You can launch a loyalty program in a week as long as you keep it simple: a stamp card, a reward the customer understands at a glance and a QR stand at the till. The rest (newsletter, tiers, reminders) can come once the basics are running.
This plan assumes you already have a business with customers walking in: café, bakery, salon, chip shop. No app, no website, no special equipment: the team uses their usual phones.
What is the plan for the week?
| Day | Task |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Choose the reward and the number of stamps |
| Day 2 | Create the card with your logo and colours |
| Day 3 | Order or print the QR stand |
| Day 4 | Train the team and test it yourself |
| Day 5 | Set up the stand and offer the card to every customer |
| Days 6-7 | Look at the sign-ups and adjust |
A printed stand can take more than a day: order it early. To avoid waiting, start with an A5 sheet printed and slipped into a plastic sleeve, and move to the proper stand later.
Day 1: the reward and the number of stamps
The reward is the whole promise. Choose something the customer wants and that you can afford to give away: a coffee, a discounted haircut, a pastry.
Work out what it costs you in ingredients and working time, not its shelf price. It is often noticeably less: see the real cost of a reward. Then set the number of stamps. Ten is common; very loyal customers will put up with more, occasional customers want fewer.
Day 2: the card
Add the logo, colours and the reward text. Keep it short: the customer should understand it in a second. Preview the card as it will appear on a phone before you carry on. It is added to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, where the customer finds it alongside their tickets and payment cards.
In a multilingual country like Belgium, the sign-up page and the card exist in French, Dutch and English, and the language of the customer’s phone decides. You write the texts in your business’s main language; the other languages reuse that text until you add a translation.
A stamp card is included in Essential, at €29 per month excl. VAT. The other card types and the tiers are part of Pro, at €59 per month excl. VAT.
Day 3: the QR stand
The stand is the front door. The customer scans the code, enters their first name and e-mail address, then adds the card to their phone. It takes less than a minute. The first stand is included in the plan; each additional stand costs €19 excl. VAT. Placement matters: put it where the customer waits to pay.
Day 4: train the team
The team is what convinces customers, so take the time. Show how to:
- scan a customer’s card with the phone to give a stamp,
- hand over a reward when the card is full,
- correct a stamp given by mistake, by the owner or a manager, with a record,
- mention it naturally at the till: “Collecting our stamps? Scan the code, the first one is on us.”
Let everyone practise on their own phone or a colleague’s before you set up the stand.
Day 5: open up and offer it to every customer
Put the stand where the customer waits, next to the till. Ask every customer during the first few weeks: someone who is asked signs up far more often than someone who only sees a sign.
Give the first stamp straight after the scan: the customer sees how it works and their card doesn’t start from zero.
Days 6 and 7: look and adjust
After a few days, you will know more than you do today. How many customers signed up? How many got a second stamp? Is it hard to offer the card when it is busy? Adjust the reward or the number of stamps if it seems too long or too easy.
What next?
Once the basics work, you can add:
- lock-screen notifications when a reward is waiting or an offer starts,
- reminders when the customer is near your shop,
- VIP tiers for your best customers,
- a newsletter for those who said yes.
For the cost details, read what a digital loyalty card costs or see the pricing. If you already have paper cards, see moving from paper to digital.
In short
A loyalty program doesn’t need to be big to work. Choose a reward you can afford, create the card, set up the stand, train the team and offer it to every customer. It fits into a week, and you will learn more from your first customers than from any amount of preparation. With a 14-day free trial, you can check it for yourself.