Customer Devotion: it’s something all retailers want and need.
They want to be the go-to provider in their vertical and to be the brand their customers align with emotionally.
But in today’s ultra-competitive and increasingly price-sensitive market, taking a customer on the journey of becoming a brand ambassador is no easy feat.
At Red Badger’s latest Retail Visionaries roundtable, we invited loyalty, customer and digital leaders from a range of retailers across categories to discuss the challenge of defining and powering customer devotion.
What developed was a truly insightful discussion that surfaced a clear set of must-haves for enterprise retailers looking to drive growth.
The Foundation: Loyalty Starts With Brand Truth
Resoundingly, those in the room agreed that to plan and prioritise devotion-powering mechanisms, the first challenge is to understand what customers feel and love about a brand.
Having a shared customer truth that cuts through the muddy waters of metrics and measurables is the only way to understand what it is about a brand that means most to devoted customers.
So often, it’s the seemingly insignificant perks, like complimentary subscriptions or free member tea and cake that keep customers coming back.
And to do this, it takes cross-functional leadership, with devotion taken seriously at the highest level and in a way that allows the whole business (not just marketing and loyalty teams) to work collaboratively to unlock value.
Devotion Comes From All Touchpoints, But Double Down on What Matters
Everyone in the room at our roundtable represented a brand with omnichannel requirements, which made for rich insight into what it’s like to juggle in-person and online experiences.
Firstly, it’s great to see the energy behind in-person again. In-store experience offers an unbelievably powerful opportunity to keep customers coming back.
Whether it’s colleagues helping customers make informed buying decisions or simply delighting them with unique experiences, human interaction in the AI age is more sought after than ever. It is not only about having a genuine connection with an actual person, but the trust that is engendered from that interaction that turns customers into advocates.
And that work is only ever amplified by a great digital offer that’s both seamless and customer-led.
The trick, of course, is to ensure brand identity shines through everywhere and customer and business requirements are driving digital experience. Not being afraid to fail enables constant iteration of the brand offering to cater for customers’ ever evolving needs.
Historically, some have bought technology reflective of a Formula One racing car. All the bells and whistles, shiny and new… but unable to take advantage of it or it is not fit for purpose. This has left them paying big bills for technology that’s not producing a return on investment.
For now, and especially given the more challenging retail climate, it’s about investing in the practical option. Buy the car that meets requirements, is useful for all stakeholders and which can be upgraded when the time is right.
Starting small and scaling fast is the way to go.
AI is Personalisation’s Enabler, Not its Replacement
AI is quickly becoming an essential part of the retail toolkit, particularly when it comes to powering personalisation at scale.
In the room, there was broad recognition that AI can enhance customer devotion by making search and discovery more intuitive, improving content creation efficiency and scaling customer service - especially in out-of-hours contexts.
But as with any new tool, there are cautions.
There’s a fine line between helpful automation and a generic experience that erodes what makes a brand special. Authenticity can’t be an algorithm. For retailers with rich brand heritage or niche propositions, this risk is particularly acute.
What’s clear is that AI should be an enabler - supporting teams to deliver against the brand truth, not replacing the emotional and human aspects that drive true devotion. And, as always, success will depend on having the right data foundations in place. No amount of automation can make up for data that doesn’t reflect the real customer experience.
Done well, AI should help amplify what customers already love, not overwrite it.
Conclusion: The Cost of Complacency
Customer devotion isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s the bedrock of sustainable growth and resilience in today’s market.
For retailers navigating intense competition, tighter margins, and rising customer expectations, the temptation can be to chase the short-term wins - deeper discounts, louder campaigns, faster tech.
But those who take the time to understand their brand truth, align teams across the business and invest in meaningful, joined-up experiences will be the ones that thrive.
Because customers won’t stay loyal to a brand that simply meets expectations and trust can be easily broken and hard to win back. Devotion is earned - through consistency, emotional value and a shared sense of purpose and values.
Practical Next Steps for Retailers
- Ensure brand positioning is crystal clear before implementing tech or loyalty initiatives.
- Create shared success metrics that measure long-term devotion, not just short-term return.
- Develop cross-functional teams committed to customer outcomes to drive initiatives.
- Invest in modular systems that integrate with legacy platforms while enabling future growth.
- Prioritise the human touch, even in digital - especially for emotionally-driven sectors.
- Educate senior leaders on the power of investing in devotion to create meaningful customer experiences that the whole business can get behind.