When Nation’s Restaurant News surveyed 600 restaurant operators for its second annual Restaurant Technology Outlook, they found that digital marketing is an area of tension for many businesses right now: Operators understand that digital marketing efforts are critical to driving traffic and sales, yet across segments, the vast majority of survey respondents reported being only “somewhat satisfied” with their existing digital marketing tools – or worse. (The same was true for related tools for loyalty programs, integrations and APIs, customer data platforms and CRM systems.) Tellingly, the survey found that digital marketing topped the list of investment priorities for restaurants, with 46 percent of respondents saying they would support this area of their business with investment. In the quick-service segment, an even larger percentage of respondents (54 percent) were in favor of digital marketing as a top priority for investment. In a recent webinar, “Emerging Tech Strategies for Restaurants,” Christi Ravneberg of Nation’s Restaurant News said operators’ dissatisfaction with their digital marketing tools, growing knowledge and confidence about guest data, and willingness to invest, combined with the expanding applications of artificial intelligence, could deliver a “perfect storm for a lot of exciting investment and innovation on the marketing front in the next year.” If your restaurant is looking to enhance its current capabilities in this area, you will likely find opportunities to innovate (and perhaps negotiate) as providers bring new services to market and vie for business in a market eager for better options.

Loyalty programs have become critical tools helping restaurants compete. Yet in an environment where these programs have become so commonplace, operators must assess them with a critical eye and adapt them to make sure they are delivering in ways that resonate with guests. You can gather clues about what might help by checking out the most successful restaurant apps – recent research found that mega brands including Starbucks, McDonald’s, Dunkin’, Subway and Chick-fil-A are among the most downloaded restaurant apps right now. But since loyalty programs aren’t one-size-fits-all, you will get better traction by developing a program customized with rewards that suit your specific guest preferences. Consider – or test with your guests – how you want to deliver rewards and what kind of experience your guests are seeking. For example, your best guests might prefer to accumulate points, or climb progressively higher tiers that make them eligible for new rewards (this can help build engagement), or earn rewards based on the number of times they visit, or simply pay a subscription that unlocks rewards (this can give your program an air of exclusivity). Regardless, it’s important to apply some rules of the road to whatever rewards you offer. Orderable advises restaurant brands maintain consistency across in-house and online channels, make sure the rewards you are offering are items that your guests actually want (you can test this with guests and adapt your program to make it more dynamic), offer a variety of rewards to suit different tastes, and make your program understandable and the rewards attainable. Nothing tarnishes a guest’s opinion about a loyalty program like working toward a reward and then being denied because they didn’t read the fine print.