loyalty points

Implement these quick and easy tips from marketing experts to create and maintain a winning loyalty program for your brand.

BY TRACY MORIN

Loyalty programs are so ubiquitous today that most consumers belong to at least one—and they’re likely to sign up for more than a dozen. But research shows that they’re not always pulling their weight: A late-2018 analysis by Cambridge, Massachusetts-based Forrester Research reported that “nearly half of U.S. 18to 35-year-olds admit that programs influence what they buy and how much they spend,” but they also require “an emotional component that programs often fail to satisfy.” In fact, only 41% of consumers report that programs actually make them feel more loyal to a brand.

With so many programs clearly missing the mark among consumers, it’s crucial to make yours stand out—while ensuring it runs smoothly and pulls in key information you can use to ramp up business for the future. Read on for some easily implemented tips that will help make your loyalty program a success.

EXPERT: DAVE CESARO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, VERTICAL MARKETING, VALASSIS, LIVONIA, MI

Key takeaway: Use data to personalize the customer experience. The key for successful loyalty programs, besides ease of use and bonus achievements, is understanding where, how and what each customer purchases. That allows brands to craft messages and incentives to inspire incremental visits, increase ticket sizes or try new items. Best-in-class restaurant loyalty programs include giving the most loyal members sneak peeks at new limited-time offers or developing a tiered point system that rewards incremental visits or app downloads. But restaurants looking to establish loyalty programs must be aware that offering free breadsticks on someone’s birthday won’t be enough to inspire action. With customer loyalty fading, pizzerias cannot simply rely on their top customers to drive traffic and sales in 2020. Promotions will remain a key driver for loyal, lapsed and new consumer activation, with true loyalty being earned through quality food and solid operations.

EXPERT: TONI CLEM, CEO, SCOPPECHIO, LOUISVILLE, KY, AND CINCINNATI, OH

Key takeaway: Focus your acquisition strategy on the lifetime value of a client, not just one visit.

Tip #1: Restaurants often rely on heavily discounted acquisition offers to grow their database quickly. Unfortunately, this results in guests who want a quick deal but never come back. Therefore, pizzeria owners need to reach beyond that first visit. Incorporate zone messaging strategies, ease of signups, and local advertising to acquire loyalty program members.

Tip #2: Segmentation often starts with recency (how long ago they last visited), frequency and monetary models to determine the loyalty of guests. However, looking only at monetary values can be flawed for restaurants that compete in high-frequency, low-cost meals. Instead of looking at monetary values, focus on recency and frequency, and then layer on occasions (such as party size and time of day) in place of monetary to monitor guest behavior.

Tip #3: Your best customers likely aren’t going to change their behavior with special offers. We see a lot of burnout with offers and rewards; customers simply expect them now. Instead, reward your customers with something tangible rather than simply another coupon. For example, unique merchandise rewards are a way to go beyond the transactional and build a relationship with your best customers.

EXPERT: RAY CLOPTON, CEO, WILBUR, BROOMFIELD, CO

Key takeaway: Streamline the process from start to finish. Today, with so many options available, consumers are very selective about the loyalty programs they join. They are more likely to be loyal to brands that respect their personal privacy, and they don’t necessarily want to join a loyalty program that asks for too much data. They also want convenience when it comes to loyalty programs and do not want to carry a card in their wallet or download another app on their smartphone. Restaurants and pizzerias that make it easy for their customers to participate will have the best response. By using a cardless, phone number-based approach to loyalty programs, customers no longer have to remember a card; they can simply provide their phone number at the end of a meal to receive rewards. Giving rewards to your customers, no matter how simple or small, can make them feel appreciated and valued; keep them engaged with and loyal to your business; and encourage a stronger connection so they recommend you to their friends.

EXPERT: STACY CAPRIO, FOUNDER, GROWTH MARKETING, CHICAGO, IL

Key takeaway: Add the element of surprise. Creating a loyalty program that offers surprise rewards at random intervals when people come back a certain number of times is a great way to make people excited to keep coming back to your pizzeria. Create surprise in the intervals and types of rewards, and people will want to come back just to see what rewards they will get—and when!

Progressive Perks

According to Forrester Research in Cambridge, Massachusetts, loyalty customers expect more than a brand’s best discount; they also want to feel special and look for perks that are relevant to the companies they’re buying from—and 80% of loyalty program members want to receive special treatment not available to other customers. For example, Forrester compares the perk of cash back, which provides only positive reinforcement in the moment, vs. status tiers, which create more valuable feelings of anticipation and extended gratification.

Big-name brands are certainly taking note of findings like these. Last year, Nation’s Restaurant News reported that Jackson,

Mississippi-based Newk’s Eatery, with more than 120 locations in 16 states, was experimenting with a program that allowed customers to “cut in line during peak hours, get ‘prime’ seating or receive free samples of new menu items.” In the same article, Seattle-based MOD Pizza, with more than 465 locations nationwide, was noted for finding inspiration in airlines for its own loyalty program, but with an altruistic twist: Customers can now “pay it forward,” donating their accumulated points to Generosity Feeds, a nonprofit that feeds children in need. Alternatively, McDonald’s unveiled a different type of pay-itforward program that allowed members to pass on free coffee to other people for a limited time.

The key takeaways here? Think outside the box. Ask your customers what’s most valuable to them. Monitor how well each program structure or perk works for your business— and don’t be afraid to make tweaks along the way!

Tracy Morin is PMQ’s senior copy editor.

BY TOM LEHMANN

We hear a lot about “00” flours these days and how they make great pizzas. Some pizzeria owners believe that simply switching over to a “00” flour will make their pizzas superior or, at least, better than they already are. I’m sorry to say that isn’t necessarily the case. “00” flours are indeed good flours and will make delicious pizzas, but there are a few things you need to know about them first.

The Soft Wheat Factor

So, what makes the “00” flours unique? I think the single most important difference is that they are typically made using varieties of soft wheat flour. Soft wheat flours differ from the American and Canadian hard wheat flours from which our regular pizza flours are made. The gluten structure developed from soft wheat flours is typically more extensible, which makes the dough easier to open into a skin with less dough memory/snap-back. At the same time, though, you may find that doughs made with “00” flour do not exhibit the fermentation tolerance of your regular pizza flour. That means you need to proceed cautiously to determine if the use of a “00” flour will require any changes in your dough management procedure or in how you handle leftover dough at the end of the day.

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Differences In Performance

Keep in mind that all “00” flours are not the same. Some are designed to perform with less than 12 hours of fermentation time, which is suitable for making same-day doughs, while others are designed for longer fermentation times, usually in the 24- to 48-hour range. So make sure you take a close look at the “00” flour performance characteristics before clicking on “buy now.” (Contrary to popular belief, by the way, “00” flour doughs can be baked in any type of oven suitable for baking pizzas. Your dough just needs to be formulated properly for the application.)

3THE MALT IS MISSING

“00” flours typically are not treated in any way, which means they are not malted either by addition of diastatic malt or enzymes. Hence, this type of flour might not support long fermentation times unless you add malt or sugar to the dough formula. It also means that if your dough formula doesn’t include any milk, sugar, eggs or malt and your oven doesn’t bake at temperatures above 600°F to 700°F, you’re probably not going to get too much crust color development on your pizzas with “00” flour. More recently, however, we have seen “00” flours designed specifically for the American market. Some of these are, in fact, malted, making them a potentially better replacement for the flour that you are already using.

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OPENING “00” DOUGH BALLS

What about the way we open our dough balls? In my experience, pizza doughs made with the correct “00” flour will open very easily. Additionally, those aforementioned soft and extensible dough properties can be put to good use if you happen to open your dough using one of the pressing methods. Just remember that you will want to reduce the amount of doughreducing agent, such as L-cysteine or dead yeast, by approximately 50% and work up gradually to find the optimum level for your specific application.

I’ve had some success with opening “00” flour doughs using a dough sheeter/dough roller. But extreme care should be taken in determining the correct dough absorption for this application, since an overly soft and extensible dough can be extremely difficult to manage at the sheeter. With that said, you can use the sheeter to partially open the dough in preparation for hand tossing or table stretching. Since the dough isn’t being sheeted to full diameter, there is greater tolerance to a soft and extensible dough, and the dough piece is much easier to handle after passing through the sheeting rolls. After that, it is ready to be manually opened to full diameter.

5THEY’RE NOT CHEAP.

When it comes to “00” flours, there are both domestic as well as imported versions, and, not surprisingly, the imported flours generally command a premium price. If you have a commissary operation, the price and fermentation limitations may not fit well into your operating profile. On the other hand, if you are a small shop owner or an independent operator—or possibly even a multistore regional chain operator—“00” flour certainly has its merits.

So is “00” flour right for everyone? Of course not. It all depends on the kind of pizza you want to make and how much you can afford to pay for your flour. But it does have a reputation for quality and can help distinguish your pizzeria from competitors. Just keep in mind that you’ll have to learn how to work with it and know its limitations, from mixing through baking, to get the most out of your “00” flour.