Aldi has leapt on reports of negative reaction to Lidl’s loyalty overhaul with a series of social media posts, including one offering tickets to the app’s “funeral”.
Aldi posted a BBC News story from last week with the headline ‘Lidl’s new loyalty scheme less generous, shoppers say’. “Well, this is awkward,” Aldi added.
It then posted a video of an assistant giving away cucumbers outside a store, with the message: “Lidl GB are charging 100 points for a cucumber so you force your boss to let you give away thousands of cucumbers.”
Finally, Aldi posted a picture showing a gravestone with the Lidl Plus logo on it, saying: “Tickets to the Lidl GB Plus app funeral only 8,000 points.”
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Lidl has changed the scheme by replacing Coupon Plus rewards with Points. Users receive one point for every £1 spent, and can use them to get free products – including a cucumber for 100 points – or discounts on a whole shop once enough are collected.
Some customers were quick to point out online that £100 to get a free cucumber was a lot more than they needed to spend for the same reward previously.
A poll for The Grocer by Find Out Now asked more than 2,300 regular Lidl shoppers: “Is the Lidl Plus loyalty app better, worse, or the same since the launch of Points rewards on 5 May?” Thirteen per cent said better, 55% said worse, and 31% said their opinion had not changed.
Lidl is adamant users will consistently earn more than one point per £1 in practice, thanks to campaigns such as double or triple points, and Rewards of the Week. Points also remain valid for two years, while Coupon Plus rewards expired much sooner.
Lidl said it was also making a 60% increase in investment this year in personalised coupon rewards, which remain in the scheme.
Read more: Apps, loyalty and customers: Louise Weise on Lidl’s winning way
A Lidl spokesperson said: “This year we are investing significantly more into the Lidl Plus app – helping customers save even more when shopping at Lidl. That includes a significant 60% increased investment into personalised coupons, responding to demand from shoppers who want more deals on the things they love. These coupons are going nowhere and savings for shoppers will be further bolstered by Lidl Plus Points which can be spent whenever shoppers choose, rather than within fixed redemption rates.
“It is important to note that customers will consistently earn more than one point per £1 with campaigns such as Rewards of the Week, double points, triple points, or free points on selected products, giving shoppers even better value,” the spokesperson added. “For example, both new and existing customers will receive 100 free Points to mark the launch, while shoppers can supercharge their Lidl Plus wallets by collecting double points on all Fruit. Thanks to our Reward of the Week deals right now, customers can also pick up in store bakery favourites for a discounted rate, such as any Deluxe freshly baked bread loaf for just 130 points (down from 200).”
Marcus Hadfield, chief strategy officer at loyalty app development firm Apadmi, said: “Lidl has no doubt built a points platform that can deliver genuinely personalised, high-value moments. They need to move fast to make those moments matter for their loyal shoppers.”
Lidl has been the UK’s fastest-growing bricks & mortar grocer for 34 four months in a row in Worldpanel by Numerator data, in which time its market share has grown by just over a percentage point to 8.4%, level with Morrisons. In its last financial year, about half of its growth came from increased usage of the Lidl Plus app.
Meanwhile the growth of Aldi, which has no loyalty scheme, has slowed. Latest Worldpanel data, covering the 12 weeks to 19 April, showed Aldi’s market share had slipped from 10.8% to 10.6% in a year.
A reply to one of Aldi’s Facebook posts said: “You don’t even have a scheme.”
Aldi fired back: “We don’t need one.”
Aldi has also been taking a defensive approach to Tesco’s loyalty scheme, in newspaper ads comparing prices and promising “No points, no cards, no faff”.
Markus Schröder, a retail adviser and former buying director for Aldi in Switzerland, said on LinkedIn: “This isn’t just Aldi attacking Tesco. It’s Aldi fighting to reassert its founding identity at a moment when that identity is under threat from both sides.”
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