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Fair warning, this post doesn't have anything to do with crypto...

As many of you know, I'm an online entrepreneur who has been trying to bridge the gap between online / affiliate marketing and this blockchain for years.

And while the bulk of my content ends up having a crypto tone to it, tonight's post is taking a different angle.

I got the idea for the post on my way to work this morning while listening to the local morning talk radio show.  They were discussing the reduction of these popular rewards programs here in Canada.

You know the ones, swipe your card at your favorite store and start earning points.  You can save up to get some discounts on products or even trade them in for air travel and vacations.

These programs were extremely popular for years and heck, we even had our own version of them about a decade ago for the online company I co-owned.  To me the idea was brilliant, thank and give some bonuses to your repeat customers.  I always thought it was important to make sure your customers knew how much you appreciated their business, and our rewards card program was a great way to do it.

These loyalty programs were everywhere.  From filling up your gas tank, to shopping at the local grocery store...Swipe your card, get some bonuses!

However, over the past few years not only have most of these companies reduced the rewards they give out. Some of them have outright stopped offering them.

It just so happened that this evening, my wife and I were at our favorite local hardware store that had been offering rewards points for as long as we could remember...We go to swipe our card and as of July 1st, the store had ended their rewards program.

I find this absolutely remarkable, in today's day and age were companies seem to be nickel and diming customers already, they are now removing a way to say 'thanks' to their repeat customers.

*This blows my mind*.

Another thing that seems to be quite popular in the business world is to give 'new customers' huge discounts, and extra bonuses for signing up....

Ask me what they give their repeat or current customers?  Nothing but extra charges on their monthly bills.

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Here's a perfect example....This time last year, I paid almost 800 bucks to get Elon's hardware to enjoy high speed internet at my home.  Now to attract new customers, the price of the hardware has been slashed big time.

And what about the customers who paid top dollar for the hardware and the 140 bucks a month for service....They get nothing.

Here's the point....

Your competition is cutting costs.  They are making sure their customers feel less and less appreciated.  They treat you like a number, not like the life blood of their business.

Ask yourself, how can you make your customers feel valued?

While everyone is cutting loyalty programs and making their customers feel like trash, you can be different.  You can do something special for them, give them some bonuses, let them know they are appreciated in a day and age where that is rare.

You know, part of business success is sticking out from the crowd.  And to me, nothing will help you stick out more from the crowd these days, than truly appreciating your customers and making them feel valued.

A little nugget to think about this evening, I hope you found value in the post.  But more importantly, start coming up with ideas to make your customers feel appreciated!

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Posted Using [LeoFinance Alpha](https://leofinance.io/@jongolson/the-end-of-customer-appreciation)