Restaurants want you to sign up for memberships

The Future. Restaurant subscriptions appear to be a pandemic-born trend, like the QR code menu, that’s here to stay. Not only do they support people’s daily consumption habits with discounts and exclusive access, but they also nurture a class of super fans with a higher check average. If restaurants want to generate more revenue while deepening their connections with guests, they might introduce memberships to reward customer loyalty.

The subscriber is VIP
While a regular guest may frequent a restaurant two or three times a year, a subscriber may visit up to seven or eight times. Brands love subscriptions because they know people tend to spend more when redeeming their rewards.

• Table22, a subscription operating system launched in 2020, now has around 500 restaurant partners and thousands of members.
• Financial services company UBS predicts the subscription market will reach $1.5 trillion by 2025.

Data is king
Subscriptions help brands learn more about their customers. As they get more data about their behaviors, restaurants can better determine how to meet their customers’ needs.

Whether casual or fine dining, national or local, most restaurants agree the real value of a membership is the closer relationship with guests.