Building repeat custom and return visits
At our February Open Meeting of the Lytham Business Partnership, we introduced the concept of a Loyalty Card scheme for Lytham. The idea was well received, and so we have been working on the details ahead of pitching for funding, and will go into detail at our April Open Meeting.
We are pleased to announce that the initiative will be funded from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund until March 2025, enabling us to set up the mechanics to run 7 quarterly draws. We share the funding with other Fylde business groups but our scheme is dedicated to Lytham. (Editor comment, following enthusiastic enquiries we confirm we will also include any Ansdell businesses who wish to join in.)
Customers simply get one of the 16 squares on their printed card franked at each visit to any participating Lytham business (for a minimum transaction spend of £5). It is up to us to hand out the cards to residents and visitors an encourage them to get their card franked.
10,000 printed cards will be made available across businesses who are joining in, along with franking stamps for all Lytham businesses, and flyers to promote the initiative. Participating businesses who sign up early for their free starter packs can be named on the initial flyer. (Editor comment: the flyers will be printed in June, so don’t delay in signing up.)
When the card is full, it can be handed in at any one of several designated businesses, ready to go into the next quarterly prize draw. Customers can have more than one entry into each prize draw, but strictly only one stamp per transaction, regardless of value above the £5 qualifying spend.
Other than communicating the scheme to staff and promoting it to customers, participation costs nothing for each Lytham business and will help drive repeat custom and the shopping locally habit.
Sponsorship of one of the quarterly prize draws is £275 (which covers the prize values). We are presently compiling a list of interested sponsors for the 7 draws, so if you know of any organisation who would like to promote themselves to the Loyalty Card recipients and support our High Street and independent businesses, please tell them about this opportunity!
The Live Draws themselves will be on Social media and will provide a platform for promoting Lytham and the scheme, as well as exposure for the draw host and for the sponsors:
- Each Prize Draw takes place live on Social Media, with a build-up.
- The first drawn entry wins £150 in #LoveLytham vouchers, the second drawn wins vouchers worth £75, and a third placed entrant wins £50 in vouchers.
- The vouchers are smartly designed and will be issued in various denominations, so the prizes can be spent across various businesses if winners prefer.
- No change can be given for vouchers, which will be issued with a reasonably short expiry date to urge local spending and local businesses to benefit sooner rather than later from the transaction.
- If a lucky winner “spends” their vouchers with you, Lytham Business Partnership will exchange these vouchers for an equivalent BACS transaction.
- The location of each quarterly draw is likely to be chosen from those businesses who are most active in handing out the #LoveLytham loyalty card.
We will be talking this over further at the Open Meeting on Wednesday 19 April, so do come along to the Assembly Rooms at 5.30pm. Can’t make the meeting? Missed the meeting? Contact LBP Chair Suzanne Taylor at Bond & Bloom for more details or to sign up (suzanne@bondandbloom.co.uk or directly to hello@lythambusinesspartnership.org).
This initiative, logistically supported by Fylde Council, is a great example of how digital promotion can be harnessed to drive footfall back to the high street.
We will be ready to go to print and distribution and public promotion by the end of June to enable the first quarterly draw in September 2023.
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