Data-Driven Restaurant Marketing: Unlock the Power of Your Cloud POS System

Are you using data-driven tactics to effectively and efficiently market your restaurant to hungry people all over St. Louis? If the answer is no (or not sure), never fear! With today’s highly integrated restaurant technology, it’s easier than ever to collect and leverage customer data to boost sales and attract/retain valued guests.

Collecting Customer Data

Your restaurant — yes, yours! — generates a wealth of data each time you enter an order into your point of sale system. Understanding what data you can collect (or may already be collecting) and understanding what capabilities that data can unlock is critical to your success in today’s uber-competitive restaurant industry. Fortunately, a cloud POS system makes it almost effortless to capture and compile this data in one centralized location.

While there’s lots of great data you can collect with your POS system, when it comes to marketing, there’s nothing more valuable than your customer contact information. In fact, SpotOn estimates that restaurants can expect an average return of $42 for every dollar spent on email marketing. 

Keep in mind that building trust with your customers is of the utmost importance. More and more, your guests want to know how you plan to use their personal information. Make sure that the restaurant technology you choose includes a commitment to robust data security protections. Cloud POS systems are a great option because they are constantly monitored for updates and suspicious activity, and data is immediately encrypted, reducing your restaurant’s liability.

Leveraging Customer Data

OK, so you’ve collected the data — now what? Restaurant technology such as SpotOn Marketing makes it easy to leverage that data collected during checkout to better understand your customers’ appetites and stay in touch with them between visits. 

For many restaurant owners, finding time to market their business is a major hurdle. It just becomes another thing on your never-ending to-do list. Fortunately, today’s restaurant technology is able to automate or at least simplify many of these tasks so that you can work smarter, not harder.

SpotOn Marketing offers an integrated marketing solution that both collects the information you need and provides a variety of templates and tools you can use to instantly put that data to work for your restaurant. For example, SpotOn Marketing offers drag-and-drop email marketing templates that can be customized from your phone or computer. This allows you to quickly update guests about new menu items, special events and more. You can also automate email marketing campaigns featuring targeted coupons, birthday offers or similar loyalty offerings.

Text message marketing is also increasingly popular, and modern POS systems make it easy to collect guests’ cellphone numbers for this purpose. Text messages have a 90% open rate and are typically read almost immediately, making them a great option for reaching your most valued customers when it matters most.

The Bottom Line

Many restaurants fail because they fail to understand their customers. POS systems are a great resource for measuring your restaurant’s growth and gaining a better understanding of your customers. If you aren’t using the available data, however, you’re merely wasting money on what amounts to an overpriced cash register.

Unlock the power of your POS system with help from the hospitality tech experts at DCRS Solutions — contact us today to get started!