Full case study

EQUIVA saw impressive business results after switching to a mobile app

See how the EQUIVA Friends program is driving key strategic goals, which include enhancing the brand and increasing the share of the wallet.
SwipeRx loyalty program case study

Project summary

EQUIVA is a leading provider of all things equestrian: From riding clothing to horse feed and nutrition, they live the motto: “We love, we care, we ride.” With over 80 EQUIVA stores in Germany, Austria, and Luxembourg, as well as the www.equiva.com eCommerce, the company is on a mission to make equestrian sport an unforgettable experience for customers and their horses.

In April 2023, the company started the digital transformation process by replacing a paper loyalty card for sticker points with a mobile app that creates emotional bonds and wins members’ hearts.

Here's how they used Open Loyalty to go digital with their loyalty program, gamify the member experience, and increase the share of wallets.

Relevant trend: digital transformation

EQUIVA uses their mobile loyalty program to provide exceptional customer experience and become a single source for equestrian products.

Key results

Fast and successful digital transformation

In just three months, the team:

  • launched a loyalty program with achievement-based campaigns, transaction campaigns, and tiers
  • integrated the loyalty mechanics with the existing tech stack (point of sale, customer data platform, newsletter system, ecommerce, mobile app)
  • enrolled more than 50% of the paper loyalty cardholders.

Impressive business results

Loyalty program members show:

  • 23% higher average transaction value
  • 42% higher average number of transactions
  • double the average buying frequency (4.5 vs. 9.1)

Referrals:

  • 3400 referred customers saved approx EUR 68.000 in customer acquisition costs
"The open API-first approach supported by the Open Loyalty model helped us to transform extremely fast. In less than four months, we switched from a paper card with sticker points that only worked in brick-and-mortar to an app that works omni-channel. We were able to implement features like push notifications, actions, rebates, and coupons into the loyalty app. These features make people download the app and help us grow the program member base."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director. EQUIVA GmbH
EQUIVA Friends Android app screenshots in Google Play
EQUIVA Friends Android app screenshots in Google Play

The goal of the program

EQUIVA had clearly defined loyalty goals which is the main reason behind the fast and successful implementation of the program.

Brand enhancement

Most of the competitors in the equestrian industry have a frequent buyer program where customers have to spend a minimum amount of money to receive a certain percentage discount for future purchases. These programs provide discounts but lack any emotional connection with program members.

EQUIVA uses their mobile loyalty program to provide exceptional customer experience and become a single source for equestrian products.

"We wanted to create an emotional relationship with all our customers. We decided to move from competition-like tiers, e.g. bronze, silver, gold and instead refer to our customers as friends, best friends, and ultimately soulmates."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director. EQUIVA GmbH

Share of wallet

As a provider of all things equestrian, they wanted to ensure that people who buy feed & care don’t have a reason to go anywhere else when they want the best for their horses.

The 3 challenges of loyalty program digital transformation

Customers reluctant to change

EQUIVA had a notable number of customers who were satisfied with the traditional program and would like their old card back.  However, the old system could not track customer points. While it had all customer data, the points were marked with physical stickers on cards.

Tips from the expert

  • Address difficult decisions right away, e.g., we will lose certain members, but gain many more. Also, we’ll be able to collect data and use it to improve our business.
  • Make the program value proposition crystal clear.
  • Convince the heads of the POS and train them on how to communicate the program value proposition with the front-line staff, which historically is responsible for generating members.
"The sales people need to be convinced about the change. If they don’t believe in it, they won't be able to sell it. They need to perceive it as a chance and understand that joining the program is simple and makes their job a lot easier."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director. EQUIVA GmbH

  • To convince people to move, compare the value proposition of the old program with that of the new one. For example, that you save 4% with the paper card vs. you save up to 10% with the app.
The banner promoting the app emphasizing its value proposition
The banner promoting the app emphasizing its value proposition
  • Equip your staff with a Q&A list  addressing the possible challenges and providing  arguments for joining the new program, e.g.,some text:
    • “Do I have to download the app now? I don’t have enough bandwidth.”
    • “Don’t worry, it’s less bandwidth than a 2 minute tik tok video.”
  • Communicate the value proposition regularly and keep it high on the priority list.

Legacy backend technology

Before they went digital with the loyalty program, the customer data was stored in four separate systems: cash register, legacy customer database, newsletter system, and eCommerce store. To introduce the new program, the team had to merge it all into one customer data platform with robust APIs.

"If you work with an API-first system like Open Loyalty, you need robust API infrastructure :) We used Lobster to switch from the legacy data ETL (extract, transform, load) technology to real time APIs."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director. EQUIVA GmbH

Learning curve

The CRM team is learning to use the full potential that Open Loyalty offers to move customers higher and higher up in the program and increase the share of wallet. They’re testing and learning the use of features we might find suitable for our program, e.g. push notifications, coupons, and campaigns.

The solution

In order to transform from paper cards into a new digital discount program, EQUIVA designed and implemented the EQUIVA Friends mobile app. Open Loyalty is the technology that provides the loyalty mechanics in the program and integrates with the existing tech stack. Here’s exactly how Open Loyalty enabled the transformation.

Loyalty technology you can integrate into existing systems

"The open API-first approach supported by the Open Loyalty model helped us to transform extremely fast. In less than four months, we switched from a paper card with sticker points that only worked in brick-and-mortar to an app that works omni-channel. We were able to implement features like push notifications, actions, rebates, and coupons into the loyalty app. These features make people download the app and help us grow the program member base."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director. EQUIVA GmbH

Pre-build loyalty modules

"When planning the digital transformation we needed to support our “we love, we care, we ride” claim quickly. We didn’t want to build the technology ourselves. Instead, we partnered up with professionals who do it for us so that we can transform very fast. We used Open Loyalty pre-build modules, applied the loyalty mechanics via API to our tech stack and focused fully on the customer experience."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director. EQUIVA GmbH

About the EQUIVA Friends loyalty program

To take part in the EQUIVA Friends program, customers download an app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

The EQUIVA Friends program offers up to 10% discount on every purchase. The discount amount depends on the membership tier and the product group members are about to purchase.

In addition, members receive additional exclusive Friends discounts and a birthday surprise for themselves and their horse.

The Friends discount also applies to goods that have already been reduced.

The member tier structure

For every euro spent at an EQUIVA store or at the online shop, members receive two Hearts. The more Hearts they collect, the higher they rise in the bonus tiers and the more they can save.

There are three different Friends discount levels:

EQUIVA Friends offers three bonus levels
EQUIVA Friends offers three bonus levels

What’s unique about the EQUIVA Friends program?

Fast track for top spending customers

There’s a unique pathway for horse owners (top spending customers). After spending 50 euros on food, you earn the “Chefkoch” badge. As a reward, you get 400 hearts and immediately become a Best Friend.

"We realized that people don’t usually buy a 25 kg bag of food as a gift. They most likely own a horse. And, as a horse owner, you become a Best Friend right away."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director. EQUIVA GmbH
After spending €50 on food, members become a chef and a Best Friend.
After spending €50 on food, members become a chef and a Best Friend

Closing paragraph

Currently, the CRM team at EQUIVA is actively testing new mechanics to drive key strategic goals, which include enhancing the brand and increasing the share of the wallet. With Open Loyalty as their technology partner, they are well-positioned to implement remarkable initiatives.

Let me conclude this case study with the one thing Fritze likes most about working with Open Loyalty:

"It's a combination: a rock-solid feature base and a cross-functional team that demonstrated 110% dedication to our joint success."

Fritze von Berswordt
Managing Director, EQUIVA GmbH
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