Consumer Insights
It’s about more than just email addresses and phone numbers.
Restaurants, from large brands to small independents, are now capable of capturing a huge amount of useful online information to help them drive their business forward and provide an exciting and tailored experience for each user.
Data is the oil of the digital age. The dawn of cookies and intelligence gathering was huge for big business, but this has trickled down and even the smallest business owner can benefit and capitalise on a strong data capture and usage strategy. Customers too now realise the value and importance of this data, their behaviour online and the impact it can have, both positive and negative, on their continued use of the web and digital services.
Customer information has come a long way, especially in the last 10 years. From giving a simple email address to sign up to a loyalty card, to automated promotions, digital loyalty, customer facing apps, retargeting ads, proximity marketing and more. For customers it allows them to experience and receive relevant information, deals, offers and discounts on things they know they like.
Research performed by Bain & Company shows that customer retention strategies can be incredibly profitable. In some cases, a 5% increase in customer retention can increase profits by more than 25%. Why? Because return customers tend to spend more.
It happens without any action required from the customer, they are passive participants. However, for many business owners, this can be an intimidating process that appears challenging and a potential drain on already limited time and resources. But it need not be this way.
Customer Level Data
For many restaurants, customer data is simply gathering email addresses and phone numbers. For years this was revolutionary and allowed restaurants to send email campaigns and SMS campaigns, but what next? MENUU has recently deployed its advanced Consumer Insights module. This provides restaurant owners granular data on each individual customer’s purchasing history, average spend, favourite items, purchasing time, frequency and more. It also provides a timeline of when promotional communications were sent and whether the customer redeemed a code.
Restaurant Level Data
Having this data allows you to treat that customer like an individual. No more one size fits all approach to your customers, everyone tastes and preferences are different. Your loyalty and rewards program should reflect that. Not only are you increasing the likelihood of more purchases, but when a customer feels they are being listened to, treated as an individual, it makes them feel special and appreciated. They tell their friends, their frequency increases, your brand improves, everyone's a winner.
Being able to dig down into each individual customer is incredible, but sometimes you need to be able to take a step back and look at this data from a macro perspective, what impact is all of this having on my restaurant. It is no longer just a case of “is online ordering revenue up or down?”. It is about growth. How many more customers are signing up, what loyalty offers, discounts and promotions are performing best? Which ones aren’t? How many customers are churning, how many more are joining?
It is at this point you can start to impact other areas of the business. When am I likely to experience dips in the business? Anticipating events with greater accuracy allows you as a business to prepare for them. Preventing fires is always more effective than putting them out.
The data extrapolated here can provide insight into your marketing campaigns, should you be increasing social media or Google Ads in the lead up to certain events or times of year. When should I hire more staff or drivers to deal with more online demand. MENUU Consumer Insights allows your restaurant to see the bigger picture, to seize opportunity and to avoid mistakes.
Actionable Response
Within MENUU Insights, business owners will be able perform actionable responses to customer insights within the console itself. Do you wish to automatically upload a specific promotion into the customers profile to say thanks? Create a discount for their favourite meal deal? Send a 20% discount with a short expiry to a first time customer to ensure they come back quickly?
For too long, customers needed to download all customer data into a .csv file, into Excel, tidy up data and copy and paste that info in email campaign tools or SMS tools and send out a generic one size fits all promo to everyone. Now you can deliver these meaningful, tailored rewards and experiences for your customers, from the module itself.
Increase Profitability
Communication and rewards make people feel good, and people look for that feeling over and over again. If you brand provides that to them, your customers will always be coming back for more.
Customer Lifetime Value
Customer lifetime value (CLV) is the measurement of the net profit acquired from the relation with your customers. By acquiring data through loyalty programs, the measurement of a customer’s lifetime value becomes substantially more accurate. Mixing these measurements of success with behavioral data collected with the help of AI, you can create new customer retention strategies.
Remain More Profitable
Many business fall foul of the “slow season”, nobody can escape it, but having the right loyalty strategies in place will allow you to lean on your best customers to see you through these periods. Prepare correctly and those parts of the year will feel far less slow.
Increase Brand Reputation
Brands that are mindful of their customers, will always win. People always think businesses are in it for themselves, but you know as restaurant owners it is more than just business. Food brings people together, restaurants always start through a passion for food, and that transmits to its customers and customers look to restaurants to provide a good time, forge connections and create memories. A quality loyalty strategy is so effective in this industry and your reputation spreads fast.
Edge Out The Competition
This is a very competitive space and small differences have a huge impact. Yes your food should do the talking, nice staff are always great but your digital intelligence and online IQ is what will separate you from the rest. It is a digital age we live in, and current customers and customers of the future live in it. Embrace it and reap the rewards.
Build Customer Connection
The impact this has on customer retention, frequency, average spend and word of mouth is exceptional. Small execution at this level has a big impact on profitability. New customers are great, but how you treat your existing ones can make or break your business.
Speak with a MENUU Expert
If you found the above informative and you feel motivated to do something new, you can speak with the author Rowan. With years of experience in restaurant marketing and online ordering, Rowan helps restaurants improve their online performance and how they engage with their customers. To chat, just click HERE.
