Loyalty Must "...build value where AI cannot reach."

This article (https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/playable-brands-why-playfulness-points-save-customer-loyalty-bocska-txi1c/) from last week is an important read and thought it was worth drilling down into some of the key issues the author raises about the future of points-based loyalty programs and how brands should respond to the potential impact of AI shopping assistants.

Steve Bocska makes some really important points and paints a vision for the future of points-based loyalty... may be a bit of a dense read for some so I thought it might be helpful to distill it down to my key takeaways.

1. Loyalty is about to or is already undergoing a forced transformation as AI shopping agents disrupt the brand-consumer relationship.

2. In response to this external disturbance and to attempt to resolve ongoing challenges with loyalty fatigue and disengagement, loyalty efforts must shift to be less transactional, and focus on layers like identity, agency, mastery and belonging - making the space ripe for innovations from the world of play and intrinsic motivation, not just "gamification" the way it has been historically deployed.

3. The brand experience and loyalty in the future will thrive through meaningful participation and experiences that will ride alongside product/service delivery, that AI cannot commoditize and distintermediate.

4. One area where I might hope he drills deeper - there seems to be an underlying assumption that price sensitivity is the primary (only?) motivator and shopping agents will "win" as a result. Not always true, but an area for a deeper exploration that hopefully Steve or others will address separately.

5. The examples in this article lean towards low purchase frequency, high engagement and/or experiential categories. The argument is strengthened if you consider a couple of examples from categories with more price sensitivity, substitutibility, or habit fatigue.

a. Starbucks: Double Stars Days, encouraging product trial, challenge to hit streaks, all line up with Steve's argument

b. Sephora: similarly, Sephora uses fun tasks and cross-over with in-store discovery layered on top of status progression/tiers

c. 7-Eleven: bonus points games, daily spins, streaks, limited time challenges encourage ritual and mastery.

Bottom line: the response to date from the loyalty industry seems to be doubling down to some degree on existing levers - going deeper into personalization, predictive analytics and "segments of one" - and that leaves a wide lane for Steve's ideas to gain greater purchase.