Though Black Friday was initially a method for drumming up sales across all businesses, those ubiquitous deals have made it harder for businesses to attract consumers, and HTC's 'Team HTC' campaign is a way to get ahead of that Black Friday rush. Rather than only offering deals on Black Friday itself, Team HTC is a loyalty program that lets consumers earn points in the lead up to the event, giving themselves even better deals and even early access to Black Friday prices.
In terms of structure, Team HTC is in line with most loyalty programs. For every dollar spent on an HTC product, consumers earn three 'Perk Points' that can be redeemed on other HTC products. However, Team HTC differs from other programs in that consumers can earn Perk Points for referring other friends or posting about the program on social media, increasing the system's total reach.
Black Friday Loyalty Campaigns
Consumers Who Join 'Team HTC' can Earn Early Black Friday Deals
Trend Themes
1. Early Access Deals - The trend of offering early access deals to loyal customers before Black Friday provides a disruptive innovation opportunity for businesses to incentivize loyalty and drive sales.
2. Social Media Referral Programs - The trend of rewarding customers with loyalty points for referring friends or posting about the program on social media presents a disruptive innovation opportunity for businesses to leverage customer advocacy and expand their reach.
3. Points-based Loyalty Programs - The trend of implementing points-based loyalty programs, where customers can earn and redeem points for future purchases, offers a disruptive innovation opportunity for businesses to enhance customer engagement and retention.
Industry Implications
1. Consumer Electronics - The consumer electronics industry can benefit from early access deals and loyalty programs to attract customers, increase sales, and differentiate from competitors.
2. E-commerce - The e-commerce industry can leverage social media referral programs and points-based loyalty programs to engage customers, encourage repeat purchases, and foster brand loyalty.
3. Retail - The retail industry can take advantage of early access deals and points-based loyalty programs to drive foot traffic to stores, boost customer loyalty, and increase revenue.