By Samantha Acuna
One of the greatest advantages of having a loyalty program for your restaurant is that it helps turn your existing customers into brand advocates. The best restaurant loyalty programs can be integrated with a referral system to acquire new customers. The program can provide you access to key customer information, thus allowing your brand to connect better. This further reduces the marketing costs. And when you use a digital loyalty program, such as an app, it is also possible to integrate it with your restaurant management system.
There are many more advantages of a restaurant investing in a digital customer loyalty program.
Customer Purchase Habits
While increase in revenue is the first thought that comes to your mind when using a customer loyalty app, the advantages go beyond. Without a loyalty program, you will have to invest in CRM programs and surveys to gain insights into customer demands. The program can provide you with valuable data that gives insights into the psychology of your customers.
The integration of loyalty programs and mobile apps has simplified and sped-up access to customer data such as:
- Customer name
- Address
- Order history
- Foods they like
- Food expenses
- Birthday & anniversary dates
- Likes & dislikes
This allows segmenting customers and targeting them with your offers, rewards, and marketing campaigns with more efficiency.
More Effective Digital Loyalty Cards
When your customers see your card repeatedly, it helps increase brand recall. They are more likely to visit your gain when they remember your brand. This means you can generate more repeat business than using advertising. Brand exposure repetition is more effective in bringing back customers than advertising campaigns.
Digital Coupons Increase Profits
You can send digital interactive coupons to your customers at anytime you want to reward them or have them purchase more. For example, you can send them with digital coupons when they are waiting for their order. The coupons can be scratched and provide special discounts.
Simpler & More Cost Effective Customer Data Management
The best restaurant loyalty programs simplify your customer data management. Even if you have a restaurant management software, a loyalty app can provide access to data that is not available otherwise.
- Capture valuable customer data
- The app manages details related to customer preferences and choices
- Say goodbye to manual data management
The program helps in building a rich customer database for your restaurant. Data like customer preferences, likes, dislikes, email addresses, anniversaries, birthdays, and such can help you connect even better with your customers.
For example, if you know that a customer prefers a specific recipe, based on their order history, you can offer them customized coupons to increase your sales. In fact, such data can also be used for customizing offers to bring back dormant customers.
Grow Sales, Grow Profits
The best restaurant loyalty programs help increase your sales and profits. Whether it is about sending coupons or marketing messages about meal times, the results are more repetitive sales. A customer that feels more valued is more likely to return to your business. They buy more frequently and have increased average spending. It is not just the reward system that encourages them to spend more. They feel inclined to spend more because they feel greater at your restaurant.
Repeat business is a major factor for a restaurant’s success. Using the best restaurant loyalty programs can help you gain an edge over the competition. There is more flexibility and more control over your loyalty program, allowing you to make decisions and changes to your campaigns in an instant.
Samantha Acuna is a writer based in San Francisco, CA. Her work has been featured in The Huffington Post, Entrepreneur.com, and Yahoo Small Business.
