Beyond points: How South Africa’s loyalty leaders are raising the game in 2025

From left to right, Dr Nceba Hena (African Bank), Katie Alomia (Old Mutual), Zane Green (Everlytic CEO), Leigh Crymble (BreadCrumbs Linguistics) and Craig Small (Clicks).

As South Africa’s leading digital messaging platform, Everlytic helps brands build deeper customer connections through smart, scalable and behaviour-led email. And in a country with some of the most advanced loyalty ecosystems in the world, that matters.

The panel unpacked new insights from The Loyalty Effect research report, based on over 6 billion emails sent in 2024, and explored how email can power up loyalty by delivering relevance, emotion and real-time value.

1. Simplicity is the ultimate loyalty strategy

Craig Small – Clicks Rewards

Clicks ClubCard is SA’s most-used loyalty programme. Why? “Simplicity,” said Small. “Customers engage with what they understand.” That means no gimmicks, just clear value, clean comms and a focus on relevance. Personalisation is key, but only when it aligns with real-life needs.

2. Banking on behaviour: Reward the right actions

Dr. Nceba Hene – African Bank

Loyalty isn’t just transactional. “We reward customers for financial behaviours that build their future,” said Hene. Think saving, budgeting, investing. The programme is designed to support customers’ goals, with instant rewards and transparent mechanics that reflect African Bank’s positioning as a partner in growth.

3. Email still works when it works hard

Katie Alomia – Old Mutual Rewards

Old Mutual’s Rewards programme recently won Everlytic’s “You Mailed It” award for the most effective email campaign of the year. It’s not Katie Alomia’s first time in the spotlight, she also led Discovery’s “You Mailed It” win in 2023. Her secret? “We test everything,” said Alomia. From subject lines to behavioural nudges, her team uses real-time analytics and A/B testing to refine performance. She also emphasised the role of emotion: “We craft messages that spark curiosity, urgency, or delight. Email works when it speaks to people like people. We create messages that feel personal, like they’re written for one person, not a database.”

4. Words matter more than you think

Leigh Crymble – BreadCrumbs Linguistics

Crymble brought the science. Phrases like “your reward” outperform generic ones by creating a sense of ownership. High-performing emails, she said, use skimmable formatting, second-person language and cognitive cues like scarcity and immediacy. The goal is simple: make people act.

5. Loyalty is human first, digital second

Zane Green – Everlytic

Zane closed the session with a reminder that loyalty isn’t about louder comms, it’s about smarter connections. “The best programmes today blend behavioural insight, simplicity and emotional depth,” he said. “If your email isn’t helping your customer feel seen, it’s just noise.”

South African consumers are smart, selective and juggling multiple loyalty programmes. The brands that win don’t just offer rewards. They deliver them through messaging that feels personal, meaningful and easy to engage with.

Want the full story and stats?

Download The Loyalty Effect research report here:https://www.everlytic.com/guides/the-loyalty-effect/?utm_medium=pr&utm_source=bizcommunity&utm_campaign=loyalty-effect-event.