One BonusLoyalty program examples
Updated 31 August 2026
Six programs that work, and the arithmetic that makes each one work. They are worth reading in order, because each is solving a different problem — copying the one that fits a different visit frequency is the most common way a program fails.
The coffee stamp card
Nine coffees, the tenth free. A ten percent give-back paid only to somebody who came ten times, versus a ten percent discount paid to everyone including the person who came once. It works because a daily purchase is too cheap for points to register and the goal is close enough to picture.
The supermarket percentage
Two to four percent back as points on a basket that swings from a loaf of bread to a weekly shop. A percentage keeps the reward proportionate with nobody doing arithmetic, which is the only thing that survives a checkout queue.
The airline tier
The purest example of a status people protect. Almost nothing is given away — priority, a better seat when one is free, boarding order — and the customer changes real behaviour to keep it. Every tier program in retail is an imitation of this one.
The pharmacy basket
Points on the regular non-prescription purchase — vitamins, cosmetics, care products — bought monthly by the same people. It works because that basket is predictable, and it deliberately stays away from what a pharmacy should not be recording.
The referral
Both sides rewarded, paid out only after the new customer actually buys. It is the only acquisition channel where the cost per customer is a number you choose, and it is how garages, dentists and salons genuinely grow.
The timed coupon
An offer valid Monday to Wednesday, sent to people who have already visited. It moves covers into the nights that need them without touching the weekend price, and it can be measured against the same nights the week before — which almost no marketing can.
Common questions
What is the best loyalty program example to copy?
The one whose visit frequency matches yours. A café stamp card copied into a restaurant fails, and a tier programme copied into a bakery fails, because the number of visits between rewards is completely different.
Which loyalty program is the most profitable?
The stamp card, in trades that suit it: a card of ten gives away one item in ten and only to customers who came ten times. The equivalent headline discount would be paid to everyone, including people who were never coming back.
Can a small business run the same programs as a big chain?
The mechanics are identical — the chains have no rule you cannot set. What they have is the card already being in the customer’s pocket, which is the part a shared network gives a small business too.
Pick the one that fits your counter
Read next
- Loyalty programsPoints, stamps, levels, discounts, cashback, coupons and referrals — what each mechanic rewards, who it suits, and how to pick one for a business in Armenia.
- Bonus programsHow each kind of bonus program works and which one fits a business: points on spend, stamp cards, levels, coupons and referrals. Run any of them on One Bonus.
- Discount programsWhen a discount beats points, when it does not, and how to pick a percentage or a fixed amount. Discounts on One Bonus are recorded, so a campaign can be measured.
- CashbackWhat a cashback program returns, how the percentage is set, and where cashback beats a straight discount. Run cashback as points on One Bonus and measure what returns.
- Stamp cardsHow a digital stamp card works, how many stamps to ask for, and why paper punch cards leak. Every stamp on One Bonus is recorded against the customer, not the card.
- Points systemHow to set an earn rate, what a point should be worth at the till, and how expiry and minimum redemption change behaviour. The arithmetic behind a points program.
- Tiers and levelsHow a tier program lifts spend, where to put the thresholds, and what each level should actually give. Levels on One Bonus rank on lifetime points, not the current balance.
- CouponsWhen a coupon works better than a standing discount, how to price one in points, and how to stop a coupon being used twice. Coupons on One Bonus are redeemed once.