How Restaurant Owners Can Launch a Robinhood-Style Referral Program

TLDR

As a restaurant owner, you know how valuable loyal customers are to your business. Now imagine if those customers could easily invite all their friends to join your rewards program and start earning free food and drinks. Companies like Robinhood and Uber have built successful referral programs that benefit both businesses and customers. With Per Diem, you can launch your Robinhood-style referral program.

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Why Restaurants Need a Referral Program Like Robinhood’s

Build Your Customer Base

A referral program incentivizes your customers to spread the word about your business to their friends and family. By offering rewards, you give people a reason to promote your restaurant and bring in new patrons. Robinhood’s referral program helped attract nearly 1 million users before its launch by offering free stock for referrals. Restaurants can achieve similar success by offering discounts, gift cards, or other perks.

Increase Loyalty

Referral programs increase customer loyalty by making people feel like brand ambassadors. When customers invite their friends, they become invested in your business’s success. Reciprocal rewards, where both the referrer and the referral get a benefit, encourage participation, and lead to repeat customers.

Low-Cost Marketing

Referral marketing is an inexpensive way to boost your business. Instead of spending money on ads, you reward customers for promoting your brand. While the rewards do cost you something, the lifetime value of a loyal customer is often much more. For small restaurants and coffee shops, a referral program can be an affordable approach to gaining new patrons.

To start a referral program like Robinhood’s, choose rewards that match your brand and motivate customers and their friends to participate. Make it easy for people to refer others by providing a code or link to share on social media or via email. Be sure to promote your program through in-store signs, newsletters, social media, and your mobile app. A successful referral program could transform your small restaurant into a thriving hotspot.

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How a Mobile App Referral Program Works for Restaurants

Referral programs integrated into mobile apps are an innovative way for restaurants to incentivize customers to share their business with friends.

How It Works

Customers who download the mobile app are given a unique referral code to share with friends. When a friend signs up using that code, both parties receive a reward like a free menu item, gift card, or loyalty points. This rewards existing customers for their loyalty and gives new customers an incentive to try the restaurant.

Examples from Industry Leaders

Major companies have found success with mobile referral programs. Uber’s referral program gives both parties free ride credits for successful referrals. Robinhood, the stock trading app, provides free stocks to those who refer new members. These programs have been crucial growth drivers, and restaurants can achieve similar results.

Benefits for Restaurants

A referral program provides numerous benefits for restaurants. It helps build a loyal customer base by giving rewards to repeat customers. It increases brand visibility through word-of-mouth marketing. It drives app downloads and online orders which provide valuable customer data to optimize marketing. Referral programs are also cost-effective, only providing rewards when they directly lead to new business.

A mobile referral program is an innovative way for restaurants to harness the power of word-of-mouth marketing and build loyalty. By rewarding customers for sharing their brand, restaurants can achieve sustainable growth and boost their bottom line. To get started with a referral program in the app, book your demo.

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Examples of Successful Referral Programs

Referral marketing programs enable brands to leverage the power of word-of-mouth marketing to acquire new customers. Successful companies like Uber Eats and Lyft have utilized referral programs to expand their customer bases.

Uber Eats Referral Program

Uber Eats offers customers referral credits for inviting friends to use the service. Both the referrer and the referred friend receive credits they can use for free or discounted meals. This incentivizes customers to spread the word about Uber Eats to their social circles.

Lyft Referral Program

The ridesharing service Lyft also employs a referral program. New Lyft users who sign up with a referral code from a friend receive ride credits, as does the friend who referred them. Lyft's program is a tiered rewards system, offering increasing amounts of credit as more people sign up using a user's referral code. This type of escalating reward encourages Lyft's most loyal customers to actively promote the service to their networks.

Key Takeaways

These examples demonstrate some best practices for restaurant referral programs:

•Provide meaningful incentives for both referrers and referees, such as free meals, discounts, or loyalty points. This gives customers motivation to refer others.

•Consider a tiered rewards system that offers greater rewards as more referrals are made. This leverages the motivation of your most enthusiastic customers.

•Promote your referral program across all your marketing channels to raise awareness. Customers can only refer others if they know about the program.

•Make the referral process simple by providing a unique referral code or link for customers to share on social media or via text and email. Reduce friction as much as possible.

•Track the success and ROI of your referral program to optimize it over time. See which incentives and rewards motivate your customers the most.

By following the lead of successful companies and implementing an engaging referral program, restaurant owners can tap into the power of word-of-mouth marketing and loyalty to attract new customers. A well-designed referral program may be one of the most cost-effective strategies for customer acquisition and growth.

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Start Your Referral Program With Per Diem White-Label

Per Diem white-label mobile app offers an easy way to implement a referral program similar to popular ones like Robinhood and Uber. With a customized rewards program built right into your restaurant’s mobile app, you can incentivize your customers to invite their friends and earn credits for dining at your establishment.

How It Works

The app allows you to offer an in-app referral program for your restaurant. You determine the details of the program, including how many referral credits or rewards are earned for each new sign-up. For example, you might offer a $5 credit for both the referrer and the new user after the new customer places their first order. The entire process is automated through the app, from the initial referral invitation to issuing the rewards once the new user becomes active.

Benefits of a Referral Program

Implementing a referral program through your restaurant’s mobile app provides several benefits:

•Increased new customer acquisition. Word-of-mouth referrals from your loyal customers are an effective way to gain new patrons.

•Improved customer retention. By rewarding your existing customers for referrals, you strengthen their loyalty and give them an incentive to continue frequenting your restaurant.

•Low-cost marketing. Customer referrals are a low-cost marketing strategy since your patrons are promoting your restaurant to their social circles on your behalf.

•Data-driven insights. A referral program provides data on your customers’ social connections and networks that you can analyze to better target your marketing efforts.

•Enhanced brand advocacy. When customers refer their friends and social contacts to your restaurant, it signals that they are advocates for your brand. Their advocacy and word-of-mouth marketing is extremely valuable.

To get started with an in-app referral program and other benefits of a customized mobile app for your restaurant, contact Per Diem or sign up for a free demo. We make it easy and affordable to build an app that will help you increase customer loyalty and gain new diners.

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Final Thoughts

You now have the tools to launch an innovative referral program like Robinhood and Uber through Per Diem white-label mobile app. This allows you to expand your customer base and reward loyal patrons. Contact our team today to get started with your customized mobile ordering, and soon you'll see new faces in your establishment thanks to referrals spreading the word.

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