Miniso has an ace up its sleeve to boost its sales in Mexico. The chain of low-cost Asian products launched a loyalty program, which will also show the company the path to where it should direct its commercial strategy.
Robin Tristan Calvo Rivera, head of Loyalty at Miniso Mexico, explains that the development of this benefit program took about two years, after postponing it during the pandemic. The coronavirus impacted the chain, which had to temporarily close some of its stores to comply with the confinement established by the authorities.
The manager affirms that the idea was to take advantage of the brand’s engagement with buyers, so they developed a platform that, in addition to offering benefits, allows interaction. And it will give a boost to the sales of the store, in the physical and digital channels.
“Loyalty programs, in general, are proven to increase sales and it is definitely one of Miniso’s objectives. But we did not want to achieve it through the mere transaction, but rather that it be linked to an improvement in the experience and recognition of customers”, he said without revealing the percentage that the company expects in the growth of billing.
The application is an evolution of the online store, which the company presented in April 2020, to maintain a sales channel during confinement. With the integration of the Miniso Love loyalty program, the interactive component was added, with challenges, video games and missions, which allow obtaining rewards.
This type of activity will yield information about the habits of consumers. Ana Violeta Bonilla Ramírez, a specialist at the Business School of La Salle University, comments that they allow the generation and personalization of offers and promotions and, with this, boost the purchase receipt. “These programs are a gold mine of information. With the data, companies take buyers out of their consumption habits so that they buy more through product suggestions or promotions”, he explains.
Calvo Rivera adds that with the data they will obtain with the program they will have enough information to improve the experience in physical stores, such as improving the accommodation and order of merchandise, and also determining the type of products that will be brought to the sales floor. “All the evolution of this program will be based on data,” he says.
Fall in love with the buyer
One of the most relevant components of these programs, according to Bonilla Ramírez, is that the brands ‘humanize’ themselves and establish a relationship with their users and “it’s like a friendship, customers love the brands and this generates loyalty and also raises brand value.
With the arrival in the Mexican market of players such as Hema, Mumuso or Ale Hop, the offer for consumers is broader and companies must bet on clear differentiators to make customers fall in love.
“This program has the purpose that customers stop going to other competitors, that they choose to buy with you because they obtain a benefit, that people become loyal with a different and unique experience, and that they want to live it again. With this, they are going to help us to know where we have to go to differentiate ourselves”, comments Calvo Rivera.
