Consumers say rewards matter to them, but many of the same consumers are not actually using the rewards they have earned, according to a report published by CX Dive. The finding puts a hard number on a problem marketing leaders already suspect: stated loyalty and demonstrated loyalty are not the same thing.

For chief marketing officers and loyalty program owners, the gap matters. Enrollment figures and stated preference surveys routinely overstate the health of a rewards program. Redemption behavior tells a different story, and it is the story that drives repeat purchase, share of wallet and customer lifetime value.

What does the gap mean in practice?

The pattern is straightforward. A consumer tells a survey that rewards influence where they shop and how much they spend. That same consumer then carries unredeemed points, ignores program emails, or lets benefits lapse entirely. The program exists on paper. It does not exist in behavior.

This is not a marginal audience. CX Dive reports that many consumers fall into this category, which means the gap is structural rather than anecdotal. If a large share of members who say rewards matter still fail to redeem, the program's design, not its perceived value, is likely the blocker.

Common friction points include:

• Redemption thresholds that feel out of reach for ordinary purchase cycles
• Benefits that require effort to discover or activate
• Rewards that are generic rather than matched to how a customer actually shops
• Communications that promote enrollment more than they promote use

Why should CMOs treat this as a measurement problem?

The instinct in many organizations is to treat a rewards program as an acquisition asset: sign up the member, count the win. The CX Dive finding suggests the more honest metric is active redemption. A member who says rewards matter but never uses them contributes nothing to retention economics beyond the cost of maintaining their record.

Marketing leadership teams should therefore separate three populations in their reporting:

1. Members who say the program matters but show no redemption behavior
2. Members who redeem occasionally and respond to prompts
3. Members who redeem consistently and concentrate spend with the brand

Each group needs a different intervention. The first needs simpler mechanics. The second needs timely, behavior-triggered reminders. The third needs protection, because these are the customers a competitor's program can pull away.

What should marketing leaders do next?

The report's core finding points to a straightforward diagnostic exercise. Pull redemption data against stated-preference data from your own surveys. Identify how many of your members sit in the says-it-matters-but-doesn't-use-it segment. That figure, more than enrollment or stated satisfaction, defines the size of your engagement problem.

From there, the work is removal of friction rather than addition of benefits. Adding reward value to a program members don't use compounds the cost without changing behavior. Simplifying the path to the first redemption is usually the cheaper and faster fix.

The broader lesson for loyalty strategy

The CX Dive finding reinforces a discipline that mature loyalty operators already follow: watch what customers do, discount what they say. Survey data remains useful for direction, but redemption rates, redemption latency and post-redemption purchase frequency remain the working measures of program health.

For CMOs presenting to the board, this distinction has budget consequences. A program justified by stated consumer enthusiasm will eventually have to answer for its active-user base. A program justified by measured redemption behavior — and actively managed to close the say-do gap — will not face that reckoning.

The takeaway for marketing leaders is direct: consumers believe rewards matter, and that belief is an asset. Converting stated belief into habitual use is the remaining work, and it belongs to program design, communication timing and friction removal, not to louder promotion of benefits that members already say they value.

CMO Observer will continue to track loyalty engagement research and its implications for marketing budget allocation.