The Rewards Opportunity

 The use of rewards to encourage a purchase, or indeed for a customer to refer your product to a friend, is one of the fastest-growing digital marketing techniques today.

Both cashback and voucher codes are firmly established as key ways to attract and motivate consumers in the digital environment, and they continue to grow in popularity.

Coupons and rewards are the fastest-growing online sector by time spent, up 248% year-on-year in February 2009.

Searches for discount vouchers increased by 143% during 2008, and 26% of merchants say that customer incentives now play a significant role in their marketing.

The explosive growth and enduring popularity of cashback sites demonstrates the importance of cash rewards as a means of driving volume. An estimated 2–2.5 million UK consumers are now registered at cashback sites.

Rewards really work: consumers who are offered an incentive are between three and five times more likely to convert, and their basket values tend to be higher too (+15–20%).

Sources: New Media Age, 19 March 2009 and Econsultancy