How to Name Your Loyalty Program (and 5 Examples of Names Done Right)

Naming a loyalty program is important because it adds value to your overall ecommerce brand. Often, the world's biggest loyalty and rewards program, are just as recognizable as the brands they are a part of.

Your loyalty and reward program’s name is responsible for setting the tone for your shoppers and members. It can be the difference between a customer choosing to join your brand community or shop somewhere else. Make it sound exclusive, exciting, and on-brand so that your customers actually want to take part in it.

How to properly name a loyalty program

When it comes to naming your rewards program, there are two big ideas you need to keep in mind.

1. Establish an emotion

Above everything else, you want your program’s name to evoke an emotion in your shoppers. There are two reasons for that. For starters, loyalty is an emotion your customers feel for your brand. The emotion your program’s name creates will influence your members’ perception of your program and help establish that long-lasting commitment to your store.

Secondly, emotions are one of the best ways to encourage customers to join your brand community. In a world where customers are looking to connect with brands on a deeper level, what you name your program can go a long way to making them feel like your community is exactly where they want to be.

The trick is to inspire an emotion that aligns with your brand and the products you sell. No matter what type of products you sell, emotion is key to building a relationship with your shoppers.

2. Incorporate your loyalty program currency

Customers will only want to join your rewards program if they believe it can deliver value. This is why an amazing rewards currency can be instrumental in delivering on that promise.

For example, a cosmetics company who offers customers ‘Beauty Bucks’ as part of their ‘Beauty Bucks Boutique’ program sounds a lot more appealing than a competitor that rewards shoppers with ‘Beauty Points’ for joining their ‘Rewards Program’.

By putting value at the forefront of their program, the first brand is guaranteeing its members an exceptional experience that is satisfying and on-brand.

When you incorporate your currency into your program name, you build a clear connection between the value you’re promising and the value you’re going to deliver. This correlation will strengthen your program as a whole and help emphasize the value customers can expect to receive after joining your brand community.

The best loyalty program names examples

Now that you know how to effectively name your loyalty program, it’s time to show you what that looks like out in the wild. Every great rewards program is able to create the desire to join, engage, and share, and the following five examples do a great job of not only creating community but maintaining it, too.

The Sobr Club

The Sobr Market is the perfect option for anybody who doesn’t drink alcohol and wants to opt in for mocktails. The Canadian non-alcoholic brand has something for everyone, and offers wide range of non-alcoholic spirits, wines, beers, and more and curated bundles that let you sample a bit of everything.

The Sobr Market launched their loyalty program The Sobr Club, and rewards customers 5 points for every $1 spent, and referrals $10 off. The Sobr Club is appropriately named and conveys what the ecommerce brand is about, sobriety.

With a branded explainer page, and a clear way for customers to join their loyalty program, The Sobr Club is a standout program.

Blume’s Blumetopia

From the moment you land on Blumetopia, you're treated to a complete brand experience unlike any other.

From their beautiful explainer page, to their friendly and fun calls-to-action (CTAs) like “Are you a Blume Babe?” Blume delivers an on-brand customer loyalty experience. They’ve done a phenomenal job of tying together their program name and reward points name.

The use of the term “BBs” is also entirely appropriate, as the term is slang for baby, a flirty and fun term of endearment. This value of creating an inviting brand community is further driven home by the VIP tier titles of: Friends, BFFs and Soulmates. It’s clear from the second you land on Blume’s website that they want their customers to feel like they are entering a utopian universe. This 360 degree rewards experience demonstrates the strength of their loyalty program name as well as the value of belonging to their brand community.

B-Buck with Burnt

Burnt is a South African apparel brand that sells athliesure wear for men and women. Their loyalty and rewards program B-Bucks offers customers a wide range of exclusive perks such as discounts and access to new products.

Burnt blends its loyalty and rewards program with a VIP wallet pass that customers can keep track of their reward points and VIP tier.

Burnt knows how to cross promote its program with their marketing on social media. By promoting their program on Instagram through helpful tutorials like this, they’re ensuring customers know exactly how to use their program and get the most value out of it.

Earn Skulls with Liquid Death

If there is one brand that perfectly brands its loyalty and rewards program, it’s Liquid Death.

From its brand copy on its site and across social media - “...earn skulls for buying, sharing, and shamelessly promoting Liquid Death. Then, trade in your skulls for even cooler free sh*t…” to its currency name, Skulls, Liquid Death’s loyalty program is an extension of the overall brand identity.

One aspect of Liquid Death’s loyalty program is that customers can scan receipts if they bought a Liquid Death can from a retailer. As Liquid Death grows and expands into grocery stores and retail spaces, this is an important way to lock in customers who don’t come in through an online sale. You can easily retarget these customers to place orders online later. 

Designer Bums’ Camp DB

When a loyalty program brings you on an exciting journey through a screen, you know it's a good one. Australian reusable diaper brand, Designer Bums, takes its customers an exciting camping trip through their loyalty program, Camp DB.

We love this loyalty program name for many reasons. For starters, it incorporates the brand’s initials so it’s easy for customers to remember. Second, it transports customers into an entirely new world–one filled with exciting challenges and the opportunity to make their way through a loyalty program map to collect badges and rewards along the way.

Camp DB is definitely one of the most creative loyalty experiences we’ve seen and we’re loving every aspect of it.

Customers are prompted with this loyalty program reminder, making the loyalty program visible on any page you are on. This helps customers keep your program top of mind and remember what you offer.

Customers have the opportunity to level up through different VIP tiers at Camp DB. Just like a scout earning their badges at camp, customers can go from a ‘Happy Camper’ all the way to a ‘Star Gazer’, earning more exclusive perks along the trail. Their VIP tier names are also perfectly in-line with the program name.

The key to a great loyalty program name

A great loyalty program name is one that’s related to both what you do and the brand community you are trying to build. When you establish the right emotion and relate your program to your brand, the rest will follow (specifically more loyal, engaged customers).