Customer behaviour and loyalty have completely reshaped how companies approach loyalty-building. Today’s consumer is after more than just low prices; they are looking for convenience, long-term value and comprehensive loyalty programmes.
South Africa’s loyalty programme landscape is changing as consumer preferences shift toward immediate rewards, and businesses adapt to regulatory and economic conditions. The pioneers of loyalty programmes are retailers like Checkers (Xtra Savings), Pick n Pay (Smart Shopper), and pharmaceutical retailer Clicks (Clicks ClubCard), among many others.
To implement a comprehensive, revenue-building and customer-centric loyalty programme for your business, we need to analyse how the leaders are doing it, the tech involved and the value they provide to customers.
Today’s article is a deep dive into three of the most popular customer loyalty programmes, their intention and how they continue to drive customer loyalty.
Example No. 1: Checkers Xtra Savings
Launched in 2019, Xtra Savings is South Africa’s largest rewards programme, with over 33,7 million members and reporting R16,5 billion in savings for customers in the past year. The programme operates in over 2000 stores across eight brands – including Checkers’ clothing store Uniq – offering instant cash savings.
The unique value proposition of Checkers’ loyalty programme is that it provides instant savings when customers swipe their card at the till or in the app. Unlike other loyalty programmes, it does not leverage a points, tiers or levels system.
The convenience of the loyalty programme is in its capabilities. The Xtra Savings rewards programme and Sixty60 delivery platform use a hybrid infrastructure managed by ShopriteX, the digital, technology, and innovation hub for the Shoprite Group.
Most recently, Shoprite launched Pixie, an in-house AI shopping assistant for the Checkers Sixty60 app. It functions like a swipe-based personal shopper to predict and curate grocery orders.
The company’s latest innovation for its loyalty programme is a subscription service. Xtra Savings Plus is South Africa’s first grocery subscription service, offering more personalised offers, additional in-store discounts and unlimited Sixty60 deliveries – for just R99 per month.
The Lesson for Businesses
When you look at the Checkers Xtra Savings programme, there are three takeaways. Businesses must prioritise instant gratification for customers, remove friction with simple sign-up processes and leverage accessible omnichannel communication.
Example No. 2: Pick n Pay Smart Shopper
The Pick n Pay Smart Shopper loyalty programme was launched in 2011 and was the first major grocery chain rewards scheme. With over 11 million active members, the programme is designed to provide instant discounts, cashback points and digital app integration.
Unlike Checkers, the Smart Shopper programme not only provides instant savings when customers swipe or use the app, but it also converts every cent into points. The points convert at a base rate of 1 point = 1 cent (R0,01), meaning 100 points equal R1 in cash back.
Pick n Pay has also integrated various features and tech into its ASAP! App. On the app, users can shop for clothing from Pick n Pay Clothing, and, most recently, the retailer launched Penny, a Google Gemini-powered AI shopping assistant built into the Pick n Pay ASAP! app. Penny lets users chat, send voice notes, or upload photos to build grocery baskets, plan meals, and get recipes in English, Afrikaans, and Zulu.
The Lesson for Businesses
When considering a customer loyalty programme, the Pick n Pay Smart Shopper offering proves that combining instant savings at the point of sale with long-term cashback points creates powerful customer retention. Businesses can learn how to drive high engagement by offering dual-value rewards, leveraging customer data for personalisation, and building powerful brand ecosystems.
Example No. 3: Clicks ClubCard
Clicks launched the Clicks ClubCard loyalty programme in 1995 as South Africa’s first retail loyalty initiative. It initially debuted at a single store in Cape Town, where 13 000 customers signed up on the very first day.
The pharmaceutical company reports that its ClubCard membership has grown to just over 12,5 million active members, with 81,8% of all sales linked to loyalty, and more than R7,5 billion paid out in cashback over the past three decades.
Clicks leverages a multichannel approach for its loyalty programme. The approach means physical cards are still dominant, the MyClicks app is gaining traction with over 40% of online sales, and WhatsApp is growing as a communication channel.
The Lesson for Businesses
Those who are considering a loyalty programme must look at the Clicks ClubCard membership and how simple cashback incentives, strategic cross-brand partnerships, life-stage segmentation, and data-driven personalisation turn a basic discount card into a vehicle for long-term customer retention and high market share.
The Impact of AI on Customer Loyalty Programmes
As companies look to strengthen customer relationships and increase customer lifetime value (CLTV), artificial intelligence (AI) has become an important factor in developing next-generation loyalty programmes. The value of the technology can be seen across the value chain.
Customer Acquisition and Onboarding
Generative AI enhances customer acquisition efforts by providing personalised onboarding experiences and targeted marketing efforts. The tech can create customised welcome messages, tailored programme explanations, and individualised first-purchase incentives based on customer data like demographics and behavioural signals.
Impact for Businesses: Generative AI allows for scalable personalisation that was previously impossible due to traditional methods and cost.
Customer Segmentation and Targeting
Here is where agentic AI systems come in. They can independently identify and develop dynamic customer segments, constantly improving targeting strategies based on real-time behavioural data and predictive models.
Impact for Businesses: Agentic AI systems can go beyond traditional segmentation to focus on behaviour and predictive groups. They have a direct impact on ROI by ensuring that relevant offers reach the right customers at optimal times, enhancing engagement and improving conversion rates.
Fraud Detection and Security
Some customer loyalty programmes require users to provide personal information that needs to be protected from potential fraud. Agentic AI systems constantly monitor loyalty programme activities to identify fraudulent behaviour, account takeovers, and points manipulation. These systems adjust to new fraud patterns and deploy real-time protection measures.
Impact for Businesses: Not only do the AI agents protect the business and programme integrity, but they also protect existing value rather than creating new customer value or revenue streams.
Before you can begin to imagine the success of your loyalty programme, consider the foundational factors. The design must be simple and profitable for the size of your business and budget. Also, choose the right reward type, set achievable goals, ensure you have technology in place to track customer behaviour and ensure that your profit margin is protected before you launch.
