What discount percentage should I offer?

There is no percentage valid for everyone, and choosing it on instinct is the most common mistake. The reward value should be worked out backwards from the real margin of the category, not from the selling price, because a reward is funded by profit and not by turnover. Often a reward with high perceived value but low cost, such as a service or a good margin product, pays off more than a flat discount, which erodes margin on every purchase without changing behaviour.

How do I know if the programme is working?

By comparing members' behaviour with that before launch and with that of non participants, not by counting cards issued. The useful indicators are return frequency, average spend per visit, the share of new customers who become regular and the cost of rewards against the extra margin. If members do not return more often or spend more than they would have anyway, the programme is giving margin away without shifting anything.

Are points or a stamp card better?

It depends on how people buy in your shop. Points collection suits frequent, varied purchases and rewards continuity, while stamps on a recurring product work well for categories that repeat at predictable intervals, like food. Before the mechanic, though, comes the goal: decide which behaviour you want to change, then choose the logic that serves it, always preferring the one the customer grasps in one sentence.

Can I send offers to everyone enrolled in the programme?

Not necessarily, and it must be checked with someone qualified on the applicable rules. Programme membership and consent to receive marketing communications are two distinct things, and sending offers where it is not allowed exposes you to risk and to unsubscribes. In any case it is best to collect only the useful data, explain clearly how it is used and always make it easy to stop being contacted. This guide's method does not replace a legal check.

Running a pet shop30 minLevel: IntermediateUpdated on August 5, 2026

Running a loyalty programme that brings customers back

Choosing the right mechanic, setting margin sustainable rewards, measuring the real return and staying within the rules on data and marketing.

Audience: Pet shops
Species: All species
Scope: Valid everywhere

What you need before you start

Uno storico anche minimo delle vendite, per sapere quali prodotti si ripetono e ogni quanto un cliente medio torna
Un margine noto sulle categorie principali, perche un premio si progetta a partire dal margine e non a sentimento
Un modo per riconoscere il cliente alla cassa, che sia una scheda, un codice o un profilo, altrimenti la fedelta non e misurabile
Chiarezza sulle regole applicabili al trattamento dei dati e alle comunicazioni commerciali, da verificare con chi ne ha competenza

Almost every pet shop, sooner or later, launches a loyalty card, and almost as many abandon it after a few months without knowing whether it worked. The reason is always the same: the programme is decided on instinct, with a percentage chosen because it sounds good, a reward meant to impress and no measurement of the result. So you end up giving margin away to your most loyal customers, the ones who would have returned anyway, without shifting by one step those who buy once and vanish. A serious loyalty programme is not a gesture of generosity but a management tool: it starts from margin, chooses a mechanic consistent with how people buy in your shop, sets sustainable rewards and measures whether customer behaviour really changes. This guide builds that reasoning step by step. It contains no ready made percentages or thresholds, because they depend on your numbers, and it does not enter the legal merits of data processing and marketing, which must be checked with someone qualified: it simply provides the method to design, launch and read a programme that lasts.

Why many programmes fail

Before choosing a mechanic it helps to know where others go wrong, because the mistakes are few and recurring. Recognising them in advance keeps you from repeating them with your own card.

They reward everyone the same way, giving margin away even to those who would have returned without an incentive.
They set the reward value without starting from margin, so each reward erodes profit instead of protecting it.
They make the reward distant or complicated, and the customer forgets it before reaching it.
They do not recognise the customer at the till, so they cannot tell who returns and can measure nothing.
They communicate too much or at random, turning attention into annoyance and unsubscribes into an ignored signal.
They have no success indicator, so the programme is never switched off even when it does not work.

Choosing the right mechanic

There is no best mechanic in absolute terms: there is the one consistent with how people buy in your shop. A product bought at regular intervals, like food, suits different logic from an occasional purchase. Knowing the options is for choosing, not copying.

Mechanics compared and when they make sense
Mechanic	How it works	When it makes sense
Points collection	Each purchase accrues points convertible into rewards	Frequent, varied purchases, to reward continuity
Stamps on the repeated item	A recurring product bought several times earns one free	Categories that repeat at predictable intervals
Spending tiers	Growing benefits as the total rises over time	Regular customers to recognise and retain
Reserved advantage	Exclusive conditions or services for members	When service matters more than discount
Surprise reward	Unannounced recognition of useful behaviours	To reward without creating an expectation to cash in

Setting sustainable rewards

The reward is where a programme protects or destroys margin. It must be designed backwards, starting from how much you can afford to give back without harming sustainability, not from how generous it sounds. The method that follows holds appeal and accounts together.

Start from margin, not price
Work out how much you really earn on a category before deciding how much to give back. A reward is funded by margin, not by turnover.
Prefer rewards with high perceived value and low cost
A service or a good margin product is worth more than a flat discount, because the customer perceives it as valuable while it costs you less.
Make the reward reachable in visible time
A target too far away is forgotten. Better a smaller but nearer reward, which keeps participation alive.
Exclude or limit minimum margin categories
If a product already has little margin, do not load it with the reward cost too. Rules can differentiate categories.
Set a clear cap and expiry
A reward with no limits or expiry becomes an open ended liability. Transparent rules protect you and do not mislead the customer.
Test on one category before extending
Launch on a controlled area, measure the effect and only then widen it. Correcting early costs less than undoing everything later.

Measuring whether it works

A programme without measurement is not a tool but a hope. The point is not how many cards you issued, which says little, but whether the behaviour of members has changed compared with before and with those who do not take part. A handful of indicators, read the same way each time, is enough.

Return frequency of members compared with the period before launch, not in absolute terms.
Average spend per visit of members versus non members, to see whether the programme really shifts things.
Share of new customers who become regular after joining, the most often stated goal.
Cost of rewards actually granted against the extra margin generated, to know whether the sums add up.
Reward redemption rate, because a reward never redeemed builds no loyalty and signals a mistuned target.
Trend of unsubscribes and requests not to be contacted, a direct indicator of excessive communication.

Staying within the rules on data and marketing

A loyalty programme collects and uses customer data, and that places it under precise rules on the processing of personal information and on sending marketing communications. This guide does not establish what is allowed, because it depends on the context and must be checked with someone qualified, but it flags the points not to ignore.

Collect only the data you genuinely need for the programme, without hoarding useless information.
Explain clearly what the data is for and how it is used, with no hidden clauses.
Send marketing communications only where allowed, and always make it easy to stop receiving them.
Store the data securely and for the necessary time, not indefinitely.
Keep programme membership distinct from consent to be contacted, because they are not the same thing.
Check the applicable obligations with someone qualified before starting, not after the first problem.

A well built loyalty programme is neither a fire sale nor an indiscriminate harvest of contacts: it is a tool that starts from a goal, is funded by margin, is measured on behaviour and respects the rules on data and marketing. Designed this way, it stops being a cost you hope pays off and becomes a lever you can read, correct and, if it does not work, switch off without regret.

Frequently asked questions

What discount percentage should I offer?: There is no percentage valid for everyone, and choosing it on instinct is the most common mistake. The reward value should be worked out backwards from the real margin of the category, not from the selling price, because a reward is funded by profit and not by turnover. Often a reward with high perceived value but low cost, such as a service or a good margin product, pays off more than a flat discount, which erodes margin on every purchase without changing behaviour.
How do I know if the programme is working?: By comparing members' behaviour with that before launch and with that of non participants, not by counting cards issued. The useful indicators are return frequency, average spend per visit, the share of new customers who become regular and the cost of rewards against the extra margin. If members do not return more often or spend more than they would have anyway, the programme is giving margin away without shifting anything.
Are points or a stamp card better?: It depends on how people buy in your shop. Points collection suits frequent, varied purchases and rewards continuity, while stamps on a recurring product work well for categories that repeat at predictable intervals, like food. Before the mechanic, though, comes the goal: decide which behaviour you want to change, then choose the logic that serves it, always preferring the one the customer grasps in one sentence.
Can I send offers to everyone enrolled in the programme?: Not necessarily, and it must be checked with someone qualified on the applicable rules. Programme membership and consent to receive marketing communications are two distinct things, and sending offers where it is not allowed exposes you to risk and to unsubscribes. In any case it is best to collect only the useful data, explain clearly how it is used and always make it easy to stop being contacted. This guide's method does not replace a legal check.

What to do next

Start from a single clear goal, then choose a mechanic consistent with how people buy in your shop, preferring the one the customer grasps in one sentence. Design rewards backwards from margin, make them reachable and test them on one category before extending. Measure members' return frequency and spend against before and against non members, not cards issued, and check the rules on data and marketing with someone qualified before starting.