Canadians want to be rewarded when eating out, report finds

A new report has highlighted how restaurants can better understand and engage consumers.

Published by food research group Technomic, the 2018 Canadian Future of LSR Consumer Trend Report stresses that value and price remain critical aspects for limited-service restaurants, especially in light of some Canadian operators being forced to raise menu prices due to increased labour costs.

Restaurants can offer more modern rewards or loyalty programs to enhance value without cutting into profit margins, Technomic’s report suggests.

Anne Mills, senior manager of consumer insights at Technomic, explained: “To amp up basic loyalty programs, operators can further engage customers by adding a gamified aspect or even incorporating surprise awards into their programs.

“With a rewards program, brands can also harness big data to better understand consumer behaviour and offer more tailored experiences. This, in turn, will drive repeat traffic and sales.”

The report uncovered some intriguing numbers. For example, 36 per cent of the 1,000+ consumers surveyed consider a rewards program to be an expectation at a fast food joint. However, almost the same proportion of people (34 per cent) disagreed, wbut did admit having  one would encourage them to visit an eatery more often.

At fast-casuals, two in five (41 per cent) say a rewards program is an expectation, while 32 per cent believed the opposite, but felt one would encourage them to eat somewhere more often.

Almost two-thirds (64 per cent) said they visit fast food restaurants because the price is reasonable, with 53 per cent saying the same of fast-casual restaurants.

Close to three in five (57 per cent) said they felt a little guilty when visiting fast food restaurants too often.

These figures suggest that introducing fast, healthy options to a restaurant’s menu could lead to growth. Visit technomic.com/loyalty-programs-increasingly-crucial-limited-service-operators-canada to download the full report.