Alibaba has launched a new tier to their 88 loyalty program offering exclusive rewards and experiences across Alibaba’s ecosystem to top shoppers. The new tier is the Alibaba 88VIP level (“88” is pronounced “BABA” in Chinese, which is also Alibaba’s ticker on the New York Stock Exchange).
A year ago, Alibaba has merged their Tmall and Taobao Marketplace loyalty programs into a single membership club based not just on transaction volume, but also the level of customer engagement company’s ecommerce platforms.
The 88 loyalty program offers members-only brand services, discounts and benefits delivering a personalized, convenient, and sometimes exclusive, user experience for members. The 88 Membership program is part of a larger push by Alibaba into what it calls ‘New Retail’, which uses technology, interactivity and a mixture of online and offline commerce to deliver efficiencies and enhanced services in shopping.
Built into the 88 membership are loyalty tiers that reward greater levels of consumer engagement, as well as those who click “buy” on Tmall or Taobao. That should encourage members to earn points and privileges by sharing product pages to social media, posting questions in community forums or writing product reviews useful to other consumers.
Alibaba 88VIP Loyalty Program Tier
88VIP members will be entitled to annual memberships for popular Alibaba-owned platforms, including video-streaming hub Youku, on-demand delivery service Ele.me, movie-ticketing platform Taopiaopiao and music-streaming app Xiami. Total benefits are valued at up to nearly RMB 2,000 per 88VIP member per year according to Alibaba.
Throughout the year, even during the company’s 11.11 mega-sale, 88VIP members will get 5% off when shopping on Alibaba’s online grocery channel, Tmall Supermarket, as well as the flagship stores of participating 88 local and international brands on Alibaba’s ecommerce sites Tmall and Taobao.
“The move exemplifies why we launched our membership program in the first place: to provide our customers with not just goods, but also a better lifestyle. We want our ‘88VIP’ members to enjoy the best shopping discounts, the most-entertaining content and the most-reliable local services Alibaba can offer.”
– Chris Tung, CMO, Alibaba
‘Super Members’, who are users with over 1,000 loyalty points in the company’s current program, can opt in to the tier upgrade for a discounted price of RMB 88 (about £10), while members with fewer than 1,000 points (and have made a purchase in the past 12 months) can sign up for the upgrade for RMB 888 (about £100). Loyalty points are earned not just by making purchases, but also by increasing engagement on the platform.
To earn more consumer points, consumers are encouraged to shop across more categories, leave reviews and interact with other users on Alibaba’s sites. The company said its ecosystem is not only about transactions, but about offering shoppers the opportunities to discover trends, consume entertaining content and build communities. It’s a way to reward those who value the Alibaba ecosystem the most.
