If you know about Pizza Hut’s Hut Rewards loyalty program, you realise its sheer merits. This strategy rewarded them with optimum ROI and enhanced customer satisfaction.
Customer loyalty programs (CLP) have been in the market for a while now. With digital platforms and online ordering systems, they have grown aggressively to increase and retain loyal customers.
For a restaurant business, it can even enhance your brand image, and it’s a ticket to winning some prestigious restaurant awards, too.
But how does an online customer loyalty program help? Keep reading to explore its merits and potential.
Customer Loyalty Program in the Culinary Industry
Imagine you own a cafe serving delicious coffee and doughnuts, and customers love to come to your place regularly. Do you think their preferences won’t ever change?
If your competitor offers your customers better food, experience, environment, or rewards, they’re highly likely to move on. Your customers buy your service expecting good value for money. If you somehow fail to provide it, you lose them.
Today, customers don’t just long for delicious food; they value the experience that comes with it. They also seek rewards, discounts, and other continuous benefits like having an online food ordering platform, something that an online customer loyalty program can suffice for.
You’ll learn more as we share the roleplay of online customer loyalty programs in the following section.
Online CLP’s Roleplay in a Restaurant’s Success
Online customer loyalty program is a revolutionary tool for restaurants. It can bring many benefits to the business while retaining customer loyalty for a long time.
Below are nine ways in which a proper online or digital customer loyalty program can benefit your restaurant business:
It Helps Increase Customer Return Rate
With a proper online customer loyalty program, you can not only attract new customers but also ensure they are often returning. Every customer loves free stuff with earned points or special offers with a certain amount of spending.
If you can implement a proper point-based or tier-based program in your restaurant, it might bring back your old customers. Moreover, you may see existing customers returning and bringing their friends to your place.
It Helps Monitor the Rate of Customer Switch
An online customer loyalty program provides solid data for better customer retention analysis. Pointers like a dip in sales, negative reviews, reductions in orders for specific dishes, etc., can be apparent giveaways for this.
A scenario like this will tell you that your existing customers are either losing interest in your service or switching to your competitors’ brands. So, it may be time to upgrade your service or change the running loyalty program.
You Can Get More Referrals
Whether it’s a free gift or a significant discount, customers love to share their stories with their loved ones. If your loyalty program has clicked successfully, new customers will likely follow through with referrals.
You can create a successful referral program by incorporating a special reward for those referred. The higher or more special the reward is, the more likely it is to have new customers.
You Can Collect User-Generated Reviews
Making your customers sign up for online loyalty programs will give you a better look at their responses. First, you’ll know the number of new customers that are joining this program. Then after a while, those customers will share their opinions and remarks.
You can check their comments, suggestions, and strong reviews to determine whether your restaurant’s service is up to the mark or not. Watching them closely and responding with the necessary steps can sustain your restaurant’s reputation.
It Confers Brand Advocacy
One of the most efficient ways to promote your brand is through customer advocacy. If your customers are truly loyal and thoroughly satisfied with your service, they’ll promote your brand within their community.
That said, an online customer loyalty program can help generate positive reviews for your brand. People will share positive vibes about your brand online and offline, reaching more potential customers.
Apart from prospective customers, digital loyalty programs can even familiarise your business with judging panels of renowned restaurant awards, such as ARTA or others.
It Ensures Long-Term Cost-Efficiency
Getting a new batch of customers is expensive if you lose the existing one. It’s not in the best interest of your restaurant business to face additional marketing costs to get new customers.
However, an effective customer loyalty program online can solve this problem. Once your customers are hooked to your loyalty program, it may establish a lifetime customer-brand relationship.
Hence, you may get new customers through existing ones without expensive marketing campaigns.
You Can Achieve Competitive Edge
Although customer loyalty programs are everywhere nowadays, the question is how and when to implement them. If your online loyalty program is implemented well, your restaurant brand will likely stand out from the others.
You must understand your target customers and their preferences, likes, and dislikes to develop the most appropriate loyalty program. As the customers love it, they’ll be more likely to stick to your brand than to your competitors.
You May Be Able to Increase Revenue
One of the perks of online customer loyalty programs is the ability to drive more sales, which in turn increases revenue. Customers will spend more with a prospect to earn rewards, bonuses, or special discounts through your loyalty programs.
Additionally, if you apply a personalised loyalty program based on individual customer preferences, this will bring a diverse array of customers with more sales.
It Helps Enhance Customer Experience
Today, customer experience is a crucial factor in the restaurant business. It’s more than just food and a customised menu. It’s how you make your customers feel about your service. Here, a digital CLP plays a big role.
Online loyalty programs can quickly connect your restaurant’s available service to your target customers. Customers can sign up spontaneously for your loyalty programs and redeem their rewards, special offers, etc.
Be it an online order, digital payment, or leaving reviews, the overall seamlessness of the online CLP makes the customer experience worthwhile.
Final Thoughts
Given their immense potential to establish long-term or lifetime customer loyalty, online customer loyalty programs are undeniably important. Properly implemented, they can enhance your restaurant’s overall brand image.
If you’re looking to increase sales, retain customers, or even achieve a reputed food industry award, an online customer loyalty program can be an effective strategy.
