20 reward ideas for your loyalty programme

The 3 rules of a good reward

1. Achievable: customers should be able to get it within a few weeks, not a year. A threshold of 8 or 10 visits works well for a shop people visit often.
2. Desirable: offer what your customers really like, not what suits you to clear out.
3. Profitable: calculate the cost price, not the selling price. A free coffee costs you much less than its menu price.

Ideas for restaurants and cafés

• The 10^th drink or 10^th meal free
• A free dessert on the 5^th meal
• A free aperitif on your birthday
• A table reserved first on busy evenings
• A sneak-peek tasting of the new menu

Ideas for food shops

• A free baguette every 10
• €10 off once you've spent €150 in total (points programme)
• A free pastry on their birthday
• Priority booking for holiday orders

Ideas for beauty and wellness

• A free treatment or blow-dry on the 6^th visit
• -20% during the birthday month
• A free sample or care product
• "VIP" status with a reserved time slot
• A free service for both referrer and referee

Rewards that bring customers back faster

Beyond the gift at the end of the card, some mechanics trigger extra visits:

• Tiers (bronze, silver, gold): the more the customer comes, the bigger their perks.
• The wheel of fortune: a small surprise prize makes every visit more fun.
• Referral: a loyal customer brings you a new customer, and both are rewarded.
• Off-peak offers: a double reward on Tuesday mornings fills quiet slots. See our guide.

Mistakes to avoid

• A goal that's too far away (30 visits): customers give up.
• A reward that keeps changing: the customer no longer knows what they'll get.
• A reward in exchange for a Google review: this is against Google's rules. See our Google reviews guide.
• Never reminding customers where they stand: a digital card shows their progress at every visit.