Reward programs are designed to encourage customers to return, but they can easily become mechanisms that simply reduce the price of future purchases. Hugo Galvao de Franca Filho, founder and director of Enjoy Pets and an entrepreneur with experience in marketplaces and online sales growth, works in a context where retention is particularly relevant because consumers can compare alternatives across multiple digital channels within minutes.
Why can rewards become dependent on discounts?
The problem often begins when the program offers only one recognizable benefit: spend money, accumulate points and exchange those points for a price reduction. The mechanism is simple and easy to understand, but it establishes a relationship in which the financial incentive becomes the primary reason to participate. Customers may return, yet their behavior does not necessarily indicate stronger attachment to the business. In this situation, the program may increase purchase frequency without creating additional reasons for consumers to prefer the company itself.
Over time, this structure can also change expectations. If customers become accustomed to receiving coupons or discounts after purchases, paying the regular price may begin to feel less attractive. The reward stops being perceived as an additional benefit and gradually becomes part of the expected price calculation. As a result, promotions that were originally designed to encourage loyalty can become something customers simply wait for before making another purchase.
From Hugo Galvao’s perspective on online sales growth, this distinction matters because repeat purchases and loyalty are not identical. A customer can repeatedly choose the same store because it consistently offers the lowest effective price. If another seller presents a stronger financial incentive, that relationship may quickly disappear. Building retention therefore requires understanding what motivates customers to return even when price is not the main advantage available to them.
What can a program offer besides a lower price?
A reward does not necessarily need to have a direct monetary value. Businesses can provide practical benefits connected to the purchasing experience, such as easier access to certain services, early availability of products, personalized recommendations or conveniences that reduce friction for returning customers. These advantages can make participation worthwhile by improving the overall relationship with the business rather than simply lowering the cost of the next purchase.
The appropriate benefit depends on what customers actually value. In ecommerce, convenience can be particularly relevant because consumers frequently deal with repetitive decisions. Hugo Galvao highlights the importance of this practical value, as remembering preferences, simplifying recurring purchases or making it easier to find compatible products can strengthen the customer experience without requiring a percentage reduction on every order. When these benefits address recurring needs, the reward program can become part of a more convenient purchasing routine instead of functioning primarily as a source of coupons.
How can customer behavior shape the rewards?
Not every customer interacts with a business in the same way. Some purchase frequently, others place larger but less frequent orders, while another group may repeatedly buy products from a particular category. Treating all these behaviors identically can make a reward program less relevant and encourage businesses to rely on generic discounts. Recognizing these differences allows companies to design incentives that reflect how different groups actually purchase instead of assuming that every customer responds to the same benefit.
Purchase patterns can instead help determine which benefits make sense for different situations. In the pet market, for example, some products are naturally recurring while others are occasional purchases. A program that recognizes these differences can create a more useful experience than one that distributes the same coupon after every transaction. This makes it possible to connect rewards with real purchasing habits, increasing their practical relevance without making discounts the default response to every interaction.
According to Hugo Galvao, understanding these patterns also helps businesses separate genuine retention from promotion-driven activity. If customers return only immediately after receiving a discount, the company may be measuring responsiveness to incentives rather than loyalty. Observing behavior outside promotional periods provides a clearer view of the relationship. That distinction can help determine whether the program is strengthening customer preference or simply creating short-term purchasing reactions whenever a financial advantage appears.