Aberdeen Releases New Report on the State of Retail Loyalty

BOSTON, MA--(Marketwire - March 9, 2011) - The Retail and Banking team at Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company (NYSE: HHS), recently published its 2011 report on Next Generation Customer Loyalty: The Evolution of the Digital Customer. The report represents data captured from 148 retail organizations and highlights the key strategies and processes that are driving customer loyalty programs today. The report finds that retailers that have adopted a centralized cross-channel loyalty platform are reporting significant benefits, including:

 *20% increase in customer retention rates (compared to 8% for all others)
 *15% increase in customer re-activations rates (compared to 4% for all others)

"The centralized loyalty platform encompasses consumer insights, offer creation, offer redemption, and performance reporting," said Chris Cunnane, Senior Research Associate, Aberdeen Group. "This tool allows the retailer to aggregate all loyalty information across all channels of operation, with a single view of the customer and their purchase and interaction behavior. This information can then be utilized to create tailored loyalty offers depending on the type of customer the retailer is targeting: lapsed, high spending threshold, or high discount percent."

Retailers and consumers alike are embracing digital channels, including mobile and social, to interact, research, and transact in new ways. Aberdeen's data indicates that 17% of retailers currently utilize mobile marketing as part of their loyalty program, with an additional 62% of retailers indicating plans to implement this technology in the next 12 months. Forty-four percent (44%) of retailers currently use social media as a component of their loyalty program, with an additional 49% planning to use the technology by year's end. These new channels are paving the way for the new building blocks of customer loyalty. 

A complimentary copy of this report is made available due in part by the following underwriters: Avanade and CrossView. To obtain a complimentary copy of the report, visit: http://www.aberdeen.com/link/sponsor.asp?spid=30410182&cid=6388&camp=2.

Visit Aberdeen.com for additional access to complimentary Retail and Banking Research.

About Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company

Aberdeen provides fact-based research and market intelligence that delivers demonstrable results. Having queried more than 30,000 companies in the past two years, Aberdeen is positioned to educate users to action: driving market awareness, creating demand, enabling sales, and delivering meaningful return-on-investment analysis. As the trusted advisor to the global technology markets, corporations turn to Aberdeen for insights that drive decisions.

As a Harte-Hanks Company, Aberdeen plays a key role of putting content in context for the global direct and targeted marketing company. Aberdeen's analytical and independent view of the "customer optimization" process of Harte-Hanks (Information - Opportunity - Insight - Engagement - Interaction) extends the client value and accentuates the strategic role Harte-Hanks brings to the market. For additional information, visit Aberdeen or call (617) 854-5200, or to learn more about Harte-Hanks, call (800) 456-9748.

(C) 2011 Aberdeen Group, Inc., a Harte-Hanks Company
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Boston, Massachusetts 02210-1928
Telephone: (617) 854-5200
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www.aberdeen.com