Firms have since long given their regular customers special treatment. With the help of IT, many firms have established formal ways to do this. An example is a so-called customer rewards program (CRP), by which the firm rewards the customer for repeated purchase. Firms allocate large resources in these programs with millions of customers enrolled. Hence, it seems important that the CRP works effectively. By effective we mean that it increases sales. Whether it is effective or not is a matter of how it is designed. A CRP typically comes with membership levels. We study how many membership levels the firm should offer in an effective program. We also study if customers prefer individual or group rewards and whether a CRP can break and create habitual purchasing behavior. In the study, we also analyze under what conditions the customer prefers a CRP over a sales promotion. In general, the study adds to the understanding of Customer Rewards Programs as an incentive structure. There are many different ways to design these incentives and especially the continuing development of IT is expected to influence the future design and role of these types of programs. This study is part of the Swedish Research School of Management and Information Technology (MIT) which is one of 16 national research schools supported by the Swedish Government. MIT is jointly operated by the following institutions: Blekinge Institute of Technology, Gotland University College, Jönköping International Business School, Karlstad University, Linköping University, Lund University, Mälardalen University College, Stockholm University, Växjö University, Örebro University, IT University of Göteborg, and Uppsala University, host to the research school. At the Swedish Research School of Management and Information Technology (MIT), research is conducted, and doctoral education provided, in three fields: management information systems, business administration, and informatics.

Background- Today online subscription based information products are becoming all the more common. A lot of them are using a immediate reward to compensate the quality uncertainty customer's experience. Even though an immediate reward creates a lot of customer attraction, some services today struggle with customer retention. Purpose- The purpose of this study is to examine how timing of rewards and quality uncertainty affects the choice of products. Method- For this study, four different surveys were conducted all representing one condition each. The survey was distributed to a total of 120 industrial workers from two different companies. A deductive reasoning lay as foundation for the construction of surveys. Result- Our result shows that under specific circumstances an immediate-and-delayed reward is preferable over an immediate reward alone. Also, when it comes to customer retention, a immediate-and-delayed reward is better at retaining customers when quality uncertainty becomes a factor. Conclusion- If customers have a reward upcoming, it is less likely they switch to the uncertain service even if there are an immediate reward present for the competing service. If they are going to switch service and have to give up their upcoming reward, they demand a significantly better quality at the competing service. Delimitations- This study focuses on the effects of timing of reward and quality uncertainty when customers choose or switch to an online subscription based information product. The study isolates timing of reward and quality uncertainty as major drivers for affecting purchase behaviour. / Bakgrund- Idag blir abonnemangsbaserade informationsprodukter allt vanligare. Många av dem använder en omedelbar belöning för att kompensera för kundens kvalitetsosäkerhet. Trots att en omedelbar belöning skapar stor kundattraktion, klarar flertalet av tjänsterna idag inte av att behålla kunder i samma utsträckning. Syfte- Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka hur timing av belöningar och kvalitetsosäkerhet påverkar valet av produkter. Metod- För denna studie genomfördes fyra olika enkätundersökningar med olika villkor. Undersökningen distribuerades till totalt 120 industriarbetare från två olika företag. Ett deduktiv resonemang låg som grund för utformandet av enkäterna. Resultat- Vårt resultat visar att under specifika omständigheter skulle en omedelbar-ochuppskjuten belöning vara att föredra framför enbart en omedelbar belöning. När det gäller att bibehålla kunder är det emellertid en omedelbar-och-uppskjuten belöning som bättre bibehåller kunder om kvalitetsosäkerhet är en faktor. Slutsats- Om kunderna har en kommande belöning, är det mindre troligt att de byter till tjänsten med osäker kvalité även om det finns en omedelbar belöning hos den konkurrerande tjänsten. Om de dock ska byta tjänst och måste ge upp sin kommande belöning, kräver de en betydligt bättre kvalitet vid den konkurrerande tjänsten. Avgränsningar- Denna studie fokuserar på effekterna av timing av belöning och kvalitetsosäkerhet när kunder väljer eller byter till en abonnemangsbaserad informationsprodukt. Studien isolerar timing av belöningar och kvalitetsosäkerhet som viktiga faktorer som påverkar köpbeteendet.