and retention landscape is changing rapidly and is more likely to accelerate in 2016. More corporates are viewing their loyalty investments as an opportunity to gain

competitive advantage and differentiate from competitors. Maintaining customer loyalty is also an opportunity for positive ROI for the business as a profit pathway rather than a cost of doing business. 3 major trends to watch out in 2016 include; personalization, increase in mobile and multiple channels.

1. PERSONALIZATION

Brands that personalize their content will be the ones that maximize customer oyalty in 2016. Personalizing brand messages make consumers feel engaged with the product. Companies are moving from just using fancy technology, personalized messaging or up selling complementary products. Personalization today is more about giving the right incentives in the right amount at the right time. It is all about moving from a holistic approach of consumers and focusing on isolated demographics strategies and programs for each consumer. This means creating brand messages with content specific to each consumer based on interest and curiosity.

2. INCREASE IN MOBILE

Companies are embracing the use of mobile technology to engage with consumers and use mobile as a selling point. Customers will become more loyal to companies who can satisfy their needs by presenting solutions directly on their smart phones. This can be seen through the evolution of mobile apps especially in the banking industry. Companies like KCB, Equity, Cooperative Bank amongst others are constantly innovating in mobile technology to meet their consumer needs. Mobile technology has become the basis of gaining competitive advantage with an aim of making consumers dependent on the mobile apps. Companies that succeed in this will turn consumers to loyal customers forever.

3. MULTIPLE CHANNELS

How many Apps do you have on your phone and how many of this has to do with social media? Omni-channels to communicate to consumers are long gone in this day and era. Gone are the days where brand messages would be put out on channels based on mass traffic. Utilizing many traffic streams to get people interested in your products/service is becoming important. More corporate today are focusing on channels where they are likely to meet their target audience. We are likely to see more mobile apps being launched and more companies running campaigns on social media platforms. Corporate like Safaricom are fully utilizing media channels to reach the different consumer base dependant on segmentation. It is however important to note that although you should be present on several channels, only take advantage of where your consumers are. Consumers are constantly changing apps and marketers need to keep up with the changes to remain relevant and acquire loyal customers.