Turns out a loyalty program isn't a retention system
Published 18 days ago • 1 min read
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Most dispensaries have a loyalty program. Very few have a retention system.
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I had the pleasure of being on two cannabis marketing podcasts in the last month.
CannaBud Marketing's Dispensary Marketing Podcast with Brandon Quan, and MediaJel's Cannabis Marketing Live with Jake Litke.
A few things that stuck with me from both:
- Over-messaging is the most consistent issue I see in audits. I told Jake about a retailer sending two emails a day to their entire list. The root of it is usually fear. Operators are afraid patrons will forget about them if they don’t message daily. The bigger problem is what happens after the opt-out. Nobody has a plan to get those people back.
- Click-to-VISIT rate matters more than open rate. A 40% open rate means nothing if zero of those people walk in. It’s the metric I keep coming back to in audits.
- The leak is almost never in the loyalty program itself. Stores have loyalty programs. Very few have a retention system. The welcome sequence usually doesn’t exist, and the first five visits aren’t being supported by anything.
- Advertising to your regulars usually beats chasing new traffic. Jake’s data reports 20 to 40% more revenue from engaged regulars, 5 to 15% less churn. Dollar for dollar, a better return than chasing new customers.
Btw, here's the example retention journey I referenced on the Cannabud episode:
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Both are worth a listen:
Stop Sending Every Dispensary Customer the Same Deal - Ep 55: HighDef Studio
How to Increase Repeat Customers at Your Dispensary (Retention Audit Guide)
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Lmk what you think. Did i miss anything?
~ Steph
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