• by Michael McLaren , Op-Ed Contributor, October 23, 2020

We’ve previously touched on "customer communications," "customer delight" and "customer behavior." Now "customer loyalty" takes center stage among the MediaPost 500 brands. Described by Bombora as “a way of doing business with your customer in a way that provides a positive customer experience before and after the sale in order to drive repeat business, customer loyalty and profits,” "customer loyalty" has been trending upwards since mid-September. After plateauing for the better part of summer, its rise indicates a widespread question: What impact has COVID-19 had on "customer loyalty?" As companies have spent the last few months recovering from disruptions in all its forms – from supply-chain crises and economic slowdown to irregular shopping patterns and new category entrants — they’ll need to rethink their value exchange as the holiday shopping season approaches. 

Interestingly we’ve seen the greatest intent-data disparity this week between brands and agencies concerning "customer acquisition cost" (CAC). This is the cost associated with convincing a customer to buy a product or service through sales and marketing. This is an important metric and one not easy to calculate if you’re looking at customer loyalty over time (e.g. "lifetime customer value"). However, if you want to remain profitable, having a keen understanding of what’s required to acquire new customers and retain existing ones is key. The best marketers should consider both sides of this equation to generate a more holistic understanding of their marketing and sales performances as new digital touch points are added every day. 

Brands and agencies do find themselves on the same page when it comes to in-app advertising – particularly Facebook mobile ads. With smartphones already the primary and sometimes only digital device that many users worldwide own, it’s no wonder that marketers are spending their valuable time adapting their content for the new mobile-only generation. In fact, studies have shown that, by and large, the pandemic didn’t significantly change media consumption habits worldwide. The battle for consumers' limited time and attention is only growing fiercer.