5 golden rules for building customer loyalty in the foodservice industry

5 golden rules for building customer loyalty in the foodservice industry

The most important way to build customer loyalty is to offer a consistent experience from plate to service. But how can you go further? To give your customers even more reasons to come back, there are restaurant loyalty programs! Not all of them give the same results, far from it: the ones that work have the following rules in common.

Without further ado, here are the 5 golden rules for building customer loyalty in the foodservice industry!

1. Simplify enrolment

A common mistake in loyalty programs is over-complicated enrolment. Asking for too much information at the first meeting is often counter-productive. It discourages some customers, making it impossible to enroll everyone. It's vital to make the enrolment process in a loyalty program fun and frictionless, by directing your customers to a Tabesto order terminal, for example. Take the approach of collecting a small amount of information on the first visit, and adding to it on subsequent visits: this will enable you to reach your customer base much more quickly. And in the process, get your first reward instantly!  

2. Offer rewards that appeal to everyone

Your customers are bound to use your loyalty program if they find rewards that interest them. That's why you should opt for a dematerialized loyalty card rather than a printed one: you can offer a much wider range of bonuses. Two tips: offer a wide range of rewards to suit all tastes, and make sure that some are very easy to achieve! Most customers appreciate a reward as soon as they sign up, such as a 10% discount or free coffee. And don't forget to offer long-term rewards, which will make them want to come back again and again.

3. Personalize your loyalty program with your restaurant's colors  

Your rewards don't just have to be discounts or free items. Everyone does that! Take it a step further: some premium gifts are a great way to personalize your loyalty program with memorable rewards.

Set yourself apart with incredible gifts that people will remember, even if they're very hard to get. For example, offer inspiring rewards that match your style:

• A return flight to Bari for a trattoria or pizzeria;

• A week-long surfing course for a Hawaiian poké restaurant;

• An XXL teddy bear if your restaurant's logo is a bear;

• Etc...

As an added bonus, you can also customize the interface of your loyalty program. Whether it's a virtual card, a kiosk or a tablet, your program will be customized from A to Z!

4. Keep in touch

Automatically enrolling customers in a loyalty program is a good start. But it would be a shame to stop there! Your customers are a hyper-connected generation, and you have their contact details (07 or email). You can use SMS marketing to boost your loyalty program!

Texting lends itself to all kinds of message formats: reminders, points to use, promotions and special days, news, winks, birthday celebrations, etc. It's all about keeping in touch. In this respect, SMS marketing is the best of all channels: all automatic, it helps maintain proximity and increase customer loyalty. By scheduling your mailings and campaigns, you don't have to do a thing - customers just come back.

5. Track the right indicators (to know if it's working)

The loyalty rate is the type of indicator to keep a close eye on! You'll easily see it on your online loyalty program dashboard. It's the last golden rule: keep an eye on the results.

A dematerialized loyalty program gives you all the statistics you need. They're the key to knowing whether your virtual loyalty card is hitting the mark! How many customers are actually being retained, whether they're using their points, how much rewards are costing you, and how much sales have been generated... So many indicators to keep an eye on in order to redirect or confirm the options you've chosen. All this to get closer to the ultimate goal: to have the most effective loyalty program possible!

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