Importance of Loyalty Programs for Restaurants
Calling all restauranteurs! Today we're doing a deep dive into the importance of loyalty programs for improving your business model and overall customer satisfaction. Programs like these are an incredibly valuable tool in the modern market, encouraging customers to make it a habit to dine with you. Everyone loves to save a little money here and there, but it can be near impossible to reduce menu prices when it's costing more and more to run a business these days. Enter, the loyalty program. There are a few different ways to anchor your loyalty program, but the most popular is a points-based program. With this type of program, each dollar spent allows customers to earn points that can be used towards a free menu item, discount, or similar. It's like an arcade for big kids, where the prize is way better. If this sounds like something you're interested in adding to your digital marketing strategy, read on! Let's talk about what an effective loyalty program can do for the development of your brand...
Drive Repeat Customers:
The first benefit may be the most obvious, but for good reason. When customers have an opportunity to earn something in exchange for their business, they're more likely to return to you and become a regular at your restaurant. To circle back to the arcade visual, think back to when you were a child for a moment. If you have a handful of tickets but not quite enough to get the big teddy bear, what do you do when Mom says it's time to go home? You don't throw out your tickets. You don't even go to a different arcade next time. You stash those precious coupons until Mom brings you back to the original arcade so you can get your well-deserved prize. It's easy math.
In order to spread the word about the loyalty program to your client base and beyond, be sure to advertise it across your social platforms. Check out this Instagram post we made for one of our clients, Salsa Fresca, to encourage participation in their loyalty program. When promoting a program like this one, short and sweet is often the way to go.
Great for Customer Communication:
Your loyalty program can function through a variety of mediums, making it easier to get information across to your loyal fanbase. You can opt for SMS, email, or even push-notifications if you have an app. When you collect this information from the customer, you can offer them the choice to opt-in for other promotional messages. Now when you get a new menu item or have important news, your loyal customers get to know first. It's also a cheap and eco-friendly method of targeted advertising.
Campaign Possibilities Are Endless:
Did we mention that the rewards can be designed any way you want? Whether you'd like to try a one-time campaign or set up recurring ones, there's surely an option that will suit your restaurant. If points don't tickle your fancy, you can also create item-based campaigns or date-based campaigns. Here are a few ideas to get started:
Make a purchase on (holiday), earn X rewards points.
Birthday Campaign.
New Sign-On Benefits.
