Restaurants Tap New Rewards Programs to Drive Deeper Consumer Loyalty

As restaurants compete for consumers’ loyalty, many are looking beyond the typical earn-and-burn rewards programs.

For instance, Starbucks, the largest restaurant company in the world, announced earlier this year the incorporation of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) into its loyalty offerings, and now it appears that other restaurant brands may follow suit.

The coffeehouse chain’s tech partner for the initiative, Forum3, announced Friday (Dec. 9) that it has raised $10 million in its seed funding round, which it will use in part to build out a platform to make it easier for additional brands to utilize the technology for their own loyalty initiatives.

The company was founded by its co-CEOs, Adam Brotman and Andy Sack; the former previously served as chief digital officer at Starbucks and the latter as a consultant on digital innovation for Microsoft executives.

“Most consumer brands are struggling to put together a cohesive strategy for building digital experiences that delight their customers,” Sack said in a statement. “Given Adam’s and my professional backgrounds, Forum3 is uniquely positioned as one of the leading companies in the world to help consumer brands assemble the right digital strategy and delight their customers digitally.”

As Starbucks taps digital collectibles, other brands have been seeking ways to drive loyalty based on alternative modes of purchasing. For instance, a handful are trying out subscription offerings. Chinese-inspired casual dining chain P.F. Chang’s, for its part, which has more than 300 restaurants across 22 countries, announced in September the launch of a paid premium loyalty subscription, offering free delivery, more rewards and “VIP-level service” for $6.99/month.

Shortly thereafter, quick-service restaurant (QSR) giant Taco Bell, which has more than 7,000 U.S. restaurants and almost 500 in international markets, announced the limited-time return of its Taco Lover’s Pass, which offers members of the brand’s loyalty program one taco a day for pickup for 30 days for a one-time $10 fee.

“Subscriptions are here to stay,” Taco Bell Global Chief Brand Officer Sean Tresvant told PYMNTS in an interview, adding that the brand is “excited to take these learnings” to inform future interaction with customers “in new and unique ways.”

Meanwhile, other brands, including health-focused fast-casual chains Sweetgreen and Just Salad, have been turning to models whereby consumers need to make specific kinds of purchases (dubbed “challenges,” in a bid to gamify the system) to earn set rewards.

“What we’re trying to do, and I think other restaurants are as well, is moving toward this exclusivity- and experience-driven programs, and really turning loyal customers into VIPs,” Jennifer Lally, vice president of marketing at Just Salad, told PYMNTS in an interview, “almost taking a page from the book of what airlines have done in the past.”

Overall, loyalty programs are a key way for restaurants to reach their digital customers and to keep them engaged via first-party channels. Research from the October edition of PYMNTS’ Restaurant Digital Divide report, “The 2022 Restaurant Digital Divide: Restaurant Apps And Websites In The Spotlight,” which draws from a census-balanced survey of nearly 2,000 U.S. consumers, finds that 72% percent of those who prefer to use eateries’ direct ordering channels had used loyalty programs in the prior 30 days, a greater share than said the same for third-party or in-restaurant customers.