A double win at the European Loyalty Awards: VERALAB and A2A Energia's behavioral loyalty strategies awarded in London!

The 2026 edition of the European Loyalty Awards, the flagship event recognizing the finest loyalty and engagement projects across Europe, saw the strategies developed for VERALAB and A2A Energia reach the podium in one of the sector's most prestigious competitions, demonstrating how customer retention dynamics are undergoing a radical transformation. Indeed, the results from London point to a clear direction for the entire market: transactional loyalty is a thing of the past. Today, rewarding the mere act of purchase is no longer enough: building an authentic, long-lasting connection with people requires adopting a behavioral, data-driven approach based on a deep understanding of each individual's interests.

Verabilia: the innovation revolutionizing the relationship with VERALAB's beauty community 

Awarded in the Loyalty Industry Innovation category, the strategy developed for VERALAB alongside EY Studio+ sets a new benchmark for the beauty and retail sector.

With the Verabilia program, the goal was to rethink from scratch the relationship between the brand and its community, transitioning the value of interaction from social media channels into a proprietary, omnichannel, data-driven ecosystem. In an era where CAC is steadily rising, VERALAB decided to focus on building a proprietary ecosystem where every action, interest, or participation becomes an opportunity to generate mutual value for both brand and customer:

• Beyond transactions: personalized missions, gamification elements, and continuous engagement dynamics accompany customers throughout their journey with VERALAB
• Valuing behaviors: loyalty is no longer measured solely by receipts, but by the level of active engagement and brand attachment
• Omnichannel integration: a unified touchpoint capable of connecting the digital experience with the in-store experience

The judges' perspective:

“This is an ambitious and brilliantly creative loyalty program that successfully unites the brand and its community around a genuine, shared passion for skincare.

The judges were particularly impressed by the emotional approach to loyalty, which transcends traditional transactional dynamics through the use of community, challenges, badges, educational activities, and incentives designed to shape customer behavior. The program demonstrates a solid strategic vision and a clear understanding of how loyalty can forge deeper customer relationships while generating valuable insights into their interests and preferences.

Its ingenious mechanics, including the recognition of customer history and engaging reward features, further demonstrate the project's ambition and its potential to build long-lasting engagement.”

In addition to reaching this major milestone, the value of the Verabilia program was further recognized, earning the brand a spot among the finalists in the Best Use of Customer Analytics/Data/AI and Best Retail Loyalty Program of the Year Europe (Non-Food) categories.

A2A Energia: customer votes celebrate genuine loyalty

A2A Energia's loyalty and customer value management strategy was recognized as the 2026 European Loyalty Program of the Year Voted By The Public, a special category determined 100% by public vote, standing as proof that an integrated loyalty vision generates perceived value and genuine engagement in people's everyday lives.

The award celebrates a fully data-driven and integrated strategy that overcomes siloed approaches and is built around two complementary pillars:

• Ghost Loyalty (Finalist for Best Overall Customer Experience): an "invisible," omnichannel architecture based on multiple customer journeys that accompanies customers through every stage of the relationship, leveraging predictive technology to anticipate their needs.
• A2A Smile (Finalist for Best European Loyalty Program Utilities): the behavioral and experiential program that transforms A2A Energia's customer relationships, shifting the focus from consumption to awareness through edutainment and gamification paths.
  

The Ghost Loyalty strategy includes, among other pathways, the Customer Journey Lead Nurturing initiative (Finalist for Best Use of Customer Analytics/Data/AI), which manages the pre-conversion phase in a personalized way by mapping prospect behaviors and orchestrating dedicated customer journeys, thereby reducing direct sales pressure.

The Future of Loyalty: Behavioral, Integrated, and Data-Driven

The success of VERALAB and A2A Energia demonstrates the effectiveness of our approach to loyalty: consumers are not looking for generic point collections or static catalogs, but for relevance, appropriateness, and continuity. Delivering personalized experiences requires moving beyond siloed mentalities by unifying data sources and analyzing behavior across the entire lifecycle. Only then does technology cease to be a mere management tool and become a strategic enabler capable of turning daily interactions into shared value.