Disloyalty is not normally something we actively seek out. In fact, it's shunned by society. Especially if you're a big brand trying to attract or retain customers. The inverse of disloyalty, brand loyalty, is often regarded as the crown jewel of marketing. In fact, it's so important to most business organizations that it's often baked into mission statements, annual performance plans, and into products themselves.
Loyalty cards, or member benefit credit cards, were created for the specific purpose of making customers happy by rewarding them for everyday purchases. They have been wildly success for years -- so much so that they've spawned an entire cottage 'discount mania' industry ranging from grocery store club cards to airline mileage programs to free lunch loyalty cards for frequent diners.

But a disloyalty card? It's the brain child of Gwilym Davies, a coffee lover and small hand cart coffee operator crowned Britain's best barista in 2009. Gwilym is riding the revival of English coffee culture. Apparrently, Gwilym has been passionate about coffee for decades. His signature blend of java according to Stuart Jeffries of The Guardian; Butter, chocolate, orange peel, muscovado syrup and cinnamon, all heated in a pan and then poured over espresso with a little bit of milk on top.
Gwilym loves coffee so much that he came up with a creative way to get others to try different brands of coffee that he himself enjoys. Voila: the disloyalty card.
According to James Hoffmann's coffee blog, which profiled Gwilym's disloyalty card last year, this is no ordinary 'rewards' card. It's made of flimsy cardboard and its printed with other boutique coffee joints scattered around East London. Once you visit all the coffee shops listed in the card, your disloyalty is rewarded with one free cup o' joe from the premium coffee maestro himself.
Before you jump to the wrong conclusion, you should know that Gwilym doesn't own a stake in the other coffee shops. This is no marketing gimmick. It's a 100%, honest-to-goodness, unique way to promote coffee. For his dedication to the coffee cause and his creative way of spreading good cheer, Gwilym has been recognized as the unofficial ambassador of coffee in the UK. He's also created an incredibly loyal base of repeat customers willing to shell out top dollar, er, top pound, for his delicious coffee concoctions.
Today's top brands could learn a thing or two from Gwilym Davies. Bottoms up!