The power of children for loyalty programmes : a cross-customer effect approach

Abstract

The proposed aim of the study is to investigate the influence of children in family decision making and their propensity to act as a differentiator of loyalty programmes through the adoption of a cross-customer effect approach. The intent was to explore whether children as a cross-customer effect approach would yield effective loyalty programme measures, such as purchase frequency. The study focused on parents who had children aged between 7 and 11 years of age. The data collection vehicle used to reach parents who had children aged between 7 and 11 years of age was through public schools in the North Eastern parts of Johannesburg, South Africa. The findings portrayed that whilst physical factors such as location and convenience play a role in encouraging store patronage; behaviour can similarly be explained by the presence of a loyalty programme. Loyalty programmes that are directed at children only are successful in promoting store patronage as evidenced by the discoveries with the frequency at Checkers which operates a loyalty programme that is targeted at the child only. This supports the overarching hypothesizing that the targeting of children as a cross-customer effect marketing approach acts as a differentiator for loyalty programmes.