​Loyalty 2.0

Revenue from loyalty program promotions has grown 74 percent year over year – that’s according to new research from the restaurant tech company BentoBox. As consumers have become even more comfortable with buying from their favorite businesses online in recent years, businesses of all sizes have gained more streamlined, all-in-one tools necessary to capture a loyal following. As a result, smaller restaurants have been able to launch sophisticated loyalty programs just like their larger counterparts. In fact, this is a critical area of business growth that levels the playing field for restaurants in ways that aren’t otherwise possible. As Andrew Robbins, CEO of Paytronix, said in a recent Nation’s Restaurant New report, “McDonald’s plays a game of scale and smaller restaurants can’t compete with it when it comes to contracts, finding great locations, systems – all that stuff. But loyalty and digital guest engagement with loyalty as the centerpiece, you can compete with the big guys.” Of course, once everyone has a loyalty program, some refinement is needed to stand out. Even for small independents, this can happen through detailed personalization and segmentation. Start by analyzing your brand, your ideal guest and the values you want to project. What offers tick all of those boxes for your restaurant?

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