Self-Order with Geo-Fencing
From National Restaurant News Sep2020 — The brand’s revamped app includes a new best in class rewards system; later this month, one-touch curbside pickup rolls out a year ahead of schedule as the chain eyes new off-premise solutions including the virtual kitchen space
Excerpts
- The company began testing the new curbside feature a few weeks ago at 21 restaurants. After smoothing out the kinks, the 475-unit chain plans to roll out curbside pickup to the rest of the system on Sept. 28, an extreme acceleration of the company’s original plan.
- At El Pollo Loco, consumers who opt-in to the location-based programming can communicate with the store via the app which uses geo-fencing technology. When a customer arrives, employees grab their order and bring it to the car, whose description (make and model) has been pre-populated by the guest during the ordering process.
- New Loyalty Program — Prior to the relaunch, customers had to spend about $100 to get a $10 reward. Now, the rewards system is best in class, where customers earn 1 point for every $1 spent. They unlock a $5 reward once they reach 50 points. By comparison, Chipotle Mexican Grill, widely known to have one of the best loyalty programs in the industry, gives its 15 million members 10 points per $1 spent. Freebies are earned at 1,250 points.
- Member Growth — Even before the rewards re-launch, El Pollo Loco has seen membership numbers surge during the pandemic. So far this year, the brand has added 400,000 new users bringing the total to nearly 2 million. That’s a pretty high surge considering the brand launched its app more than three years ago.
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