What is a digital loyalty card, and why is LoyalFree unique?

LoyalFree offers a digital solution to the traditional paper loyalty card. This digital option comes with a host of benefits; it’s environmentally friendly, contactless, and impossible to lose – to name a few. With LoyalFree, app-users can experience so much more as well. The app is the perfect pocket digital guide to your local area! Explore tours and trails, discover exciting events, enter competitions, find great deals from independent businesses and enjoy rewards with digital loyalty cards.

LoyalFree is a multi-award-winning place-promotion app, designed to boost footfall and sales in towns and cities. LoyalFree partners with BIDs (Business Improvement Districts) and Councils, and is currently available in over 65 locations across the UK.

Using digital loyalty cards on the LoyalFree app couldn’t be easier. Simply select a participating business from the list and scan the unique QR code in-store to earn a digital stamp. Return regularly to earn great rewards!

Leicester Coffee House Company

Leicester Coffee House Company is a small independent coffee shop and roastery based in Leicester city centre. They focus on sourcing specialty coffee through traceable supply chains alongside positive environmental practices. They work hard with their partners to ensure the coffee is of the highest quality. 

Leicester Coffee House Company joined the LoyalFree app in 2019, initially introduced by our partners, BID Leicester as a free, environmentally friendly marketing tool for levy payers. The digital loyalty card has been a huge success for them, offering loyal customers their 9th hot drink free when 8 stamps are collected on the app. So far, they have had an incredible 3,202 redemptions, which is increasing by the day! As well as the deals section of the app, you will find them appearing on local trails such as the Leicester Coffee Trail and Dog Friendly Leicester.

In Conversation With Gail

We asked owner Gail about her thoughts and experiences surrounding LoyalFree, what loyalty means to her business and best practices for success on the app.

What does loyalty mean for your business?

Loyalty is so important for an independent business. Getting to know the customer is our USP, like knowing their drink and how many sugars they have. I get to know some customers so well that I almost worry if they don’t show up some days!

How did you find out about the app and how easy was it to integrate into your daily practices?

We were first introduced to the LoyalFree app by BID Leicester, we are voluntary levy payers and have a great working relationship with the BID manager. Simon at BID Leicester pitched the idea as a great free marketing tool. We were only just starting out so we thought it’d be great to have the extra help. I opened a LoyalFree account and found the set-up process really easy and self-explanatory. We proactively tell each customer about the app and we find that most customers love it! Sometimes customers will start off with one of our physical loyalty cards but once the first one is complete, they almost always switch to a digital one instead. 

What impresses you about the LoyalFree app?

I love that it offers paperless loyalty cards, environmental practices are really important to us as a business and it also saves us money in printing costs. We find that customers love the digital loyalty card option because it’s just so easy. I can tell a customer about the app and by the time I’ve made their coffee, they’ve downloaded it, set up their account, and are claiming their first stamp. We also enjoy the trails section of the app, we recently attended Light Up Leicester and it was great to see locals scanning the QR codes at each location. The app was also really useful during the pandemic. We were able to adapt the way we worked and put the loyalty QR code in the window of the cafe, allowing customers to safely claim their digital stamps on takeaway orders with no contact.

What advice would you give to businesses who are thinking of starting a loyalty scheme with LoyalFree?

I would advise all businesses debating whether to add a loyalty scheme to the app to give it a go! It’s another great way of marketing your business. It’s easy, it saves time when serving customers and it’s environmentally friendly as well. To make the most of the platform, ensure that all of your customers know about the loyalty scheme – we tell every new customer that comes in. You could even incentivise your loyalty scheme by picking a winner at random every 6 months and giving them a gift card or if you have space for customers to work remotely, LoyalFree could be a great way to promote a remote working offer.

LoyalFree has been a great asset for Leicester Coffee House Company. 

Gail expressed that the app is a great way to bring footfall into the city centre and she’d recommend that small business owners take advantage of the app’s marketing and time-saving capabilities. 

If you’re a business owner and are interested in hosting a loyalty scheme on the app, please email info@loyalfree.co.uk for further information.

If you’d like to know more about how an app could support your area then click here or email sales@loyalfree.co.uk if you’d like to request more information.