Marigold Report: Loyalty Program Participation Spikes 52% YoY and Emerges as Top Recession Solution for Marketers

2023 Consumer Trends Index Offers Insights on U.S. Consumer Attitudes and Trends in Brand Loyalty, Personalization, Privacy, Messaging and Advertising Amid Impending Recession

Marigold, a global pioneer in relationship marketing and provider of world-class martech solutions, unveiled key trends shaping the state of relationship marketing in the year ahead with the release of its U.S. Consumer Trends Index 2023. In conjunction with Econsultancy, the U.S.-based report version from the research project looks at consumer attitudes and year-over-year trends in loyalty, personalization, privacy, messaging and advertising based on survey insights collected from more than 1,500 consumers across four generations.

The report details U.S. consumer preferences and what they expect from the brands they buy from, the channels and formats they prefer to communicate on, the type of data they’re willing to share and the terms under which they’re willing to share it.

This data comes at a critical time, as a potential recession hangs over the globe, threatening to bring more uncertainty to purchasing behaviors and, ultimately, the brand to consumer relationship.

“It’s more important than ever for marketers to properly plan and forecast how they will evolve their relationships with consumers and the role loyalty plays into all marketing initiatives,” said Tim Glomb, VP of Content at Marigold. “The voice of the consumer is one of the most important signals a brand can consider when building a roadmap for success. This year’s U.S. report version, based on the Consumer Trends Index research, arms marketers of all stripes with the data they need to inform their relationship marketing strategies and ultimately impact their bottom line.”

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The extensive report identifies six key takeaways, which include:

• Loyalty Program Participation is on the Rise
  52% of U.S. consumers are more likely to engage in a loyalty program this year than last, rising to 57% for Gen X and 67% for Millennials. Of the 33% of consumers who abandoned a preferred brand in the past 12 months, a quarter cited poor loyalty programs as the core problem.
• Brand Loyalty Remains Strong
  A staggering 72% of U.S. consumers are prepared to pay more to purchase from their preferred brands. This is 31% higher than global consumers. 70% cite the loyalty program of their favorite brand as important to engendering their lasting loyalty.
• Using Loyalty Programs to Combat Economic Uncertainty Provides Opportunity for Brands
  Almost half of U.S. consumers are very pessimistic about both the rising cost of living (49%) and economic outlook (48%), and as a direct consequence half will make less impulsive purchases. Yet 48% of consumers said they will rely on loyalty program benefits this year when considering a purchase, opening opportunity for brands to meet the demand.
• Personalization is on the Rise but Successful Execution Requires a Value Exchange to Collect Zero-Party Data
  The majority of U.S. consumers favor brands that deliver personalized messages (86%) and will readily share zero-party data to keep those coming. 75% of U.S. consumers (rising to 84% for Millennials) are comfortable sharing their behavioral data in return for a better service — 10% higher than global consumers, and 75% of U.S. consumers will share their hobbies and interests with brands via a value exchange.
• Email Remains the #1 Driver of Sales for U.S. Consumers
  Email remains the most effective channel for driving sales, with over half of U.S. consumers (55%) purchasing a product directly as a result of an email they received in the last 12 months. Millennials, Gen X and Boomers are all at least 49% more likely to make a purchase through email than their Gen Z counterparts. Additionally email beats banner ads by 139% when it comes to driving clicks to revenue.
• Data Privacy Policies of Favored Brands are Critically Important
  As privacy regulations become the norm and third-party tracking cookies edge closer to extinction, over half (57%) of U.S. consumers state they find retargeting ads to be creepy, rather than cool. Nearly a third of U.S. consumers (32%) are glad cookies are being withdrawn soon, with a further 36% hopeful it will improve their relationship with brands as a result.

“This report offers brands an extraordinary opportunity to assess their ability to create and execute campaigns that meet and exceed consumers’ growing demand for more personalization, more privacy and a deeper relationship with the brands they know and trust,” Glomb said. “How brands respond will impact their bottom line in both the short and long term.”

Methodology
Marigold, in conjunction with Econsultancy, conducted its 2023 Consumer Trends Index of U.S. consumers. This latest report builds on insights from previous years and helps understand the latest trends impacting consumer purchasing behavior in the United States. The insights are based on 1,561 U.S. consumers, covering a nationally representative sample across age and gender, and includes responses from consumers representing different household income bands. The data was collected in October-November 2022.

The format for this version of the report focuses on U.S. consumers, the year-on-year trends, comparisons to global consumers and differences in age demographics. Coming soon for versions specific to Europe, U.K. and Ireland, age breakdowns and papers with guidance on the trends for a wide range of industries and verticals.

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