Sodexo has launched the first loyalty app in the contract catering industry. The Reward Tree app has been developed to meet the growing consumer appetite for discounts.
The app, which acts as a virtual loyalty card, is being introduced at some 400 Sodexo-run workplace, hospital and university restaurants across the UK and offers two loyalty schemes:
- Drink: buy eight hot drinks and receive the ninth free
- Food: buy eight qualifying meals and receive a sandwich/main meal free
In addition to special offers, a news page and a feedback tool, the app also has a unique additional feature to ‘gift stamps’. The app allows users to transfer stamps they have collected to friends as a gift, encouraging more consumers to download and use the app and ultimately drive sales.
Research by the Chief Marketing Officer Council shows that 96% of consumers are part of a loyalty scheme and with two out of three mobile phone users owning a smart phone the development of its own loyalty scheme into an app was a natural progression for Sodexo.
Customer research
Ben Forbes, marketing director for Sodexo UK & Ireland says, “Understanding your customers is key to the success of any business. At Sodexo we have previously run a number of loyalty initiatives, but we recognised the need to adapt to newer technologies and changing consumer behaviour.
“Developing an app was an obvious step but we wanted to make sure it was what our customers wanted. We conducted research in a number of our sites representing different markets and interviewed 500 of our customers. This revealed that c.30% visited the restaurant at least once a day with a further 15% visiting more than once. This demonstrated to us there was sufficient demand, which was strengthened by over two thirds stating that a Smartphone loyalty scheme would indeed encourage them to use the restaurant more often.”
The new Reward Tree app, developed in association with Stampfeet, will provide Sodexo with valuable consumer insight information and trends, allowing it to monitor customer satisfaction and develop targeted marketing and promotional campaigns for its users through push notifications.
A Twitter handle @myrewardtree has also been created to enhance engagement with users of the app.