A new study from digital marketing platform Impact Data has found that sending seven to nine personalized messages to hospitality consumers can increase their revisit rate tenfold.
The study analyzed data from 11 quick service restaurant (QSR) customers of hospitality IT provider Redcat at different times between May 2019 and April 2022.
By analyzing the behavior of over 500,000 individual consumers, Impact Data calculated their expected next visits and used this data to trigger personalized communications (sent via email or SMS) to entice them to return to the store.
The study found:
- Consumers are 2-5% likely to revisit a relevant QSR within 5-7 days without receiving personalized messages.
- Consumers are up to 20% more likely to review a relevant QSR within 5-7 days of receiving a personalized message (email or SMS).
- The optimal number of messages to send to consumers in their lifecycle – and achieve the 20% success rate – is between 7 and 9.
“The main takeaway from this study is simple: QSRs need to talk to their customers. If they don’t, those customers are unlikely to return,” said Sarah Franklyn, director of sales and marketing at Impact Data.
“People check their phones an average of 87 times a day. Modern loyalty programs are beginning to take advantage of this trend, triggering behavior-based communications that keep customers engaged.
“It’s a ‘hands-off’ form of marketing that uses expected customer visits to inform when and how communications are sent.”
While the study found that between seven and nine consumer messages is the sweet spot, the content of those messages remains vital.
“You can’t spam your customers just for fun. You need to invite them back into the store and let them know they are appreciated,” said Lawrence Pelletier, director of sales and marketing at Redcat.
“Messages should be timely, intimate and personal. They don’t necessarily need to include an offer or discount, but they should at least encourage the customer to return or let them know they have loyalty points to use. »
Redcat customers – which include Australian QSR space giants such as Nando’s, Grill’d, Boost Juice, Chatime and others – have seen an average 12% growth in spending from their loyal members and an increase in 20% of member visits. since the establishment of the technology company’s platform.
“We are always looking for innovative ways to help our partners connect with their customers and maintain a high level of brand loyalty and trust,” said Pelletier.
“Our collaboration with Impact Data is a great example of this, as we use the real-time data available to us to help inform and promote best practices in the QSR space.”