Canadians More Loyal Than U.S. Consumers: Study

Canadian consumers play the loyalty card much more often than their U.S. counterparts, according to a recent study.

That’s the top line result of a Colloquy Research study, “The Canadian Difference: A Comparison of Loyalty Marketing Perceptions Among Specific Canadian Consumer Segments,” which said 86% of Canadians identify themselves as loyalty program participants. Approximately 75% of people actively participate in loyalty programs, compared to 39.5% of U.S. consumers, the study reported.

The key differences between the two groups reflect marked contrasts in character, as well as the state of the marketplaces in which they live. Canadian consumers are more patient, according to Colloquy, with 69% opting to participate in points programs, compared to 39% of Americans.

“The points base model for loyalty program proliferates in Canada because Canadians seem more willing to see the points bank as a savings account,” said Rick Ferguson, Colloquy editorial director. “In the U.S., there’s more of an immediate gratification component.”

But Ferguson noted that the dominance of some Canadian companies compared to major marketing posers in the U.S. also accounted for some of the striking differences in behavior.

“It’s a little more of a concentrated market because the big retailers have a national presence in Canada,” he said. “In the U.S., it’s more of a fragmented audience because the major retailers don’t have as much of a presence.”

Among the other behavioral divergences Colloquy’s report noted: Canadians are more generous and are twice as likely as their southern neighbors to redeem a reward for someone else.

Canadians are savvier loyalty players than are U.S. consumers, more likely to belong and participate in competing programs, the study found.

The study is based on 2,550 interviews Colloquy conducted with a research partner.

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