The holidays just wrapped up, and chances are your store saw more traffic and orders placed than ever. Black Friday and holiday shopping brought in tons of new customers, which is great! But now comes the interesting part: how do you retain these customers and capitalize on CLTV?
It’s tempting to consider any newly acquired customers during the holidays as numbers in your holiday sales report, but if handled properly, they could become your regular customers. If they have a good first experience with your brand, they will spend more throughout the year. Plus, it’s way more cost-effective to keep them returning than constantly chasing new customers.
A well-thought-out loyalty program is one of the best ways to make that happen. Before we dive into specific strategies, take a quick look at your holiday sales data – what did people buy? When did they shop? This info will help you create a program that actually makes sense for your customers. Ready to turn those holiday sales into year-round growth? Here’s how to get started.
If you already have a loyalty program
1. Make the most of that post-purchase moment
Your customer just bought something – perfect time to tell them about your loyalty perks! The key is to segment your email list as much as possible in order for everyone to see the most relevant info. If someone checks out as a guest, let them know they’ll earn X points by creating an account and bringing their total to Y with a New Member Reward Earning Rule (pro tip: use those dynamic properties to show exact point balances).
Want to take it up a notch? Set up a points-for-purchase campaign that mentions rewards specific to what they bought. If someone bought face cream, tell them about points they could earn on other skincare products. You can do this with a points for purchase campaign, within advanced settings.And depending on your determined opt-in settings, you can let holiday customers know how many points are in their account waiting for them, or how many points they would have earned had they created an account.
Oh, and don’t forget to mention their VIP tier based on what they’ve spent so far. Sometimes seeing they’re already partway to a status is just the push people need to create an account.
Highlighting loyalty perks at this stage not only boosts repeat purchase rate but also strengthens retention by encouraging customers to return.
2. Give new members something extra
We know by now that your most valuable customers are those engaged with your loyalty program. So if you can leverage the influx of holiday shoppers by persuading them to create an account and begin earning and redeeming, you’ll be set up for 2025. Try offering bonus points if they sign up soon – like double points on January purchases. You can use Yotpo’s campaign scheduling feature to set this up ahead of time and forget about it.
Pro tip – if you add an expiration date, it’ll create more urgency around the campaign.
Make it even more personal by mentioning what they bought during the holidays: “Love your new boots? Join now and earn 100 points toward your next purchase, sandal season is just around the corner” And definitely create some urgency – either with a tight timeframe or by limiting it to the first 200 people. This is super effective for getting that second purchase and driving enrollment
With segmentation, you can track the success of these campaigns by measuring metrics like LTV and AOV, ensuring every bonus point spent delivers value.
3. Use what you know about their shopping habits
Consider what your shoppers purchased during the holidays, and then use those past purchases to make relevant and compelling offers You can get pretty specific with this – try setting up a punch card campaign that’s tied to certain product categories, and only show it to specific customer segments.
Say someone’s into sweaters – send them something like “You’re just 200 points away from $10 off your next cozy find!” It’s about making recommendations that actually make sense for each customer.
Tailored campaigns like punch cards can not only incentivize larger baskets (hello, bigger UPT!) but also encourage repeat purchases by making recommendations feel personal.
4. Bring back customers who’ve gone quiet
Noticed some loyalty members who shopped on Black Friday but haven’t engaged with the program lately? Create a segment just for them and set up a special earning campaign – maybe a Goal Spend campaign, like “spend X get Y” or give them a special window to earn extra points.
Pro tip: Remember that you can set up rewards that benefit your brand. For instance, if you have a ton of travel-size beauty products sitting in your warehouse, offer those as the perk in a campaign so that you can move that product. It’s a win-win!
The classics work too: remind them their points are expiring soon (always gets people moving), and make sure they know what VIP perks they might lose if they don’t stay active. Sometimes people just forget about your program, so don’t be shy about sending them a refresher on how it works.
Another effective win-back tactic is targeting customers who have enough points for redemption but haven’t created an account yet. Use personalized emails or SMS campaigns to encourage them to set up an account and redeem their rewards, emphasizing how close they are to their first reward.
Try dropping a little something in their account – even 50 bonus points can do the trick. It’s better than discounting your products, and people usually want to use those “free” points. Segmenting based on time between orders or redemption history lets you send personalized campaigns that reactivate members more effectively.
Segment those who’ve redeemed in the past and pair it with products they’ve loved. Personalized emails or SMS campaigns can highlight items they’ve browsed, boosting the likelihood of a repeat purchase.
Make things easier with Yotpo’s Win-Back Campaigns to automatically spot inactive members, group them by how long they’ve been gone, and send them the right incentives to come back.
5. Get your happy customers to spread the word
Post-holiday is the perfect time to improve the performance of your Referral program. If people loved what they bought, they might tell their friends about it. Why not make it worth their while? Encourage them to refer friends and earn rewards as part of their membership benefits.
Think about bumping up your referral bonus for a bit. If you usually offer “give $20, get $20,” consider “give $30, get $30” for a limited time. You can run the numbers, and understand what your margins look like, and then always add a minimum spend to protect your AOV. Or get creative – try a raffle where anyone who refers a friend could win something special, like a curated box of your best products.
Referral campaigns not only reward your most loyal customers but also generate measurable increases in total revenue, creating a win-win situation for everyone.
Planning to start a loyalty program? Perfect timing!
1. Get them excited about earning rewards
Start spreading the word about your upcoming loyalty program in your post-holiday emails. Something like “Big rewards coming in 2025” gets people curious. Give them little peeks at the perks they’ll get – just enough to keep them interested.
Want to make it feel more personal? Include their name and mention what they bought during the holidays: “Hey Sarah! We noticed you recently tried our best-selling retinol serum. You’ll probably be needing a refill in the next month, and we’re excited to share that you’ll begin earning rewards each time you purchase on our website – more to come soon!”.” It’s about making the program feel relevant to them right from the start.
A well-planned loyalty program is more than just perks; it’s a measurable way to drive LTV and AOV by fostering long-term relationships.
2. Reward early sign-ups
People love feeling like they’re getting special treatment. Try something like “Sign up before January 1st and we’ll drop 500 bonus points in your account on launch day.” It gives them a head start and makes them feel clever for getting in early.
Set up a waitlist for shoppers to sign up for the program before it launches – it’s a great way to build some buzz. And while you’ve got their attention, why not send them a quick survey about what perks they’d love to see? You can even offer points for filling it out, which they’ll get as soon as the program launches.
Here’s a fun one – give the first 200 people who create an account automatic VIP status. Nothing gets people moving like exclusive perks with limited spots.
3. Learn from the holiday rush
Take a good look at how much people spent during BFCM – it tells you a lot about how to structure your program tiers. Segment customers by their holiday spending and use that to set meaningful reward levels. If you know what your big spenders typically buy, you can create VIP perks they’ll actually care about.
Use insights from holiday spending to design tiers that encourage repeat purchases while improving retention, ensuring your program resonates with your best customers.
Try creating different pre-launch bonuses for different groups. Maybe first-time BFCM buyers get extra points, while repeat customers get fast-tracked to VIP status. It’s about making everyone feel like the program was designed with them in mind.
4. Don’t forget about gift shoppers
Holiday gift buyers are basically warm leads – they already trust your products enough to give them as gifts. Send them something like “Those candles you bought as gifts were a hit – want to earn double points on something just for you?”
Here’s a clever twist: target people who bought gifts with a “treat yourself” campaign. Offer them 2x points to buy the same item for themselves. After all, if they thought it was good enough for a gift, they might want one too.
These campaigns don’t just drive sales; they increase AOV by encouraging shoppers to add more items to their cart during redemption.
5. Help make January shopping smarter
January’s all about making smarter spending choices, so position your program that way. Run a campaign about “Making every purchase count in 2025” – it resonates with people looking to stretch their budget.
Get specific with the timing: “Join by January 15th and make every 2025 purchase more rewarding.” Create some urgency by offering a special signup bonus that expires – maybe a free product redemption. People love getting a little extra something, and it’s a great way to get them to try new products they might not have picked themselves.
What’s next?
Your holiday shoppers could become the customers you see all year round. Whether you’re just starting with loyalty or looking to improve your existing program, now’s a great time to put these ideas into action.
Want to set up a loyalty program that works for your brand? Make loyalty your top resolution for 2025!
Let’s talk about creating something that fits your business and your customers.
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