To Grow Customer Loyalty, Embrace the Power of Habit

By Lauren Murphy, PhD, AVP Center for Human Understanding

Humans are creatures of habit. Studies show that more than 40% of people’s everyday behaviors, from how they brush their teeth to when they have an afternoon snack, are habitual – meaning they take place automatically, with little conscious thought.

For brands seeking to earn lifetime value and loyalty, building habits presents a significant opportunity. Becoming embedded in consumers’ habits and routines creates long-lasting and mutually-beneficial connections — the sort of meaningful, valuable loyalty that all brands strive for.

The Science of Habit

Harnessing the potential of habits isn’t limited to daily routines. For example, partnering with a major pizza chain, Material found that football fans who order pizza to eat during NFL games at home typically want their food to arrive before kickoff. We asked customers who their favorite teams were and mapped those preferences to the NFL schedule; our marketing services team them strategically designed emails and push notifications that would reach those customers three hours before game time. By leveraging the principles of habit, we were able to effectively remind consumers of their intention to order a pizza and ensure our client didn’t miss out on a sales opportunity.

In addition to integrating into existing habits, brands can also unlock value by helping consumers start habits from scratch – though new habit formation can pose significant challenges. As anyone who has struggled to begin an exercise routine knows, adopting new habits can be more difficult than adapting existing ones.

Science tells us that the process of repeatedly pairing a cue with a behavior to create a positive outcome results in habit formation. It’s why successful loyalty programs often give an immediate reward to customers for their first few purchases in addition to the long-term benefits of program membership.

For a brand to be able to incorporate itself into new or existing consumer habits, it needs to deeply understand and strategically map those habits. Behavioral data analysis can help; by mapping customer interactions across digital touchpoints, for example, brands can begin to paint a picture of consumers’ repeat behaviors and engagement patterns. Quantitative and qualitative research can also help determine the strength of consumer habits within a category or competitive set, providing insights and answers to vital questions like

• What existing habits involve my product or brand?

• What habits exist that reveal a white space in the market?

• Which benefits or pain points most influence the “stickiness” of the habits relevant to my brand?

• How habitual is the use of my product relative to others in the competitive set?

• Are consumers looking to develop new habits?

Consider an example where existing habits provide an opportunity to design customer-centric experiences, services or products. A ride-share app that regularly sees a surge in business during inclement weather can send consumers suggestions to book rides when the weather forecast shows that storms are imminent. By tracking behavioral patterns, anticipating consumers’ needs in the context of the moment and delivering a tailored message, the brand is taking advantage of consumer habits — opting for rides rather than walking or taking public transportation during bad weather — to prove its relevance to its users, a foundational building block of brand loyalty.

Beyond the scope of brand- of category-level observations, broader cultural shifts are another driver of habit formation. One clear example is the impact of the pandemic, which transformed consumer habits around shopping, communication, dining and other everyday activities. Brands that pay close attention to cultural changes and their impact on consumer behavior – through cultural foresight and other specialized research and insights initiatives – will be better positioned to anticipate large-scale habit shifts and identify opportunities to capitalize on them.

A Human-Centric Approach

Harnessing the power of habit formation and building solutions that integrate into habits is just one way brands can leverage the science of human behavior to build deeper connections with their customers. From habits to motivation, identity and memory, our new e-book, Six Behavioral Science Principles for Deeper Human Insights, explores key concepts that can help brands understand – and adapt to – the complex processes behind consumer decision making. Download the e-book today to discover all six principles and how they can unlock real-world impact for your business.