I recently gave my room some attention, a deeper clean rather, and came across a stack of cards for a considerable range of stores; gift cards, membership cards, points cards etc. I remember putting them there a few months back. I was getting sick of carrying around this insidiously sized wallet and decided it was no longer tolerable. But I couldn’t just throw these cards away. No, I must keep them because one day, I will return to that store and that card must be readily retrievable when needed. Except, it wasn’t as I’d thoughtlessly left it at home sitting in that same stack on top of my desk.
These subtle in store promotions are of course to build and retain loyalty but do they actually work? I sincerely doubt anyone shops in a store just because they’re already a card holder. It doesn’t even cross their mind. They shop in stores that have already gained their trust by providing consistent value to their customers.
After proving to be completely useless, that stack of plastic has been relocated to the trash can. There needs to be a greater incentive to sign up and carry around these membership cards as faithful as you would your driver’s license. People want immediate gratification, our generation is impatient, and most people don’t shop enough to reap the benefits of these cards in such a short time frame.