Restaurant loyalty programmes go high tech GLENNEIS KRIEL explores how restaurant and hospitality loyalty schemes are adapting and can help businesses recover after COVID-19
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igital transformation has led to an exponential growth in the number of loyalty schemes in the restaurant sector, with more apps now typically being used to reward loyalty in the restaurant sector than any other sector, according to Amanda Cromhout, CEO of Truth, a consultancy specialising in customer centricity and loyalty programme design. Loyalty programmes in the sector have matured from simple stickers on cards to apps that go beyond rewards and birthday gifts, to include service functionalities that, among others, allow users to view menus and specials, order food, keep track of and use points, make in-app purchases and even give vouchers to friends – whether they use these apps or not. Of these reward programmes, Spur’s Family Card is considered the most successful, being the only restaurant loyalty programme to have made it to the Truth and BrandMapp South African Loyalty Landscape Whitepaper 2019/20 top 10 in 2020, and for the past five years. Kauai took second place in the Restaurant and Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) division,
Hotel Loyalty Schemes need a rethink
T IMAGES: SUPPLIED
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HO SPI TA L I T Y
he ban on international travel, coupled with the economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, has brought the global hotel industry to its knees, with many hotels internationally still not opening their doors or operating at full capacity, according to Nils Heckscher, head of Africa at hotel consultancy PKF Hotelexperts. Hotel loyalty schemes, as such, might help to encourage people to travel and use hotels again, but they will not be enough to resurrect the sector. “Things are not going to get better until the economy has recovered, international travel has opened again and people have overcome the newly developed fear of travel,” says Heckscher. Heckscher says that hotel loyalty schemes have become more sophisticated over time, using artificial intelligence to match hotels
but also won the best loyalty programme of the year award in the Restaurant and QSR division of the 2019 South African Loyalty Awards.
Understanding preferences The Truth and Brandmapp Whitepaper revealed that consumers over the age of 40 generally prefer programmes offered by Spur and the Cape Town Fish Market, whereas those under 40 prefer those by Bootleggers and Burger King. While in-app purchases are offered by most of these programmes, the whitepaper found that 73 per cent of South African consumers still prefer using a physical loyalty card, whereas 25 per cent prefer using a mobile number, as with the Seattle Rewards programme, for identification purposes and 23 per cent of respondents favoured scanning an app over swiping a card. Cromhout foresees that this will change due to the COVID-19 crisis causing an increased
The Capital Hotels and Apartments offer customers instant discounts on booking
with client preferences better and also to identify ways to enhance the experience. This is particularly useful when targeting millennials.
Instant gratification Marc Wachsberger, managing director of The Capital Hotels and Apartments, however, feels that loyalty schemes in their traditional form are dead: “Everyone and their dog has a scheme, but there is always a catch that makes it tricky for the guest to use or redeem it. However, guests are getting smarter and are now seeing through empty marketing promises.”
demand in contactless payment solutions. Cromhout says that the most successful programmes are the ones that strengthen the brand experience and turn themselves into an indispensable part of the hearts and minds of their Amanda clients. “Such programmes Cromhout are likely to help restaurants recover from the impact of COVID-19, by allowing restaurants to promote specials to their existing members instead of chasing down new customers.”
DID YOU KNOW?
The number of South Africans using loyalty programmes declined from 79 per cent in 2017 to 72 per cent in 2019, according to the Truth and Brandmapp South African Loyalty Landscape Whitepaper 2019/20.
The Capital Hotels and Apartments loyalty programme, La Famiglia, overcomes this by giving guests an instant discount of up to 20 per cent when making a booking. “Instant gratification is essential. No-one likes to wait, especially not millennials,” Wachsberger says. Another key innovation of La Famiglia is that their website price is dynamically calculated based on the best rate of the day. And how can customers leverage benefits for meaningful value? Wachsberger advises that they know the rules and how to play the game when signing up for a scheme: “If you don’t take the time to understand the programme, you are unlikely to reap all the benefits. The industry could, however, come to the party by making things simpler for everyone.”
“Guests are getting smarter and are now seeing through empty marketing promises.” – Marc Wachsberger
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