The people that visit a business regularly deserve to not only be celebrated but rewarded. This is something that businesses have recognized over the years and have worked to find a way to do on a daily basis. One of the main ways that restaurants have incorporated rewarding their loyal customers is through reward programs.
These programs make it so that your customers get back some of the value that they bring to your business — which is regular business! If your restaurant isn’t currently offering a program of this sort, then it’s time to talk about a few of the reasons that your restaurant could benefit from one.
Bring Customers Back
One of the main benefits of having a loyalty program is that you get customers that come back. Repeat customers are more than just happy people that like your food — they are the people that are coming back and bringing business time and time again.
The way that we see it, it’s simple math. You could have a family convert one time and bring your business $100, which is great. But what if that family converted a couple of times a month on a regular basis? The income that a family that visits regularly brings is priceless, making it an investment.
Investing in Your Business
Being an investor in your own business may sound silly, but it’s far from. The truth is that you should be running a business that you’d feel confident investing in. Each and every customer that walks through your doors and pays you money for an experience is also investing in your business.
When you think of it that way — your customers as investors — don’t you want to treat them a million times better? That is essentially what a loyalty program is. These types of programs allow you to thank those that are investing in your business and show them that you appreciate them doing so.
Tiny notions like 5% off or a free appetizer being rewarded after a certain number of visits are one of the best ways that you can invest in those that have supported you and will continue to support you. By doing this, you’re also investing in your success and the clientele base that you’re building along the way.
Increase Your Sales
Even though reward programs are advertised as ways for people to save money when visiting your restaurant, they are a great way to increase the sales that you’re getting on a monthly basis. For starters, you’re going to have people that come back and visit rather more than once which is an easy way to boost income. Though it’s not the only way that you’re going to see an increase in your sales.
More often than not, the rewards or deals that loyalty programs offer come at a little bit of an extra cost. Sure your guest will be receiving a discount, but they’ll also be adding items that might not have been something they would order without the loyalty program. A great example of this is wine.
Wine is something that people love to enjoy, but it’s not always an item that people would add to their meal without having something to entice them. Once you’ve got one free glass of wine at the table, you can almost always count on a couple of the other guests ordering one as well. The same goes for dessert! If people love dessert and they enjoy your restaurant, then they may be making additional visits just so that they can work their way up to this reward.
Get the Help You Need
Something that we’re seeing in a lot of loyalty programs these days are the tasks that require people to complete something in order to enjoy a reward. For example, if one of your guests completes an order online, they get points. If your guest orders an appetizer or a bottle of wine, they get points. As these points accumulate, your guest can use them toward certain rewards that you’ve chosen in advance.
Aside from getting people to spend some a little more when they’re visiting, this is also a way that you can get a little help from your customers. If you have an abundance of wine and you need to clear it out, give extra points for that specific bottle being purchased. You want to get some additional revenue? Send people online to place their order. There are so many opportunities to take advantage of with this type of setup, and you’ll get to enjoy them just as much as your guest.
Build a Relationship With Your Guest
A goal that all business should strive for is to build a relationship with their guests. It’s not something that’s easy to do, but it’s something that should truly be worked on and continuous. Though loyalty programs may not seem like a way to just show appreciation to those that are giving more money to the business, they do offer the opportunity to build a relationship with the clients that are dedicated to you.
If you take the time to personalize your reward program, you can build a relationship with all of the guests that are going to take advantage of this setup. By taking their name, contact information, and asking them a few questions, you can really make all of the rewards and perks something that is tailored to them and makes them feel special each time that they visit your restaurant.
While we’re on the topic of tailoring the experience to your customers, your loyalty program is a great thing to incorporate into your email marketing with those additional personal touches. Use the information that you get from these types of programs in all aspects of your restaurant’s marketing so that the people signing up for your program are getting the works when they become a customer of yours.
Online Orders Now Can Help
The team at Online Orders Now can provide you with the software that you need to keep your restaurant organized and make online orders a possibility. If you’re interested in learning more about the software that we offer, contact our team today, and we can set you up with a free demo so that you can get an idea of what you’re signing up for.
We are determined to provide restaurants with the tools that they need to avoid the slowing down throughout the year, and a major way to ensure you aren’t desperate for business is by ensuring that your customers are able to enjoy your food and bring in business without actually having to stop by the store. If you’re interested in some of the other methods that we’ve covered, check out our blog for other software for restaurants that you could benefit from and more!