makeit Behavioral Design Strategies for Customer Loyalty | Customer Centric Solutions LLC

From whence does consumer loyalty come? Dr. Richard Oliver, a former Vanderbilt University professor defines loyalty as: “a deeply held commitment to rebuy or patronize a preferred product/service consistently in the future, thereby causing repetitive same-brand or same brand-set purchasing, despite situational influences and marketing efforts having the potential to cause switching behavior.”

Oliver describes in his research on consumer loyalty four distinct layers of customer loyalty each having their own unique drivers in relation to attitudinal or behavioral loyalty.He describes them as follows:

ATTITUDINAL LOYALTY refers to a customer's emotional attachment and positive feelings towards a brand or product.

(1) Cognitive Loyalty: This component is based on the customer's beliefs or knowledge about the brand. It involves a rational evaluation of the brand's attributes, such as quality, value for money, and features compared to competitors. It represents the initial step in the loyalty process, where customers develop a preference for a brand based on information and personal experience.

(2) Affective Loyalty: Affective loyalty goes deeper, reflecting the customer's emotional attachment to the brand. This loyalty is driven by positive feelings and satisfaction derived from using the brand's products or services. It encompasses the sense of connection or trust that customers feel towards the brand, often leading to a deeper, emotional commitment beyond just rational evaluation.

BEHAVIORAL LOYALTY, on the other hand, is observed through a customer's actions or behaviors, such as repeat purchases, frequency of use, or the amount of money spent on a brand

(3) Conative Loyalty: This component is about the behavioral intention that precedes actual behavior. It reflects a customer's commitment or intention to repurchase from the brand in the future. Conative loyalty is a strong indicator of how likely a customer is to continue choosing a brand based on their current loyalty status. It encompasses aspects like the intention to visit, the intention to purchase, and the willingness to recommend the brand to others.

(4) Action Loyalty: The final step in the loyalty model, action loyalty, is about the actual repeat purchasing behavior and other supportive actions taken by the customer. This includes not only repurchasing but also advocacy behaviors like recommending the brand to friends and family, writing positive reviews, and engaging with the brand on social media. Action loyalty is the tangible outcome of the loyalty process, demonstrating the customer's true loyalty through their actions.

As practitioners of branding and marketing seeking to influence how consumers build stronger brand commitments, we can seek inspiration from others. For the purposes of this post, we’ll investigate how the fifteen (15) core Makeit strategies, rooted in various psychological and behavioral theories, can be ingeniously applied by brands to foster and deepen customer loyalty across these four types of consumer loyalty: cognitive, affective, conative, and action loyalty.

makeit Strategies in support of 4 layers of customer Loyalty

Cognitive Loyalty

The initial step in the loyalty process, cognitive loyalty, is built by helping customers develop a preference for the brand. First impressions make a big difference so make sure their initial touchpoints with the brand help them formulate positive perceptions of the brand. Here are a few examples:

Makeit Easy: Brands simplify decision-making (e.g., Amazon’s 1-Click ordering), reducing effort and enhancing the customer’s rational evaluation of the brand's convenience.
An example is Amazon’s One-click Ordering, this feature streamlines the purchasing process to literally one step, removing barriers such as multiple checkout pages that can lead to cart abandonment. By reducing the cognitive and physical effort required to make a purchase, Amazon not only simplifies the decision-making process but also solidifies the customer's belief in the brand's efficiency and user-friendliness, key factors in cognitive loyalty.
Makeit Obvious: By making benefits and differentiators prominent in marketing communications, brands like Apple draw attention to their unique value propositions, fostering knowledge-based loyalty.
From its sleek designs to its privacy features, Apple consistently highlights these unique selling points in all its marketing and product launches. The clarity and prominence of these messages help customers understand and appreciate what sets Apple apart from competitors. Apple's focus on innovation and high-quality user experiences is communicated clearly, helping to build cognitive loyalty through customers' rational evaluation of what the brand offers over others.
Makeit Tangible: Offering tangible rewards for engagement, like Starbucks Rewards, reinforces the perceived value and benefits of staying loyal to the brand on a cognitive level.
By offering tangible benefits such as free drinks, birthday rewards, and personalized offers, Starbucks not only provides immediate value to its customers but also enhances their understanding of the benefits of loyalty to the brand. This rewards program makes the advantages of choosing Starbucks over other coffee shops explicit and quantifiable. Customers can see a clear, tangible return on their decision to continue patronizing Starbucks, reinforcing their cognitive loyalty to the brand.

In each case, the strategies are deployed to solidify the brand’s position in the customer's rational decision-making process. By making interactions with the brand easier, more obvious, and tangibly rewarding, companies can effectively foster cognitive loyalty. This loyalty is crucial as it forms the basis of the customer's overall relationship with the brand, leading to deeper emotional and behavioral loyalty over time.

Affective Loyalty

The next step in the loyalty process, affective loyalty, is driven by positive feelings and satisfaction derived from using the brand’s products or services. In this step, individuals begin to form a deeper, emotional attachment to the brand, beyond just rational evaluation. A few examples are:

Makeit Attractive: Brands create emotionally appealing experiences (e.g., Nike’s inspirational messaging) that resonate on a personal level, making the brand more likable and emotionally engaging.
Nike's advertising often features stories of perseverance, achievement, and personal triumph in sports, which resonate deeply with consumers on an emotional level. Campaigns like "Just Do It" not only encourage physical activity but also connect emotionally by celebrating the spirit of determination and empowerment. This makes the brand more likable and emotionally engaging, drawing customers into a deeper, more affective relationship with the brand, beyond just the physical attributes of the products.
Makeit Social: Utilizing social proof, brands like Tesla leverage endorsements from celebrities and influencers to create an emotional bandwagon effect, enhancing customers’ emotional attachment to the brand.
High-profile endorsements from celebrities and influencers, as well as the visible commitment of its CEO, Elon Musk, to innovation and sustainability, create a herd mentality. Tesla owners are not just buying a car; they are participating in a movement towards a more sustainable future, which is a powerful emotional driver. This social dimension of Tesla’s brand helps enhance emotional attachment by making customers feel part of a larger community with shared values and aspirations.
Makeit Yours: Personalizing products or services (e.g., Spotify’s personalized playlists) increases emotional investment in the brand by making the experience feel uniquely tailored to the individual.
Spotify’s algorithms curate playlists such as "Discover Weekly" or "Daily Mix" which are tailored to individual musical tastes. This personalization makes users feel that Spotify truly understands their unique preferences, enhancing emotional bonds with the brand. The experience of discovering new music that fits one’s personal style or revisiting old favorites curated just for them increases emotional investment and loyalty to Spotify, as users begin to view it as an essential part of their daily lives.

Each of these strategies—MakeIt Attractive, MakeIt Social, and MakeIt Yours—works by enhancing the emotional experiences associated with a brand. They go beyond cognitive loyalty by creating emotional resonance with the brand, building a sense of belonging, and making each experience feel specifically designed for them. This helps companies transition their customer from merely recognizing the practical benefits of their offerings to forming deeper, more emotional (affective) connections to the brand. This level of loyalty is more resilient and can drive long-term engagement and advocacy.

Conative Loyalty

Conative loyalty occurs when an individual begins to develop a behavioral intention or commitment to repurchase the brand in the future. This encompasses aspects like intention to visit, re-purchase, or likelihood to recommend.

Makeit Achievable: By setting achievable loyalty milestones, brands like Sephora encourage customers to aim for the next reward, building a commitment to repurchase.
Sephora's Beauty Insider program loyalty program is structured around achievable milestones, where customers earn points that lead to rewards at different tiers. By setting clear, attainable goals for the next reward level, Sephora motivates customers to continue purchasing in order to reach new levels of membership, which offer increasingly attractive benefits. This strategy effectively builds a commitment to repurchase by making the rewards not just desirable but realistically attainable, encouraging continuous engagement with the brand.
Makeit Empowering: Giving customers control over their experiences (e.g., customizing a Dell computer online) strengthens their intention to engage with the brand, due to the autonomy they feel.
Dell allows customers to customize their computers online, which is a powerful implementation of making it empowering. This customization process gives customers significant control over the specifications and features of their computer, aligning the product closely with their personal needs and preferences. The autonomy experienced during this customization enhances the customer’s connection to the brand, as they feel their specific needs are being directly addressed. This empowerment fosters a stronger intention to engage with and remain loyal to Dell, as customers see the brand as a facilitator of their unique requirements.
Makeit Timely: Offering timely rewards or reminders, such as Lyft providing discounts during peak hours, can influence customers’ immediate intentions to choose the brand again.
Lyft makes it timely by offering discounts and promotions during peak travel times or in response to customer behavior patterns. For example, after identifying periods of high demand or noticing a lapse in a customer's usage, Lyft might send a targeted promotion to encourage a ride. This timely delivery of incentives makes the decision to choose Lyft over competitors more appealing at the very moment the customer needs to make a travel decision. Such timely rewards not only remind the customer of the brand's value but also strategically nudge them toward re-engagement at critical moments.

By focusing on these strategies - Makeit Achievable, Makeit Empowering, Makeit Timely - these companies help transition customers from merely having a positive attitude towards the brand to taking specific actions that demonstrate their commitment and loyalty, such as repurchasing, visiting, or recommending the brand to others. This level of loyalty is critical for sustaining long-term customer relationships and driving consistent revenue growth.

Action Loyalty

The final step in the loyalty progression, action loyalty, represents the observation of loyalty behaviors. These might include writing positive reviews, re-purchasing the brand, referring the brand to friends and family, or broader engagement on social media. A few examples are as follows:

Makeit Immersive: Brands create immersive experiences (e.g., Disney theme parks) that translate into memorable actions, like sharing on social media, which demonstrate deep loyalty.
By creating highly immersive environments that transport visitors into the worlds of their favorite stories and characters, Disney creates uniquely memorable experiences. These experiences are not only enjoyed in the moment but are also widely shared across social media, further extending the emotional impact and visibility of their visit. The urge to share these magical experiences with others—through social media posts, photos, and storytelling—naturally leads to increased brand advocacy and loyalty, as visitors promote the brand through their networks.
Makeit Intriguing: By keeping product launches or updates mysterious and intriguing, brands like Tesla encourage customers to stay engaged and actively advocate for the brand through discussions and speculation.

By often hinting at new innovations and breakthroughs without revealing too much detail, Tesla maintains a buzz around its brand that keeps customers and enthusiasts engaged and eagerly anticipating what’s next. This strategy encourages customers to actively participate in discussions and speculations about the brand, effectively turning them into brand advocates who share their excitement and curiosity with others. The ongoing engagement and advocacy help Tesla maintain high levels of customer interest and loyalty, leading to repeat purchases and strong customer advocacy.
Makeit Unexpected: Surprise gifts or services (e.g., Zappos upgrading shipping to overnight for free) exceed expectations, leading to actions like positive word-of-mouth and repeat purchases.
Zappos is known for its exceptional customer service, often going above and beyond customer expectations. One notable tactic is upgrading shipping to overnight delivery at no extra cost, without prior indication. This unexpected delight not only surprises customers but also significantly enhances their perception of the brand. The positive emotions generated by such unexpected gifts lead to spontaneous positive reviews and recommendations, as customers are moved to share their exceptional experiences with others. This strategy effectively turns one-time buyers into repeat customers and active promoters of the brand.

By focusing on these strategies - Makeit Immervie, Makeit Intriguing, Makeit Unexpected - these companies can significantly enhance the depth of customer engagement and loyalty. These strategies help solidify the bond between the brand and the customer, leading to actions that demonstrate true loyalty, such as repeated purchases, advocacy, and active engagement on social platforms. These behaviors are crucial for brands aiming to build a lasting relationship with their customers and achieve sustainable business growth

Across All Types of Loyalty

Independent of where individuals are in the progression of loyalty there are several strategies and tactics to help facilitate this progression.

A few examples:

Makeit Scarce: Limited edition releases by brands like Supreme create a sense of urgency and exclusivity, driving all types of loyalty as customers feel part of an exclusive group.
Makeit Aversive: Highlighting negative consequences of not using a service (e.g., insurance companies emphasizing the risks of going uninsured) can motivate loyalty actions to avoid perceived losses.
Makeit Meaningful: Brands that align with higher values or causes (e.g., Patagonia’s environmental commitment) foster a deep sense of loyalty that transcends the individual, affecting cognitive, affective, conative, and action levels by connecting with the customer's personal values and beliefs.

Each of these strategies taps into different aspects of human behavior and decision-making, providing a multifaceted toolkit for brands to build a strong, loyal customer base across various dimensions of loyalty.