This article explores whether restaurants should use incentives in their text message marketing campaigns by examining real-world results from two similar establishments.
The Main Question
Should businesses offer incentives to encourage customer engagement, or should they focus on building loyalty without discounts?
Key Findings
The research concludes that both incentive and non-incentive approaches successfully build customer audiences through text messaging. However, incentives accelerate growth significantly. Over a 45-day period, the restaurant offering an incentive collected 237 contacts compared to 93 for the non-incentive restaurant—a 254% difference.
The Experiment
Two casual, full-service restaurants in eastern Florida participated. They were matched on factors including location, size (121 vs. 133 capacity), cuisine quality, and marketing materials. The only variable: one displayed an incentive offer while the other didn’t.
Results
Both businesses continued growing their contact lists post-experiment, but the incentive-based approach maintained a substantial lead (286 contacts vs. 158).
Conclusion
Both approaches work; incentives build the customer list more quickly, making them a viable strategy for restaurants seeking faster audience expansion.