Mobile leader Advanced Info Service Plc (AIS) is embarking on a 1-billion-baht loyalty programme this year to attract and retain high-spending customers that contribute one-fifth of its total revenue.
The country's largest mobile operator has 2.9 million customers spending 800 to 3,000 baht a month.
Most of these users are business people, business travellers, first-jobbers and those with mobile lifestyles.
"This lucrative high-spending, high-margin customer segment contributes more than 20% of total revenue," said Bussaya Satirapipatkul, AIS's executive vice-president for customer and service management.
AIS reported revenue of 155 billion baht in 2015. Net profit was 39.1 billion baht. In the first quarter of this year, the company posted a profit of 8.07 billion baht on revenue of 37.2 billion.
As of March, AIS had 38.9 million subscribers.
Mrs Bussaya said AIS had allocated at least 10% more of its annual marketing budget towards customer loyalty enhancement in order to strengthen its position as the leader of customer service through its "AIS Live 360 degrees" campaign.
The company now has 15,000 participating shops.
Mrs Bussaya said AIS has a low customer churn rate of less than 1% compared with the mobile industry's average of 2-3%.
Its customer satisfaction rate stood at 88% in the first quarter of this year, considered a high rate of satisfaction, she added.
AIS is offering a variety of lifestyle privileges and rewards to fulfil customers' needs in their daily lifestyle.
To serve the increasing needs of customer's digital lifestyle and the country's growing digital economy, AIS has expanded its service channels on social media networks such as Line.
AIS has also developed new services for customers' convenience such as its On Top Package, an application that allows customers to design individual data packages easily by themselves.
To celebrate the 12th anniversary of its Serenade programme, AIS is offering a 50% discount for its 2.9 million high-spending customers, whom it has labelled Serenade customers, to buy an iPhone 6S, a Samsung S7 Edge phone or an iPadPro tablet once they sign up with a new number.
Alternatively, customers will get a Samsung J2 or Lava smartphone free in exchange for signing up for a new number with AIS or switching from other mobile networks to AIS service.
"A customer engagement or loyalty strategy is a crucial element to increase customer retention in the current hyper-competitive business and technological environment," Mrs Bussaya said.