If you run a craft, hobby, or specialty retail store, you know your dream customer — a passionate hobbyist.
They’re the ones who appreciate quality tools, absorb new techniques, and aren’t afraid to invest in their passion. They’re a valuable part of your business.
But here’s the challenge: These same customers are notoriously inconsistent. They spend $300 one month stocking up on supplies for an ambitious project, then you don’t see them again for six months. They get distracted, life becomes busy, or a new trend catches their eye.
It’s time to retire the boring “buy 10, get one free” punch card. To win over the hobbyist, your loyalty program must move beyond transactions and start rewarding passion.
In this blog, we’ll show you how to create a loyalty program that speaks to the hobbyist mindset and how to automate, personalize, and launch a system that converts inconsistent shoppers into your most valuable community members.
Let’s get started.
Why Hobbyist Spending Comes in Waves
Hobbyists are a unique retail segment because their spending is driven by passion and inspiration rather than necessity. This makes them highly valuable but inherently difficult to predict.
Here are the primary reasons hobbyists can be inconsistent retail customers.
They Go All In on New Interests
We’ve all seen it — a customer gets excited about a new hobby and goes through a stock-up phase, buying everything they think they’ll need for their project. Then real life hits. Between work, family, and other responsibilities, finding the energy to actually pursue the hobby can be tough.
That’s why you might see a customer spend $500 on craft supplies this month, and then nothing for the next six. They’re either still working through (or maybe feeling a little guilty about) all those unstarted projects from that big initial purchase.
They Compare Prices Before Committing
Hobbyists are a complicated group. Since their hobbies involve optional spending, they’re always on the lookout for a great deal before opening their wallets. They’re usually tech-savvy and might even showroom — checking out products in person, then buying them online for less.
They may swing by your shop often to ask questions or scope out new arrivals, but their actual purchases are all over the place. Why? They’re waiting for online sales or coupons.
They Get Overwhelmed by Too Many Choices
The hobby market is packed with specialized tools and materials. When customers face too many options, they can get stuck in analysis paralysis or feel too unsure to move forward — often walking away without buying anything.
A shopper might spend an hour in your craft store, researching paints, brushes, or other supplies, only to leave empty-handed just because the sheer number of choices overwhelms them.
Related Read: 7 Retail Pricing Strategies for Craft Stores
They Wait for Seasonal Opportunities
Lots of hobbies are tied to specific times of the year — maybe it’s the school calendar, the changing seasons, or those big gift-giving holidays. Think about craft and hobby stores: They become very popular during back-to-school or when everyone’s decorating for fall, but then things quiet down.
If you don’t give hobbyists a fresh reason to stop by — like a cool workshop or a flash sale — they might only remember your store when their personal peak season hits.
They Avoid Brand Loyalty
Let’s face it: Modern shoppers are constantly looking for the best deal and aren’t as tied to brands as they used to be. Even if someone loves your store, they might shop online or somewhere else if another retailer offers an easier way to buy or a better loyalty perk.
While basic loyalty programs are important, they often don’t fix the core issue — which is that customers are always comparing prices and looking for the best value.
5 Effective Strategies To Build Loyalty in Your Craft Store
Use these engaging customer loyalty strategies to maximize your point of sale (POS) system and deliver a more personalized, rewarding experience. Here’s how you can implement them.
1. Create a Project-Based Tiered System
Design tiers based on lifetime engagement and total projects completed, not just recent spending. You can create levels for novices, apprentices, and masters. For example, when a customer advances a tier, you can give insider perks that help them in their hobby, like a free one-on-one consultation or a special supply kit.
Use your POS to track customer engagement over time, including project completions and participation in store activities. Set up automatic notifications for when customers level up and customize the rewards they receive. This can be managed through the loyalty program features within your POS, where you can create and track engagement metrics.
2. Reward Actions Beyond Purchases
Award loyalty points for behaviors that don’t require a purchase, keeping your store top of mind during slow spending periods. Examples include:
- Tagging your store in a #workinprogress photo on social media
- Referring a fellow hobbyist
- Leaving a product review
- Completing an online survey
- Attending an in-store product demonstration
Give customers points for interacting with your store to boost engagement and motivate them to make a purchase when they’re ready to return.
3. Provide Early Access and First Dibs
Use customer data to segment your customers by their specific interests. Offer first dibs to new paper collections, scrapbooking tools, or clearance sales before they hit the public floor.
The customer segmentation feature in your POS can categorize customers based on their interests and purchase history. Send targeted emails through your system’s marketing tools to offer early access to specific customer groups. This approach makes customers feel valued and encourages immediate purchase decisions.
Related Read: Pricing Craft Kits for Profit: Finding the Balance Between Affordable and Sustainable
4. Surprise and Delight With Milestone Rewards
Instead of generic coupons, use POS data — like a customer’s first-purchase anniversary — to send a gift that complements their previous knitting purchase.
Leverage the customer information stored in your POS to track special occasions, like purchase anniversaries or birthdays. Set up automated triggers to deliver targeted messages and rewards, such as a free skein of yarn or a discount on their favorite brand of needles. This level of personalization strengthens loyalty and increases customer satisfaction.
5. Award Points for Events
Offer a fixed amount of loyalty points for every workshop, class, or maker challenge customers attend, regardless of whether they purchase supplies that day.
Use your POS to manage and track event attendance. Award loyalty points automatically for each event, creating a sense of community and encouraging more frequent visits. It keeps your store top of mind and builds long-term relationships with customers.
With these ideas, you can create a more engaging and personalized experience for hobbyists, ultimately strengthening loyalty and building your store’s community presence.
Rain POS Loyalty Tools Turn Hobbyists Into Regular Buyers
Rain POS offers a suite of features that can help you implement strategies to engage hobbyist customers effectively.
Here’s how Rain POS can support each strategy:
- Comprehensive customer tracking and segmentation: Monitor customer activity beyond purchases, including project completions and event attendance. Use this data to segment customers based on purchase history and interests for targeted marketing.
- Personalized rewards and offers: Customize rewards and send personalized offers, gifts, or early-access invitations that align with shoppers’ hobbies and interests, using your customer database.
- Integrated loyalty points system: Award loyalty points for purchases and engagement activities like attending workshops or classes directly within the POS system, encouraging ongoing participation.
- Automated marketing and notifications: Leverage the system’s email marketing tools for personalized communications, and set up automated reminders for special occasions (birthdays and purchase anniversaries) to maintain engagement.
- Community building: Use collected data to foster a sense of community through targeted follow-up communications and offers.
Want to genuinely connect with hobbyist customers and keep them coming back? Use Rain POS’s comprehensive features to put these ideas into action.
Try our Build and Price tool today to begin building loyalty in your craft store.
by Clinton Brady
