How Best Buy Rewards Program Gets It Wrong. Make it personal!

I have always spoken about the concept of "Shifts" in consumer behavior that cause dramatic changes to how businesses communicate with potential or existing customers. First there was "Digitization" (1992) and that was followed by "Fragmentation" (2005). Next, we saw "Socialization" (2008) and the led to "Mobilization" (2012). I will write more about this in following articles, but I keep receiving emails (twice a day) from Best Buy and they are missing the mark on the concept of "Personalization" (A "shift we are in the middle of right now) and it is now turning me off from the brand.

Let's talk about the concept of rewards or loyalty programs. They have been around for ages but have really picked up steam over the last two to three years, with every retailer having some sort of program to drive store frequency and, most important, deliver relevant offers and incentives that make sense to me. They know this from my purchase behavior, things I have browsed, or possibly things I put on a wish list. Yet, Best Buy still continues to blast me about every sale and things I have never purchased in-store or searched for on their website. It is not personal. It is an email blast to the masses. There is nothing that would trigger me to shop with them and the more they just hit me with random email messages, the more I would rather shop elsewhere. During the holidays, I received three holiday sales emails in a 24-hour period (Documented) and not one of them made me go to their store. So, where is the problem?

Personalization. Now, I looked back at the last 10-15 items I purchased from them, over the last few years, and then reviewed their emails. In that time, I purchased several items related to sound. They were mostly headphones or Bluetooth speakers for working out or enjoying a day at the pool. I purchased a PS4 for my son and, over the last couple of years, I have purchased a handful of games for him. Outside of that, I bought a MacBook for myself and an iPad. So, you could say I am all over the map and my behavior makes me receive random generic emails. Or, perhaps they are missing something.

When I log into Best Buy Rewards Program, I also browse items and shop online, so they would know what I am considering or researching. If they paid attention, they would know that I am looking for a new TV. If they paid more attention to my behavior, they would also know I am researching a Samsung. Add on, I am interested in 4K Ultra HDTV and you have everything you would ever want to know about me. But, I have not received a specific TV offer, for a Samsung 4K Ultra HDTV or not any offer other than "Don't miss our 30% off sale." Now, if I am in the market to buy a TV, shopping retailers offline and online, and were to receive an offer that was sent to me, direct, for a Samsung Ultra HDTV, regardless of how small, I might go buy that TV this weekend or after work because it was timely, relevant, and what I wanted. That is a rewards or loyalty program. Very few companies have gotten it right and they just send email after email. They sometimes abuse the privilege that I have given them and most times, if they do, they get moved to junk or blocked.

For those of you who are running or considering a rewards or loyalty program, I think you should look at your approach to your customers and think about why they joined. People join programs to earn points, status, and/or rewards. For example, I am loyal to Marriott and have grown my status as high as I can, so I receive so much goodwill and such wonderful treatment that it is very difficult for me to consider another hotel chain. Once, just showing up with a basic room, I was upgraded to a Presidential suite in Boston (just because). They know my travel patterns and may, every one or two months, send me an offer to one of my favorite locations. Or, an offer to try one of their new properties or resorts in areas they know I frequent. That is relevant, intelligent, and, simply, a good service. I think the travel industry has this down and have really defined how they run their programs. But, I still think retail has a long way to go.

To major (and small) retail stores, you ask for my information (personal), you tell me about great benefits and, sometimes, the points, alone, for a purchase justify the program because I will come and spend more with the incentive you are offering. But, I wonder what an email from Best Buy about a Samsung Ultra 4KHD TV, in-stock in Austin at my nearest location, with an offer would look like? For me, I would buy it immediately and it would get me off of my rear end to make a decision. To look at the "best in class" I look at Ulta (National) and The Alamo Drafthouse Movie Theaters (Local/Regional).

Why Alamo Drafthouse? It is simple. Maybe one or two clicks/fields, and I am enrolled in their Victory Program. Is it a beautiful experience? No. It is about as basic as you can get but it is effective. So, I joined Alamo Victory and told them I liked alternative programming for movies, like a Steve McQueen Double-Feature, movie Quote/Sing-a-Longs for my wife and children, or just a cool event, like watching the Godfather Trilogy with Italian food and wine (Yes, all nine hours!). I now get two tickets each year for my birthday, got my wife and older children to enroll and we can, essentially, do a family movie event around the holidays. I can purchase tickets early, get the information on what is coming (To my taste) and they have made me a loyal patron.

But, the gold-standard is Ulta. Not only do they know their market (I have sat in presentations with them before and they know everything), they also know the penetration of their market city-by-city. They can send an offer to people who like Bobby Brown make-up and pack a store. They market their events a few times a year and you may see four or five people get out of a single car to visit the cosmetics retailer. They know what their customers want. They know what they buy. They know important dates, like a back-to-school offer for students (But, they leave-off my 76-year-old mother), and they are solely focused on the concept of one-to-one marketing. Or, as I said at the beginning of this article, "personalization."

Why does Best Buy get it wrong? I go back to something my favorite author, Seth Godin, wrote in one of his books, "A product for everyone is a product for no one." With that in mind, an email for everyone is junk. Multiple emails in a 24 hour period is annoying. And, all I want is a Samsung Ultra 4K HDTV.