Denny’s, Other Restaurants Appoint Digital Leaders to Win Diner Loyalty

Major restaurant chains are adding new digital leadership in an effort to stand out in the increasingly difficult fight for customers’ omnichannel loyalty.

Full-service diner chain Denny’s, which has nearly 1,600 locations, announced Friday (Oct. 13) the addition of Pankaj Patra as chief digital and technology officer, tapping Patra’s expertise from more than a decade of working on Brinker International’s technology, most recently as chief information officer.

“We are excited to add Pankaj to the team to help us build on the solid foundation already in place, while leading us in identifying new, relevant and innovative solutions to serve our guests, employees and franchisees in the future,” Denny’s CEO Kelli Valade said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Focus Brands, parent company of Carvel, Cinnabon, Jamba and others, announced Monday (Oct. 16) the appointment of new SVP of Customer Engagement and Experience Urvi Patel, as well as SVP of Digital, Data and Marketing Technology Manuel Valdes — the latter a new position for the company. These moves suggest a renewed focus on customer-facing digital technologies.

“At Focus Brands, we’ve invested in platforms, tools and resources to support our brands’ ability to grow,” Focus Brands CEO Jim Holthouser said in a statement. “More importantly, we’re investing in the right talent to build industry-best technology and supply chain capabilities.”

With the vast majority of leading restaurant chains now offering a range of digital ordering options, the competitive bar is raised, and offering a loyalty app is not enough to stand out, especially considering that the majority of consumers already participate in such programs.

In fact, according to PYMNTS Intelligence’s study “Connected Dining: Consumers Like the Taste of Discount Meals,” which is based on a survey of more than 1,800 U.S. consumers, 51% of respondents reported using a restaurant loyalty program. Specifically, 49% said that they participated in these programs at quick-service restaurants (QSRs) and 34% at full-service restaurants (FSRs).

Additionally, restaurant prices have only continued to rise since the time of the February survey, increasing every month this year and driving demand for discounts, likely increasing loyalty program engagement.

As such, many restaurant brands have been seizing on the opportunity to win over customers by stepping up their rewards, demanding more enticing offers from their competitors. Meanwhile, others have been looking to mitigate margin damage by making it more difficult to redeem discounts and free items.

For restaurants, strong digital leadership can drive customer loyalty not only by helping them optimize their rewards programs but also by improving back-of-house processes, which in turn can have an effect on the diner’s experience.

For instance, in a conversation with PYMNTS, Stratis Morfogen, owner and CEO of Brooklyn Dumpling Shop, an automat-style chain, argued that inventory management tools can be as essential for customer loyalty as more consumer-facing technologies.

“Good inventory software will create a better guest experience,” Morfogen said. “When someone walks in or travels miles away to get to your restaurant, and they come for one of your most popular dishes, and you don’t have it? Well, that’s a problem. So, inventory management [technology], to me, is just as important as front of the house.”