As the restaurant industry deals with massive change, we’re spotlighting the brands that are spreading positive messages and uplifting their customers during this isolating time. Many have lessons to teach us all as they work to foster a deep emotional connection with their community.

Taco Bell & Panera Bread

School meal programs provide children of low-income families with reliable sources of nutrition, but with schools canceled, some families are left wondering how they will fill the gap. Thankfully, large brands like Taco Bell and Panera Bread are launching initiatives to help feed children and enable easy access to food for everyone who needs it.

To make sure students receive meals, the Taco Bell Foundation is donating $1 million to No Kid Hungry. The brand is also teaming up with other restaurants and food distribution networks to donate food and produce to local food banks. And for the greater community, Taco Bell gave out free tacos to all drive-thru guests earlier this week. Similarly, Panera is partnering with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Children’s Hunger Alliance to deliver boxed lunches to students. The program will launch in Ohio on April 6th with plans to expand to other states in the future.

Taco Bell is also working to go beyond the student population by converting its taco trucks into mobile commissaries, delivering food to people working in essential roles in healthcare, education, and grocery stores. All efforts brands make, whether great or small, can add up to help communities stay healthy and battle this global crisis. 

To learn what other brands are doing to build customer relationships during this time, connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn, and check out our site for more COVID-19 related resources.

As the restaurant industry deals with massive change, we’re spotlighting the brands that are spreading positive messages and uplifting their customers during an isolating time. Many have lessons to teach us all as they work to foster a deep emotional connection with their community.  

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant and Silver Diner

Our lives turned upside down. Between social distancing and staying at home, our lives are quite different from the busy, on-the-go existence that we typically lead. Kids are temporarily out of school, young adults in college have shifted to online classes, and those still fortunate enough to be employed are working from home. To help their customers get through the trapped-at-home blues, Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant changed its offerings to create an activity that families can do together: cook! 

Iron Hill has make-at-home meals available for curbside pickup. Instead of taking a trip to a grocery store the brand offers three kits filled with high-quality ingredients. They can choose from the “steak and bake”, “fun on a bun”, or  “pizza party”. 

During this time, lots of customers are missing the joy and comfort of dining out and socializing. Iron Hill offers a way to make dining more personal within families by turning a takeout dinner into an experience.

Speaking of experiences Silver Diner, an east coast-based American restaurant chain, encourages its guests to stay positive and create fresh traditions. In a recent email campaign, the brand shared a personal story of a couple that, until recently, had breakfast every week at the Silver Diner in Frederick, Maryland. Although dining-in was ruled out, the couple ordered takeout and decided to dine in the parking lot. They even brought their own chairs and table! 

The story helps Silver Diner remind its customers of the unique traditions that families can create together during this time, and the brand is asking its guests to share those new traditions with #SilverDiner. It’s the type of program that demonstrates the true relationship between a brand and its guests. 

To learn what other creative brands are doing to build customer relationships during this time, connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn, and check out our site for more COVID-19 related resources. 

Throughout this crisis, brands are searching for a way to maintain their strong customer relationships. A number have lessons to teach us all as they work to foster a deep emotional connection with their community. Here, twice a week, we’ll spotlight specific brands that are spreading positivity.

Thursday, March 26, 2020 Spotlight: The Pasta Bowl

The Pasta Bowl, a chain of neighborhood pasta shops, has maintained its fun and friendly tone throughout its customer communications. Still, it is serious about addressing the current environment. Take this snippet from a recent communication:

“Lots to be frustrated about these days. Lots to disagree and argue about too, it seems. We can all agree on one thing, though: we ALL wish none of this was going on.”

To address this undeniable truth, The Pasta Bowl has taken a different approach to uplifting its customers by collecting its stores’ playlists and sharing them through Spotify and Apple Music. Sometimes sitting down and throwing on some tunes can help people relax, or maybe even validating their feelings by listening to lyrics that resonate with them. Maybe a few will break out and dance! 

To learn what other creative brands are doing to build customer relationships during this time, connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn, and check out our site for more COVID-19 related resources.

Building customer loyalty can be a challenge, but if your goal is to motivate guests to visit more often and spend more when they do, then creating a restaurant loyalty program that works for your brand is essential. Because guests aren’t all the same, the ways they want to interact with your brand will vary. Before you start creating a loyalty program to boost incremental visits and revenue, there are four key areas to address: 

1. Determine which loyalty program will best engage your guests. 
2. Discover the type of program that best aligns with your brand concept.
3. Decide what kind of program your staff can effectively execute.
4. Establish which program will help you best achieve your restaurant’s financial goals.

First, you will want to arrive at the type of rewards program that will resonate with your guests. This is unique to each restaurant and will be influenced by brand concept, menu, server interactions, and business needs.

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