Key Loyalty Research Questions Businesses Need Answers To Now
The Loyalty Puzzle 2025 Edition
As markets become increasingly saturated and customer acquisition costs continue to rise, the ability to develop evidence-based loyalty strategies is essential for sustainable growth. Understanding the drivers and the many facets of loyalty is not merely an academic exercise but a fundamental business imperative with a direct impact on revenue, profitability, and long-term viability.
The Loyalty Science Lab spent the past year talking with industry leaders, academics, and loyalty practitioners to identify the most pressing unanswered or inadequately answered questions related to brand and customer loyalty. Our investigation revealed 15 distinct themes with knowledge deficiency that can benefit from deep, focused research.
Here, we showcase five of the critical areas demanding immediate research attention, along with glimpses into the additional themes emerging from our research. For the complete list of research themes and their detailed questions, you can download the full report, The Loyalty Puzzle 2025 Edition.
1. Measuring the True Value of Loyalty: Beyond Correlation to Causation
Despite significant investments in loyalty initiatives, most organizations still struggle with a fundamental question: “Are we actually creating incremental value or simply rewarding customers who would have purchased anyway?” This challenge of attribution has become increasingly complex in an omnichannel world.
Our research identified several critical measurement questions that need addressing. How can organizations develop robust frameworks that distinguish truly incremental sales from those that would have occurred regardless? What methodologies can effectively quantify the ROI of emotional and experiential benefits that extend beyond transactional rewards?
Perhaps most intriguingly, how can businesses measure the impact of “micro-moments” — those seemingly minor interactions that collectively shape customer experience but individually fall below traditional measurement thresholds?
The relationship between what customers say they value (in surveys and feedback) versus their actual behaviors presents another measurement puzzle requiring sophisticated research approaches.
2. AI and Intelligence-Driven Loyalty: Finding the Human-Machine Balance
Artificial intelligence has rapidly transformed from a future possibility to a present-day reality in loyalty management. Yet as AI becomes more sophisticated, organizations face critical questions about implementation strategy, ethical boundaries, and optimal deployment.
What architecture allows AI systems to enhance customer relationships without creating the “uncanny valley” effect that can alienate rather than engage? How can machine learning evolve from reactive response systems to truly predictive capabilities that anticipate customer needs before they arise? Even more importantly, what constitutes the ideal balance between automation and human touchpoints throughout the loyalty journey?
Different customer segments can have markedly different preferences for AI versus human or human+AI interactions at various touchpoints. Understanding these preferences — and how they vary by industry, demographic, and situational context — represents a critical research priority that could significantly improve the effectiveness of AI loyalty initiatives.
3. Moving Beyond Transactional Loyalty: The Neuroscience and Psychology of Emotional Connection
The most valuable loyal customers don’t just repeatedly purchase — they form genuine emotional connections with brands that can withstand competitive offers and price sensitivity. However, the mechanisms driving this transition from transactional to emotional loyalty remain poorly understood.
What neurological and psychological mechanisms drive this evolution? How do repeated positive interactions create neural pathways associated with brand attachment that mimic relationship formation? Why do some brands achieve “addiction-like” loyalty while others with similar offerings don’t? These questions move beyond traditional marketing into the realm of neuroscience and psychology.
The concept of reciprocal loyalty — where customers perceive that brands are genuinely loyal to them, not just extracting value — emerged as a particularly fascinating area for investigation. What specific brand behaviors create this perception of reciprocity, and how does it impact retention compared to traditional loyalty approaches?
4. Navigating Loyalty During Economic Uncertainty: Inflation-Proofing Your Strategy
In an era of persistent inflationary pressures and economic volatility, loyalty dynamics are shifting in ways that demand new research and understanding. Value perception has become paramount, challenging traditional loyalty mechanics.
What specific program elements remain effective during economic downturns when consumers become more price-sensitive? At what threshold does economic pressure override established brand loyalty, and how does this vary across product categories? Organizations need strategies to effectively “inflation-proof” their loyalty initiatives without sacrificing profitability.
The post-pandemic landscape has permanently altered many customer loyalty expectations and behaviors. Which pandemic-era adaptations in loyalty programs (digital engagement approaches, contactless options, at-home experiences) should be maintained versus reverted? Understanding which behavioral changes are temporary disruptions versus permanent shifts requires sophisticated research methodologies.
5. The Privacy-Personalization Paradox: Finding the Ethical Sweet Spot
A fundamental loyalty challenge is navigating the tension between data-driven personalization and evolving privacy expectations. As regulations tighten and consumer awareness grows, yesterday’s personalization approaches may become tomorrow’s privacy violations.
What frameworks help optimize the use of first-party data and zero-party data (information willingly shared) in increasingly regulated environments? How do privacy concerns vary across demographics and contexts, and how should personalization strategies adapt accordingly? What alternative data architectures and consent mechanisms can support sophisticated personalization while enhancing privacy protection?
The elimination of third-party cookies and diminishing cross-platform tracking capabilities requires entirely new approaches in order to maintain personalization effectiveness. Organizations pioneering ethical, transparent personalization strategies will likely gain significant competitive advantage in the loyalty space.
Beyond the Fundamentals: Ten Additional Themes Shaping Loyalty’s Future
Besides the five themes above, our research identified ten additional areas demanding investigation:
- Loyalty Program Architecture and Evolution: How point-based versus point-free structures compare, and how programs should evolve over time.
- Generational Loyalty Dynamics: How fundamental loyalty motivations differ across cohorts, from Baby Boomers to Gen Alpha.
- The Employee-Customer Loyalty Connection: How employee experience directly impacts customer loyalty outcomes.
- Ecosystem and Multi-Entity Loyalty: How loyalty functions in complex environments with multiple stakeholders.
- Brand Values and Loyalty Connections: How ideological alignment impacts loyalty in an increasingly value-conscious marketplace.
- Customer Disengagement and Intervention: How to detect “silent churn” and effectively re-engage customers.
- Community-Based Loyalty: How customer-to-customer interactions influence loyalty outcomes.
- Digital Context Evolution: How emerging digital environments like metaverse and subscription models transform loyalty.
- Loyalty-Variety Balance: How to maintain loyalty while accommodating natural consumer desire for variety
- Loyalty Program Communication: How to optimize engagement without causing message fatigue.
Advancing Loyalty Science Together
The Loyalty Puzzle 2025 represents our commitment to advancing the scientific understanding of customer loyalty in an increasingly complex business environment. We welcome your thoughts, insights, and collaboration in addressing these critical questions.
If you’re interested in exploring these themes further or partnering on research initiatives, we’d love to connect. The challenges outlined above require collaborative efforts among practitioners, academics, and technology providers.
Download the complete Loyalty Puzzle 2025 to access all fifteen research themes with their detailed questions and sub-questions that will shape the future of loyalty strategy and implementation.
