McAlister’s knows what it’s doing when it comes to building loyalty.
The 560-unit chain has more than 5.4 million members and retains the highest portion of extremely high frequency guests (20-plus visits per year) in the GoTo Foods portfolio (other concepts are Moe’s, Schlotzsky’s, Auntie Anne’s, Jamba, Carvel, and Cinnabon). These extremely high-frequency customers contribute to more than one-third of loyalty transactions. There’s also a cohort of super users that visit more than 100 times per year.
With a strong foundation of active users in the loyalty program, McAlister’s chief brand officer Mike Freeman and his team saw an opportunity to increase frequency even further by finding moments where the chain could engage with members in more meaningful ways.
“We really wanted to create some sort of different human connection that we hadn’t had in the past with our loyalty guests,” Freeman says. “They’re so valuable and so many different loyalty programs today are just cut from the same cloth of you earn points, you redeem points, right? So what we wanted to do is challenge the status quo a little bit to figure out how we could drive some incremental frequency, but also land in a place that was familiar to a consumer.”
The fast casual saw the value in having its operations team—in addition to all of the marketing outreach—play an active role in delivering on the loyalty experience. It’s a move that’s mutually beneficial for guests and employees.
Under this new philosophy, the brand creates a clear pathway for workers to identify whether a customer is part of the loyalty program from the moment they enter the restaurant. After that, employees are given specific actions they can take, whether it’s offering a small perk, sparking a personalized conversation, or simply making the guest feel more connected to the brand. By removing ambiguity around how to interact with guests, McAlister’s makes it easier for team members to execute these personalized touches without hesitation.
The chain distinguishes loyalty members from non-members in the dining room by assigning different table number colors. This allows staff to engage with guests in targeted conversations—whether it’s informing loyalty members about upcoming exclusive offers, like limited-time-only menu items, or encouraging non-members to join the program by explaining the benefits of being a loyalty member.
Previously, there had been reluctance to approach tables or go deeper in conversations guests. However, the new loyalty initiative focuses on eliminating that uncertainty by clearly defining what actions should be taken and when, allowing staff to feel more comfortable conversing with customers.
For loyalty guests, it’s a different level of service and feeling like you’re part of something bigger instead of what’s on a screen.
“So when the customer comes in and they say they’re a loyalty member, they get one path. If they’re not a loyalty member, they get a different path for recruitment. It’s really contextual messaging where if you’re part of a loyalty program and we’ve identified you as part of that, that sort of ecosystem, I can now message you in a different and more appropriate way that’s more meaningful to you based on exactly where you are in the life cycle of your points accumulation or non-accumulation for that matter if you’re not a loyalty member,” Freeman says. “So it really opens up the door for that conversational piece that was lacking, but it does come with benefits.”
McAlister’s order screens use different colors to distinguish loyalty members and non-loyalty customers. Employees drop pre-handwritten notes into the bags of loyalty members, place specific stickers on their meals, and sometimes add cookies into their to-go bags as a surprise.
The chain began testing its new loyalty program in the third and fourth quarters of last year with a small group of franchisee and company-owned locations. After a soft launch in the first quarter of this year, the program was rolled out across all stores by the end of the second quarter.
The guest feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with many customers expressing satisfaction with the new levels of status and personalized messaging.
“I was able to print a stack of papers with all the positive comments and show them to our CEO with pride about how our guests are enjoying the different levels and status and contextual messaging and operating model,” Freeman says. “It’s no exaggeration. It was really, really cool.”
What surprised Freeman the most was McAlister’s increase in value scores, especially given the rise of discounting over the past year. He didn’t realize applying an extra level of service and hospitality would have such a significant impact.
He describes the new loyalty operating model as a “pretty cool psychological experiment” about how customers define value for themselves.
“Where does it begin for a consumer today?” Freeman says. “And is it all-encompassing in prices or something where you want to walk in and say hi and they already know what you want and they drop off an extra free cookie and you just have a great experience because you went to McAlister’s today? Then that triggers you to think about us and hopefully we’ve earned another one of your visits in the future for a different purchase occasion.”
McAlister’s has shared its success with other chains in GoTo Foods’ portfolio, and they’ve begun crafting their own version of it.
“Think about it more like a philosophy, more so than a mandate,” Freeman says. “There’s really no reason to shy away from it and not fully support, endorse, and launch. So the other brands are trying to identify how it fits their brands right now. You may not have table numbers, you may not do some of the things we do. But how do you just take that little something extra philosophy, apply it to your brand and then project it to your usership within loyalty? There’s just so many benefits that we’re seeing where our loyalty ecosystem sales increase massively.”
