Flexibility and Customization Redefine Loyalty Success.
Consumers Demand Choice, Inclusivity, and Mobile-first Engagement.
The Consumer Agenda Takes Over
Antavo’s Global Customer Loyalty Report 2025 confirms that consumers are now dictating the terms of loyalty. Drawing from 10,000 global consumer responses, the findings reveal an unmistakable shift: loyalty will be sustained not by fixed earn-and-burn mechanics but by flexibility, inclusivity, and personalization.
The report shows that 40.7% of consumers want more ways to earn points and 40.0% want more flexibility in redemption. At the same time, 81.2% say they would rather shop with brands that allow reward customization, yet fewer than half of programs currently deliver it. The market gap is stark, and it is widening into an opportunity for brands bold enough to rewire their systems around consumer choice.
Reward Customization: High Demand, Low Supply
Reward customization is the clearest signal of unmet demand. According to Antavo, more than four in five consumers globally prefer brands that let them customize rewards. Yet only 49.2% of programs provide this option today.
This shortfall is not just operational; it is strategic. Consumers who redeem personalized rewards have 4.3x higher spend, based on prior Antavo data. That multiplier effect underscores that reward customization is not a “nice to have” it is a proven driver of incremental revenue.
The Nordy Club by Nordstrom, featured in the report, demonstrates the opportunity: reward tiers that allow members to select experiences rather than being confined to fixed benefits. By shifting power to the consumer, Nordstrom positions loyalty as a vehicle for self-expression, not just savings. The lesson is clear: customization translates directly into both loyalty and growth.
Point Pooling and Family Accounts: Unlocking Inclusivity
Consumers do not live in isolation, and they increasingly expect loyalty programs to reflect that reality. Antavo’s research shows that 76% of consumers would prefer to shop with brands that allow account sharing or point pooling. Despite this demand, fewer than half of loyalty programs (43.7%) currently offer such options.
The missed opportunity is striking. In markets such as hospitality, Hilton Honors has pioneered family pooling, allowing groups to combine balances for higher-value redemptions. The model strengthens engagement by reframing loyalty as a collective benefit, deepening brand ties within households and communities.
Point pooling also broadens inclusivity by addressing demographics with lower individual spend capacity, such as students or younger consumers. By lowering barriers to meaningful redemption, brands expand loyalty’s reach while amplifying customer goodwill.
Mobile-First Loyalty Across Generations
The report underscores that mobile is the dominant channel for loyalty engagement. Across 10,000 global consumers, 59% prefer to interact with loyalty programs via mobile apps. This preference peaks among Millennials (69.1%) and Gen Z (65.0%), but even Gen X (62.4%) and Boomers (39.5%) are moving toward mobile-first interaction.
This shift is not simply technological convenience, it reflects an expectation of immediacy and seamlessness. Consumers want rewards accessible in real time, with frictionless redemption and personalized notifications delivered at the point of decision. Programs that lag in mobile capability risk losing relevance with the largest and fastest-growing cohorts of loyalty participants.
The report makes it clear: mobile is no longer just another channel; it is the central interface of modern loyalty.
The Consumer Wishlist as Growth Strategy
Taken together, Antavo’s data paints a sharp picture: flexibility, inclusivity, and personalization are no longer aspirational features. They are baseline consumer expectations. Four in ten want more ways to earn points beyond transactions. One in three wants more flexible redemption options. Three-quarters want pooled or shared accounts. And the majority prefer mobile as their loyalty touchpoint.
The implication for executives is blunt: programs that fail to meet these expectations will be displaced by those that do. As the report notes, those who redeem points spend 3.1x more, and those who redeem personalized rewards spend 4.3x more. Flexibility is not a consumer perk; it is a financial lever.
Recommendations for CEOs
Close the Reward Customization Gap: Prioritize personalization features, 81% of consumers are waiting, and only half of brands deliver.
Adopt Point Pooling and Sharing: Treat inclusivity as growth infrastructure, unlocking loyalty within families and lower-spend demographics.
Rebuild Programs as Mobile-First: Position mobile as the primary loyalty interface across all generations.
Expand Non-Transactional Earning: Introduce ways to earn points beyond purchases, referrals, surveys, wellness activities, to deepen engagement.
Audit Redemption Flexibility: Remove friction and allow cross-channel redemption to align with consumer demand for freedom.
Bottom Line
The Global Customer Loyalty Report 2025 makes one fact unavoidable: consumers are openly articulating what they want, and most brands are not keeping pace. Flexibility in earning and redemption, customization in rewards, and inclusivity through pooling are no longer optional. They are decisive factors in whether consumers choose to stay loyal.
The opportunity is immense for those who act. Meeting these expectations not only strengthens consumer trust but also drives measurable financial lift, with redemption-linked spend rising up to fourfold. The risk is equally clear: ignoring the wishlist will turn loyalty programs into liabilities, costly, underperforming systems that alienate the very customers they aim to retain.
In 2025, the consumer agenda is the loyalty agenda. Leaders who embrace it will redefine loyalty as a source of growth and trust. Those who resist will watch consumers, and their spend, move elsewhere.
