• July 19, 2010

Experts at Colloquy, loyalty marketing specialists, says the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act brings new support of the use of incentives and rewards by health and wellness programs.

"Starting in 2011, the law authorized grants totaling $200 million over five years for small companies that start wellness programs," says Colloquy Managing Partner Kelly Hlavinka. "We see that loyalty marketing tactics are becoming an important tool in the health care reform."

Some tried-and-true loyalty tactics that will soon be driving the health care "carrot" renaissance and that marketers need to understand include: short-term incentives leading to long-term payoffs; understand objectives and offering the right benefits; striking a balance between hard and soft benefits and staying relevant.

The principles and best practices of loyalty marketing have helped companies across industries drive behavior shifts toward a wide variety of goals, from customer acquisition and retention to increased sales and data-gathering. "The health care industry is no exception," said Hlavinka. "Companies are using loyalty tactics to help reduce health care costs, prevent chronic disease, and encourage healthy behavior change."--Tanya Irwin