Loyalty programs alone will not solve QSRs’ frequency problem
Loyalty programs alone are insufficient to boost visit frequency at QSRs; making loyalty interactions more relevant to individual customers is needed to drive repeat visits.
43 stories · last 7 days by relevance
Loyalty programs alone are insufficient to boost visit frequency at QSRs; making loyalty interactions more relevant to individual customers is needed to drive repeat visits.
Walmart has partnered with Inspire Brands to deliver Dunkin' items alongside Walmart orders, expanding the retailer's restaurant delivery footprint.

KFC Global appointed Amy Ellis Durini as Chief Brand Officer in a newly created role, reporting to CEO Scott Mezvinsky starting November 2026, to lead global brand strategy and loyalty initiatives.

Walmart is adding Dunkin' to its delivery service, allowing customers to order coffee and donuts alongside groceries.

PAR Technology launched Guest360, a guest data platform that tracks restaurant customers across transactions regardless of loyalty program enrollment, designed to work with its existing Punchh loyalty

California Pizza Kitchen has installed a pizza vending machine at Dayton airport, expanding its off-premise availability.

McDonald's loyalty program collects granular customer data including visit frequency predictions and churn scores, illustrating how QSR operators now build detailed behavioral profiles that extend wel

Hungry Howie's has added a new delivery partner to its Cartwheel program.

Burger King is running a weeklong promotional series for Royal Perks members from September 14–20, anchored around National Cheeseburger Day with daily deals including a free Rodeo Burger and buy-one-

Walmart has added Dunkin to its delivery app, expanding its food delivery offerings and signaling competitive pressure on established platforms like DoorDash and Uber Eats.
Full-service restaurants have shifted their delivery strategy from simply launching a channel to optimizing operations across kitchens and labor models, signaling that delivery management is now a cor

Denny's launched a Fall Fest Menu nationwide featuring autumn-themed dishes with apple and pumpkin offerings.

Panera modified its rewards program structure, signaling an effort to deepen customer retention through revised earning mechanics.
Canadian Tire and Tim Hortons have launched a partnership to enhance their loyalty programs.
Uber cut 10% of its workforce (3,300 jobs) as part of a reorganization aimed at streamlining operations, signaling pressure to improve efficiency amid competition in ride-sharing and delivery.

Pilot Flying J has deployed fast-food kiosks at its locations that integrate third-party delivery apps, signaling a shift toward digital ordering infrastructure in the convenience-store channel.
Haidilao has adopted Infobip's data-driven personalization platform to enhance its global loyalty program, suggesting the chain is investing in customer retention tools as it expands internationally.
Fast Casual Executive Summit (Oct. 4-6 in Arlington, Texas) will explore how integrating fragmented tech systems into a unified customer view can improve returns for fast casual brands.

McDonald's is testing whether international markets can sustain growth through value deals, menu innovation, and loyalty initiatives despite ongoing consumer pressure.
Farmer Boys is discounting its Big Cheese cheeseburger to $3.99 for rewards members on National Cheeseburger Day, a promotional move that signals chains are using calendar-driven occasions to drive lo

Loyalty programs are increasingly serving as data collection tools rather than purely transactional offers, enabling restaurants to build first-party customer insights.
Major QSR's first-ever loyalty program represents a late-to-market entrant entering a table-stakes competitive battleground with 100+ units expected.
Capriotti's is running a month-long promotional campaign in September offering weekly deals to rewards members, part of its 50th anniversary marketing push.

Restaurant chains are investing in their own delivery apps to reduce third-party platform fees, though adoption remains a challenge for operators.
Over half of Americans support rounding up purchases for charity, signaling potential for QSRs to mobilize customer bases for fundraising tied to education, hunger, and disaster relief causes.

The Points Guy compared loyalty programs across three major coffee chains, assessing their relative value and benefits for customers.
An e-commerce risk expert has identified fraud as a significant vulnerability in restaurant loyalty programs.
Restaurant chains are running Labor Day promotions tied to Grubhub delivery.

QSR Magazine reports that value incentives are undermining restaurant loyalty programs, suggesting operators may need to reconsider how discounts and deals interact with program retention strategies.
Dillas Quesadillas is running loyalty-program promotions tied to National Queso Day and National Quesadilla Day across its 11 Texas and Louisiana locations.

Bloom Intelligence reports that high-frequency restaurant guests (10+ visits) represent 2.7% of typical guestbooks, suggesting modern segmentation strategies now layer behavioral signals beyond tradit
AMC Theatres has seen delivery sales rise nearly 50% this year as customers purchase concessions for home consumption, signaling a shift in how theaters monetize their food offerings beyond in-venue v

Pokeworks is running September-long promotions including tiered bonus points for loyalty members and Labor Day offers, signaling continued focus on member engagement and seasonal traffic drivers.

Restaurant operators are increasingly shifting focus from transaction-based metrics like cover counts to guest lifetime value, suggesting a broader industry move toward understanding and retaining ind

Smashburger renewed its Arizona State University athletics sponsorship for a third consecutive year, expanding its presence at game-day activations.

Uber's restructuring toward robotaxis and delivery automation may reshape delivery economics for restaurant partners, though the impact on margin and volume timing remains unclear.

Case study of a regional chain's loyalty marketing leadership — useful for peer benchmark, but limited to vendor audience context.
Vendor-published loyalty ROI data claims high returns, but lacks named restaurant customer case studies or implementation specifics.
Vendor content on tier-program UX best practices — useful reference for loyalty designers, but no news about brand deployments or competitive shifts.
Vendor content marketing on share-of-wallet and frequency strategy — generic framework with no restaurant brand case study or product announcement.

Consumer-facing promotional listicle with no operator insight into loyalty program mechanics, effectiveness, or multi-location deployment strategy.