March 18, 2025
Loyalty Mobile App: Why Build An App Exclusively For Loyalty?
With consumers’ shifting shopping habits toward favoring mobile apps in shopping, optimizing your Shopify store for mobile devices is no longer enough to keep your customers coming back.
That’s why thousands of businesses of all sizes– from small apparel retailers to tech enterprises have developed their branded loyalty mobile apps.
A peek of what we’ll cover:
🔎 Loyalty mobile app 101
🤑 How can a mobile app benefit your retention?
🤔 Is it expensive to own a loyalty mobile app for your brand? (hint: nope)
What Is a Loyalty Mobile App?
A loyalty mobile app is an iOS/Android app that focuses exclusively on loyalty features like tracking and redeeming loyalty points and managing rewards programs without supporting payments or checkout functionalities.
Instead of investing in a full-fledged mobile shopping app, many businesses are now choosing to build a loyalty-exclusive app. This approach helps save both cost and time while still allowing brands to communicate effectively with their customers and nurture long-term relationships.
Wondering how a loyalty mobile app stacks up against a shopping mobile app? Here’s the breakdown:
The Benefits of Building a Loyalty Mobile App
Thanks to native mobile features, a loyalty mobile app delivers a seamless experience that your website simply can’t match. OneLoyalty users who’ve made the leap agree that building a loyalty mobile app gives them these standout perks:
#1. Increase in customer retention
While a good loyalty program can encourage repeat purchases, it may not be enough on its own. Without a dedicated mobile app, your customers must open a web browser and search for your brand each time they want to buy. This extra step exposes them to competitors and other distractions, making it harder for your brand to stay top of mind.
Therefore, if you want to boost your customer retention, building a loyalty mobile app should be at the top of your to-do list. Evidently, research shows that app users demonstrate a 23% higher retention rate than non-app shoppers after the first 3 months.
Unleash the full potential of your loyalty program
Get your expert-built loyalty mobile app for free of charge today.
#2. Directly engage with your customers via push notifications
Without a branded mobile app, the only channel you can communicate with your customers is via email, which can be ineffective if your emails go to the spam folder or simply get ignored.
By contrast, when you send your customers a push notification, it appears prominently on your customers’ screen right when they pick up their phone. This makes push notifications a superior alternative to email, as they bypass the clutter of an inbox and deliver your message right where your customers are most likely to see it.
#3. Keep your brand top of mind
After your customers download your app, your logo and name will be a part of their screen. This ongoing presence can reinforce recognition and encourage repeat interactions.
Since an average non-marketing shopper can only remember three brand names for a particular product type, staying on top of your customers’ minds is more important than you thought.
#4. Enhance customer experience with a seamless, on-the-go rewards program
With the app installed on their smartphones, customers can effortlessly check their loyalty points balance, redeem rewards, or browse personalized offers at any time—whether they’re at home, commuting, or even standing in line at one of your physical locations.
This on-the-go access eliminates the friction of navigating a mobile browser or logging into a website, which can be cumbersome on smaller screens or slower connections.
Moreover, the app can integrate features like real-time updates, ensuring customers are instantly notified when they earn points or unlock new rewards. This immediacy fosters a sense of excitement and engagement with your loyalty program.
#5. Gain valuable customer insights through app analytics
One of the standout advantages of a loyalty mobile app is its ability to collect detailed data on customer behavior and preferences, offering businesses actionable insights that are harder to obtain through a website alone.
The app tracks how users interact with your loyalty program—such as which rewards they redeem most frequently, how often they check their points, or which promotions prompt the most engagement. This data provides a window into what motivates your customers, allowing you to fine-tune your loyalty strategy for maximum impact.
Is A Branded Loyalty Mobile App Costly?
Short answer: it depends. It can cost up to $60K or $399/month (with OneLoyalty)
The cost of building a loyalty mobile app can vary significantly depending on the complexity of the features and the development approach. Below are three approximate price ranges with their corresponding complexity levels:
| Complexity | Estimated cost | Expected features |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | $5K - $15K |
|
| Intermediate | $15K - $30K | |
| Advanced | $30K - $60K+ |
These estimates reflect the initial development costs. This is not to mention the ongoing fees for support, maintenance, and licensing that some providers may charge, which can add to the overall expense.
However, some providers offer alternatives that include these elements in their plans. For example, OneLoyalty provides the loyalty mobile app as part of our Enterprise plan, which costs $399 per month. This covers:
- Build an advanced-level loyalty app with gamification, VIP tiers, etc.
- Branding customization
- Ongoing support from experts
Loyalty Mobile App– Simply The Future Of Loyalty Program
With the numerous benefits it offers, a loyalty mobile app can help brands amplify their loyalty program by engaging with their customers like never before.
The good part? If you are an Enterprise user of OneLoyalty, you’ll get a free expert-built loyalty mobile app that is tailored to your every need and whim.
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