Hello! You know that loyalty programs should keep your customers returning, right? Who doesn’t like a free meal at the end of a few visits, right? On paper, it sounds good (pun intended)! When it comes to the old-school punch card system, you can find yourself in a mess – and at a cost – for both your franchisees and yourself. I’ll break it down.
Subway is a good example. They tried paper punch cards. It was a good idea to reward customers for a certain amount of visits, but in reality it was a nightmare. Fraud, confusion and lost cards were all dealt with. Instead of creating loyalty, the end result was more headaches.
Here are the top reasons why paper loyalty cards can be more harmful than helpful:
1. It’s impossible to track them
A paper card does not allow you to accurately track the number of punches earned by each user, nor can it be used to verify that the card is legitimate. If you want to run a loyalty programme, you need to be able measure everything. This is like running a restaurant without tracking your expenses. Scary, right?
2. Fraud Is Everywhere – Inside and Outside
Paper cards are too easy to misuse for both customers and staff. Employees can easily give cards to friends and anyone else could duplicate them. Subway employees were printing cards from home to use at different locations. Imagine how many sandwiches were given away before Subway realised.
3. You confuse your customers
Your team becomes suspicious when fraud is an issue, right? Imagine your loyal customers being scrutinized as they present their cards. This creates tension. It can drive away loyal customers.
4. They are lost all the time
It happens. There’s no way of tracking or replacing lost punch cards. Your customers come to you and tell you that they were so close to getting a free meal but you have no way of verifying it. You could easily deactivate a lost card if you were using a digital program. No fuss, no awkwardness.
5. Franchisee relationships can be strained.
You’re trying to assist your franchisees by implementing a loyalty program. But when the program causes more problems than solutions, it can create friction. Franchisees who are frustrated will start to question whether the loyalty program is worthwhile. This is the last thing that you want, especially when everyone’s working towards the same goal.
What’s the lesson here? Subway made a lot of mistakes. You don’t need to. Digital loyalty programs can help solve many of these problems, including fraud prevention, tracking, and customer satisfaction. It also saves your franchisees and you a lot of time (and money).
Are you interested in switching to a digital program of loyalty? Visit Rewardsify to learn more about our AI-powered loyalty and marketing platform designed specifically for restaurants.