Council Post: How Digital Innovation Can Improve Your Restaurant’s Customer Loyalty Program

Founder and owner at Powercode, Ultimate Software Development.

Customer loyalty seems to be one of the top priorities for businesses in 2021. Consider the following numbers. The loyalty management market size worldwide continually grows and is expected to reach approximately $10 billion by 2027. Sixty-two percent of Generation Z and 67% of young millennials admit being highly influenced by customer loyalty programs.

And now, let us focus on the restaurant business. According to Upserve data, 57% of adults said they are much more likely to dine in a place offering a restaurant customer loyalty program. However, less than 30% of businesses in the restaurant industry offer their visitors a program on customer loyalty, a Deloitte report notes. These numbers tell us that loyalty programs are vastly underestimated even today, instead of being extensively implemented in the restaurant market.

If you are involved in the restaurant industry and don’t have a customer loyalty program yet, consider a few practical tips below and how technology can help.

1. Make sure your service is top-notch quality. However great your loyalty program is, most customers are less likely to return if your service wasn’t up to standard. Spend some time developing an efficient onboarding program for your employees and organizing regular staff training to maintain and increase their professional level. You can also enhance your service and make the workflow smoother by incorporating a restaurant management app.

2. Get to know your audience. For example, Millennials are considered the most valuable age segment for the restaurant business, since they’re currently the most numerous and well-off generation. According to the Deloitte report, they have the following restaurant format preference: quick-service restaurant (41.5%), fast-casual restaurant (19%) and casual dining (39.5%). Try to get more information about your customers, but don’t be intrusive. The more you know about your visitors, the more targeted marketing campaigns you can run. Just remember that no one likes their private life being invaded, so include targeted questions when surveying on your app.

3. Use tools to promote a loyalty campaign. For instance, you might offer your visitors a discount for their next order, provided they return with the receipt from their previous order. Membership loyalty cards are common for loyalty program purposes. They can be in the form of punch cards, meaning that a customer will get a “punch” on their card after each order. Thus, a true coffee lover will get a free cappuccino having, let’s say, 10 punches on a card. Or, through a restaurant loyalty app, your customers simply create an account and check in each time they make a purchase at your place to get discounts, bonuses or other types of rewards. In this way, your customers won’t need to carry a card with them all the time — all they need are their smartphones. In fact, 79% of U.S. customers said they would be more likely to join a loyalty program that does not require a card.

4. Increase brand recognition with a well-designed logo. When the logo is done well, an app icon on the screen of your customers’ smartphones can serve as a constant reminder of your brand and give customers a sudden urge to stop by your restaurant.

5. Encourage your visitors to leave feedback. Show that each opinion matters. It’s always a good idea for a waiter to ask guests if they enjoyed their meal. You can also collect reviews on your mobile app, where customers can rate the quality of service and leave a review in a few taps. It’s also great to integrate your app and social media so that visitors can share their experiences with friends. 

6. Provide a personal approach. Customers don’t always feel like interacting with the staff, so you can consider offering your customers an alternative way of making reservations, such as through your mobile app or website. In this case, clients who don’t enjoy communicating via phone calls will book a table the way they find most comfortable. You can also add a function to your restaurant app (if you don’t have it yet) so that visitors can see the currently available tables and select them for reservation without any assistance. It’s quick, efficient and can be done anywhere, even while having a daily meeting at work, unlike the traditional way of making reservations.

A restaurant loyalty program app is a great way to increase your customer retention, multiply your revenue and get some essential statistics, which could come in handy while planning your marketing campaigns or solving other issues. For instance, you can track the restaurant’s workload, the average order size, customers’ preferences, customer satisfaction rate and more.

Finally, it’s important to stay creative and flexible. Look at what works better for your audience and adapt the ideas above to your own business. Don’t be afraid of innovative solutions because they can bring your restaurant business to the next level.

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