Executive interview with Mark Collin, Chief Growth Officer, Apadmi

Wise Marketer recently published news from Apadmi covering the release of a new study, the Second Annual Digital Customer Loyalty Report. The report is based on survey data from more than 150 mobile, loyalty, CRM, and product experts from a range of leading retail, hospitality, travel, telco, media, and technology businesses across Europe. It aims to provide a wide view of the loyalty landscape with insight and learnings which benefit the industry and provide useful guidance for the year ahead.

The report contained findings that caught our eye, and which should be of interest to anyone in our industry. We connected with the primary author of the study, landing an interview with Mark Collin, Apadmi’s Chief Growth Officer.

Mark offered this topline perspective as we began our conversation: “Whilst barriers and challenges when it comes to customer loyalty aren’t going away, there are effective, proven tactics to overcome these barriers and get the buy-in you need. Using competitor research to understand how similar businesses are leveraging mobile to unlock loyalty can help prove how and why you need to remain competitive in the wider market.” 

Here’s a summary of our conversation.

WM: You just issued new research with a topline message that 67% of businesses expect to increase their investment in digital loyalty or significantly increase it over the next 12 months. Can you tell us about the timing, scope, and methodology?

Mark Collin: The survey ran for just over 2 months, from late Jan to late March 2025. We surveyed over 150 professionals from a variety of industries covering retail, financial services, and enterprise businesses.

The methodology was a combination of qualitative and quantitative data, gathered via online responses as well as some direct conversations with key respondents from the likes of Decathlon, Kingfisher, TalonOne. 

WM: Just as a level set, how are you defining “digital Loyalty”? Is this your term for the category of “customer loyalty” or “loyalty marketing,” or are you looking at purely digital approaches?

MC: We’re defining digital loyalty as any element of a loyalty strategy/program that uses technology to support or complement Marketing and CRM activity. This survey mainly homes in on digital approaches, but we also consider how these digital tools and tactics fit into a wider, omnichannel approach.

We recognize that digital strategies cannot exist in a vacuum – they are crucial tools as part of wider marketing and loyalty activity. All organizations are embracing digital and tech as a key driver in their customer experiences, so surveying this particular area was about highlighting that digital is a must-have, not a nice-to-have.

WM: Tell us a little about Apadmi. Where are you HQ’d, what is your core solution approach, what verticals are in your sweet spot, and what geographies are your focus?

MC: Apadmi is a leading digital product consultancy in Media City, Manchester, England. We focus on creating mobile-first solutions that unlock new value through strategy, platforms, middleware, and systems integrations. Our services cover everything mobile and web from discovery to tech and product strategy, through to building middleware, system architecture, user research,h UX design, CRO, support and maintenance, future tech, and rapid prototyping.

We work across Europe and North America, with a number of hub offices including Edinburgh, London and Oslo, plus larger offices based out of Amsterdam and Wroclaw following the successful acquisition of existing businesses, The Mobile Company (in NL) and Droids on Roids (in PL). The most recent details of our acquisitions and European growth can be found here.

We work across a variety of verticals, with a large proportion of our clients hailing from leading retail, financial services, utilities, and healthcare businesses. Our sweet spot is working with large organizations using our mobile heritage and expertise to identify where great mobile experiences can unlock new business and customer value.

WM: Can you recap the most important takeaways from the research? For example, we read that 81% of respondents say loyalty “has always been important or is now more important than ever”. That is encouraging in a market that seems to be saturated and where the ROI of program investment is often challenged.

MC: It’s perhaps worth calling out that personalization is still king for the majority of brands (81%), but there is still room for even more personalisation for 60% of brands. Apps are really a key driver here, as we know when user journeys are designed effectively, and useful data dashboards are built, we can create a highly personalised experience that continues to be even more accurate and relevant as user engagement continues.

As the report explores, mobile apps can help brands overcome cookie limitations on web by utilizing their own unique identifiers and tracking mechanisms, such as device IDs (like Apple’s IDFA or Google’s Android ID), which allow for user tracking across different apps on a device.

Also of note is that 67% of brands are expecting investment in loyalty to increase or significantly increase over the next 12 months – another encouraging sign that businesses are still seeing the value in investing in this area. 

WM: Can you expand on your popular tactics for mobilizing loyalty?

MC: Mobile is increasingly becoming the platform of choice for delivering great loyalty experiences – we’re seeing this reflected in the work we’re doing for our clients, such as Poundland, who recently launched their first ever mobile app to drive increased store visits and bigger baskets.

The results of the survey show us that brands are very much focusing on highly personalised, exclusive experiences for customers – we know from our own clients, particularly in retail, that these elements are now non-negotiable. Customers expect to get enough value from exchanging their data, as well as taking up valuable space on their mobile devices, where you’re competing for storage space among the many available apps out there. These tactics ensure that customers are getting the value they want from mobile apps whilst keeping them consistently engaged.

WM: How important are mobile apps in the customer loyalty delivery model? Are they the premier way to connect with customers or just one that is growing in importance? 

MC: Mobile apps are now the leading way for big brands to connect to customers (see our stats for Domino’s stats below) and in today’s market, customers expect top brands to deliver seamless mobile experiences that are genuinely useful and engaging. From our own experience working with the likes of Co-op, we’ve seen mobile drive huge returns on investment. They have seen a 12:1 return on every £1 they invested in their mobile app. 

We know that mobile customers have bigger baskets, they’re more responsive, plus easier to acquire and retain. Having worked with Domino’s for 6 years – we’ve seen mobile become the primary sales channel for them, with well over 80% of orders coming through the app, and a 21% increase in lifetime value of new app customers. 

The potential in the space is still growing and evolving – we are keeping ahead of this trend by exploring how apps will talk to each other agentically in the future. We believe that the future of agentic mobile will deliver even more value to customers – our mobile experts are actively exploring how this looks for our customers and industry (you can find more information about that here and here)

WM: Can you share any caveats for brands going “all in” on mobile apps?

MC: Making sure that you get it right is key – going all in on apps is great, but it needs to be nailed, seamlessly integrated, robust to scale and the experience must perform as you and your customer need.

There are brands that go all in on mobile with us, such as Domino’s, where mobile is now the primary sales channel – but it also delivers on customer expectations, consistently keeping a 4.8* App Store rating, with excellent feedback and an ever-growing user base of pizza lovers.

Getting mobile right requires a certain level of specialist expertise to deliver the best possible user experience – using non-specialists can actually be counter-intuitive and risks leaving you with a product that turns users off. 

WM: Is there a case study you can share to illustrate the impact of your views?

MC: Absolutely – we have been working with Poundland since 2023 to define and launch their Poundland Perks offering. You can find more information about our partnership and results so far here, with some key quotes from people at Poundland.

We are still in the earlier stages of launch with Poundland, but the results are already looking promising with well over 2 million downloads, 350+ pieces of media coverage of the app’s launch, and hitting the #1 spot in the UK Free App Store Charts within 24 hours.

Mark added “Showing value quickly with fast follow features, or small controlled testing for proof of concept (like we did with Poundland in the Isle of Wight) is also effective. Picking the right partner to guide you throughout the process and fill in skill gaps you may have in your team can also help you to avoid costly mistakes that may hinder your progress.”

Editor’s Note:

Apadmi is Europe’s leading digital product consultancy, with over 420 mobile experts across Europe. The company unlocks new value through strategy, platforms, middleware, and systems integrations that transform the way they work.

Apadmi designs, develops, and optimizes mobile apps for leading brands. Its bespoke digital products help retailers, financial services, and enterprise businesses create mobile experiences which drive increased retention and spend.