About Rodrigo’s Mexican Grill
Rodrigo's Mexican Grill, a family-owned restaurant founded by the Fraser family in 1972, offers a vibrant dining experience that blends traditional and modern Mexican cuisine. Known for its award-winning sizzling fajitas, seafood enchiladas, and fresh-made chips and salsa, Rodrigo's prides itself on serving authentic dishes crafted with fresh ingredients. The restaurant honors its legacy by continuing to operate under the guidance of the Fraser family, now in its third generation, ensuring a welcoming atmosphere perfect for both casual meals and special celebrations.
From Traditional to Digital: The Rodrigo's Journey
Rodrigo's relied heavily on traditional customer engagement methods for decades, including email coupons and direct mail promotions. While these strategies had served them well in the past, they needed to be more effective. "We were getting flooded at our corporate office with customers unable to find their email coupons," Matt Coulter, Marketing Leader at Rodrigo’s, explained. This situation highlighted a critical gap in customer relationship management.
The restaurant's multi-generational appeal required a solution that could cater to a diverse audience, from grandparents to grandchildren. Matt understood that to meet modern consumer expectations, Rodrigo's needed to transition from these outdated methods to a more integrated, digital-first approach. "We wanted our customers to have the tools to make mobile orders and access their accounts easily," said Matt. This realization set the stage for a significant transformation in how Rodrigo's engaged with its guests.
Choosing Incentivio: A Strategic Partnership
After thorough research and consideration of various digital platforms, Rodrigo's decided to partner with Incentivio. Matt was particularly impressed by the platform's user-friendly interface and comprehensive features. "The user interface for the app was very streamlined. It was simple to use and looked really good," said Matt. The implementation process took about three months and involved several key steps, including designing an appealing app interface, food photography sessions, and training staff on the new platform.
Training employees was crucial, as the transition to a digital platform required a shift in how they interacted with customers. "Once a couple of the managers really got it, we used them to help train the others," Matt explained. This approach enabled them to effectively promote the app to customers.
Leveraging Incentivio’s AI-Powered Features
Rodrigo's harnessed several of Incentivio's AI-driven features to enhance customer engagement and streamline operations. One of the standout features was the Guest Journey Dashboard, which allowed the restaurant to visualize customer progression from newcomers to loyal guests.
"You see the strangers going down. We're pulling all the strangers into rookies, and then you can see the rookies going into regulars," Matt described. This visual representation of customer behavior enabled Rodrigo's to tailor their marketing strategies effectively.
A crucial aspect of Rodrigo's AI-driven strategy was its churn management approach. Incentivio’s ability to automatically identify at-risk guests using its proprietary Churn Management product, categorizing them as "sliders" or "churned," allowed Rodrigo's to create targeted offers to re-engage them. Matt explained their strategy: "For sliders, we might offer a free appetizer with a $30 purchase. For churned customers, we're considering a buy-one-get-one-free entree deal." This targeted approach helps bring guests back into the restaurant's ecosystem.
The AI-driven insights also allowed Rodrigo's to segment their customer base effectively. "We can treat the loyalists really well, give them little perks. Or, for those who haven't visited in a while, we can say, 'Hey, come on back.' You get to lay out the whole strategy," said Matt, on the value of the products.
By leveraging these AI-powered features, Rodrigo's has been able to create a more dynamic and responsive customer engagement strategy, addressing the needs of different customer segments and lifecycle stages effectively.
Elevated Loyalty and Marketing
The restaurant also implemented a tiered rewards system, offering increasingly valuable incentives as guests accumulated points. For instance, guests could earn rewards ranging from $5 off their next purchase to a complimentary platter of sizzling fajitas. This system not only encouraged repeat visits but also fostered a sense of loyalty among guests.
In just one year after launch, the restaurant saw an impressive 62,946 orders with Incentivio offers redeemed, averaging a robust ~5,250 orders per month. This engagement shows the significant impact of targeted marketing promotions in driving customer orders and loyalty.
Rodrigo's also utilized targeted marketing capabilities to send personalized notifications based on customer behavior. "You can send different kinds of notifications, like thanking customers for their visit or asking for feedback," Matt said. This level of personalization was instrumental in enhancing customer satisfaction and engagement.
The restaurant has seen a marked improvement in customer relationship management, with complaints nearly eliminated. "It's revolutionized the way that we deal with people," Matt stated.
Rodrigo's has moved away from traditional couponing methods and now relies on the app to manage discounts and promotions. "We transitioned all of our discounts flowing through the app, which was huge," Matt explained. This shift has not only simplified the process for customers but has also enhanced the restaurant's ability to track engagement and sales data.
Future Growth and Innovation
As Rodrigo's approaches the one-year mark since implementing Incentivio, the team is excited about the future potential of their partnership. They plan to explore advanced AI-driven marketing scenarios and further optimize their loyalty program based on data insights. "We're trying to think outside of the box and create offers and scenarios," Matt shared. The restaurant is committed to continuously enhancing the customer experience through personalized engagement and innovative marketing strategies. As they move forward, Rodrigo's is poised to deepen customer relationships and improve satisfaction, ensuring that it remains a beloved dining destination for generations.
