Clicks dominates, but for lower-income earners, Shoprite and Capitec are the favourite reward programmes.

Clicks ClubCard is the most used loyalty programme in South Africa, according to the 2022 Truth & BrandMapp Loyalty Whitepaper.

The Whitepaper, now in its seventh edition, outlines how South African consumers use loyalty programmes, what their preferences and motivations are towards loyalty, and which benefits they most enjoy.

It surveys 33 000 South Africans with an average household income of more than R10 000 per month, and 9 000 South Africans with an average household income of less than R10 000 per month.

Clicks remains on top

This is the fourth time Clicks ClubCard has come out on top, with 79% of South African consumers who use loyalty programmes claiming to use the Clicks ClubCard programme.

Possibly one of the biggest drivers behind the Clicks ClubCard is that, according to the survey, cashback is South African’s favourite loyalty benefit across gender, age and income groups.

In the last 12 months alone, Clicks ClubCard has paid out more than R600 million in cashback rewards to members. Since its inception, it has paid out more than R5.5 billion in cashback spend.

Another reason for its continued success is its partnership with FNB’s eBucks programme. Clicks ClubCard members who bank with FNB spend more than the average member both for Clicks in-store and online shopping.

According to the whitepaper, FNB eBucks retains its position as the most used financial services reward programme and Spur Family card was most used in the restaurant category.

In terms of the favourite reward programmes which South Africans claim they can’t live without, both Discovery Vitality and Standard Bank UCount are the winning brands in terms of being indispensable to their members.

Amanda Cromhout, CEO of Truth, says that 70% of South Africans use loyalty programmes. “We have seen an explosion in the volume of programmes which South Africans use over the past eight years.  This has grown from an average of 3.6 programmes per person to 9.2 programmes in 2022,” says Cromhout.

Cromhout says this year the survey specifically looked at how mass-market consumers earning less than R10 000 a month are using reward programmes.

The survey found that 82% of mass-market consumers are using loyalty programmes, and that loyalty programmes strongly influence their choice of shopping and banking brands.

Shoprite Xtra Savings is the most used loyalty programme for the lower-income consumer, followed by Pick n Pay Smart Shopper.  The most used financial services brand is Capitec Live Better, a relatively new loyalty offering in the South African market.

Boost the benefits from your favourite reward programmes

It is possible to significantly increase your rewards across various partners by fully immersing yourself in one network of interconnected reward programmes.

For example, a Clicks ClubCard member can earn up to 4% cashback when shopping at Clicks, but can also get rewards at the programme’s partners:

• Engen – earn 20c per litre of fuel
• Discovery Vitality – earn up to 25% cashback on products that qualify as “HealthyCare” products
• Discovery Bank – boost your cashback on “HealthyCare” products by up to another 25%; spend Discovery Miles at Clicks
• Momentum Multiply – earn 14% cashback on purchases at Clicks
• ARC – earn 6% cashback on all purchases at ARC (and an extra 4% on your first purchase)
• FNB – earn and spend eBucks at both Clicks and ARC

This article first appeared in City Press.