This Trends Report Produced and Contributed by InMoment
New 2023 Restaurant & Food Service Consumer Trends Report Asks: What Makes This Trends Report Different?
The unspoken truth is that most consumer trend reports aren’t keeping up with your customers.
Why? Because they are largely based on survey findings alone.
However, only a fraction of your consumer voice can be heard via surveys. Whether your restaurant is quick service or full service, you know that surveys don’t tell you the full story. They don’t take into account online and social media reviews, or what your employees on the frontlines are seeing in your restaurant.
Leveraging these various signals will give you the most effective insights to shape your menu, staffing, and business strategies going forward.
Also read 5 Different Ways to Integrate Music Into Your Restaurant to Enhance Diners’ Experience
That’s why this Food Service & Restaurant Consumer Trends Report is derived from all available consumer data across multiple channels.
To be more specific, we leveraged over 170,000 food service data points in North America to access the findings you’ll discover today.
Table of Contents
A Closer Look at Our Data
So, where did those 170,000+ data points come from? Here is a quick breakdown of how we went from collecting data to identifying the need-to-know trends:
- Social Signals: First, we started with existing social signals about food service experiences from TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and beyond.
- Online Review Signals: We then added online review data about food service brands from Google, GlassDoor, and other sites.
- Historic Data: Next, we used Spotlight to aggregate InMoment food service consumer data from surveys and other sources in 2022.
- Market Pulse Survey: Once we mined all that existing data for trends and insights, we leveraged market pulse surveys to fill in the blanks, hear consumer stories, and gain more context.
So why does this approach make such a big difference? Because we are leveraging what we call an Integrated CX approach to consumer data, rather than just relying on a survey alone.
This enables us to get a truly holistic perspective of consumer behavior.
Additionally, we are truly letting consumers identify the trends rather than merely creating a survey based on our own perception of the experiences food service consumers desire. LET’S DIVE IN!
What Are the Need-to-Know Restaurant Consumer Trends for 2023?
| TREND #1: | TREND #2: | TREND #3: |
| First Impressions Will Make or Break Your Customer Loyalty | Consumers Want to Be More Digital & More Social | CX Practitioners Need to Rethink Traditional Approaches & Understandings |
Ultimately, there is one greater theme that unites these three experiences: the food service customer experience approach of yesterday will be mere table stakes when you’re competing for your customers’ loyalty in 2023.
And while offerings like call ahead ordering, digital menus, and the like may offer passible experiences for your consumers, there are other strategies that will help you win and keep their business for years to come.
So, for each trend that follows, we will identify the experience elements that are table stakes, and then unveil the strategies that will help you stand out in 2023!
TREND #1: First Impressions Will Make or Break Your Customer Loyalty
Your guests have a lot of options to choose from, and we’re sure that isn’t news to you. So, what can give you a competitive edge this year?
While food service consumers may have plenty of options of where to get their food, there is a short supply of personalized experiences in the food service industry. In our data, it became clear that personalized experiences are key to attracting—and keeping—customers.
In fact, one in three customers consider personalization a key driver of purchase at a restaurant! If your guests don’t feel like their experience with your brand is personalized (or efficient) they are less likely to return.
How to Convert One-Time Customers Into Loyalists with a Great First Impression
Through our data, we found four elements that will help you convert a first-time customer into a regular with a standout first impression.
WHAT MOST IMPACTS YOUR EXPERIENCE AT A RESTAURANT?
Food Quality
Food quality requires little explanation. However, this is just as much about taste as it is options and customization. Your customers want to explore your menu, not just be confined to ordering the same one or two things. This variety keeps customers from getting tired of your menu, but also attracts customers with dietary limitations.
Whether they have allergies or have chosen an alternative diet, being able to customize their order is key to retaining these customers.
Staff Experience
Staff experience was tied for the second-most important value driver here. This revolves around how your customer is being treated at your restaurant.
Whether it’s quick service where it’s all about speed, or a full-service restaurant where it’s all about personalization, the experiences your customers have with your staff are key to converting them to a brand loyalist.
Given how important the staff experience is, it’s absolutely vital that you keep your high-performing staff happy. But we know that’s easier said than done, especially in the current staffing climate for food service.
In order to help you hire and retain the best talent out there, we did some digging to see what are the deal-breakers for food service staff. Here’s what we found:
With these elements in mind, you can help to fine tune your approach to career progression, increase management training, and implement exciting incentive and culture programs.
And that will not only help you keep your staff around, but it will also help you ace your all-important first impression with your customers.
Special Promotions
Tied for second-most important value driver was special promotions! When considering what you will do to promote your restaurant, you need to think about the new channels where consumers are getting their recommendations.
We all know that influencers play a huge part in retail marketing, and from our research, it seems that they will also play a huge role in getting new customers through the doors of your restaurant, too.
Did you know 1 of 4 consumers were more likely to visit a restaurant based on a social influencer recommendation?
In short, it’s clear that there isn’t just one factor that will help you make a great first impression. Rather, it seems a mix of high-quality offerings, people, and experiences will be key to maintaining customer loyalty in 2023.
TREND #2: Consumers Want to Be More Digital & More Social
Every restaurant was forced to focus on digital offerings during the pandemic. Whether it was to-go orders only, reservation systems, or digital menus, your brand had to pivot in order to accommodate your customers.
As your customers come back into your restaurant unmasked and socially un-distanced, they are still expecting to have access to those same digital options they have become accustomed to over the last few years—and more.
What Are Your Guests Expecting from Every Experience?
There are certain experiences that your customers are going to expect in 2023. Providing them won’t necessarily increase your acquisition or excite existing customers, but NOT making these options accessible will put your customers at risk of churning (or keep them from dining with you at all).
Going into 2023, you need to make sure you have these practices in place to retain existing customers:
- Seasonal Food Options: Targeted offerings by area, accessible nutrition info, and offerings that your customers will look forward to regularly
- Special Offers: Utilizing influencer marketing, loyalty programs, and mobile apps are now table stakes for successful restaurant brands
- Staff Personalization: Whether it’s speed of service in a fast food chain or personalized menu suggestions in a full-service restaurant, customers want efficient and personalized experiences
- Brand Values: Who are you beyond the food you are offering? Consumers are looking for brands to be involved in local, social, and political initiatives.
- Consistency: Your customers want to know the experience they are going to get before they open the app or walk in the front doors. Delivering a consistent experience will keep your customers from churning.
Now, What Will Exceed Customers’ Expectations in 2023?
Now that we understand what it takes to keep your customers or put your restaurant in the consideration zone, we can dive into the experiences that will blow your diners’ minds in the best way!
Our research found that most guests are excited at the prospect of hybrid experiences that bring the digital to the in-store experience with scannable menus and options to view additional information using their phones and mobile devices in store.
Here’s the proof: 1 of 3 customers are likely to return to a brand if they offer a more ‘hybrid’ experience, bringing the digital (mobile) experience to life within the in-location experience
Want some more specifics? Below are a variety of ways diners would like to use mobile devices as a part of their in-restaurant experience:
- Food/Offering Ratings and Reviews: Your customers want to know what the most popular order at your restaurant is. They will be more inclined to order something if they know that 50 other people have ordered it within the last week and enjoyed it!
- Offering Dietary Information: Along with ratings and reviews, your customers want to know what is in their food. Having this information just one click away helps to accommodate diets or dietary restrictions—and that’s absolutely key to acquiring new customers in 2023.
- Pay-at-Table or Flexible Payment Options: Creating hybrid in-restaurant experiences means doing away with a server taking the bill to the table, then to the register to run the payment, then back to the table one final time for a signature and tip. That process is outdated, and your customers want to be able to complete the entire payment process from their mobile device.
- Recent Experience Reviews: Similar to reviews of your restaurant’s offerings, guests want to be able to access reviews of the entire experience—from entry to exit.
It’s important to understand that your customer is unlike any customer you’ve had in the past. They want the convenience and safety of digital offerings but the connection and reliability of social integration.
Creating a restaurant experience that combines both of these will exceed their expectations and keep them coming back again and again.
TREND #3: CX Practitioners Need to Rethink Traditional Approaches & Understandings
Looking at our insights so far, it’s safe to say that consumers will simply not settle for the same old restaurant experiences. Features such as delivery or pickup options will not be enough to turn their heads either.
With that in mind, would it surprise you to learn that the research debunked a few popular customer experience assumptions as well?
We thought not. In this section, we’ll be busting some myths about food service consumers’ experience that will change your approach.
Busting Food Service Consumer Experience Myths
MYTH #1: Surveys Are the Most Important Customer Feedback Method
FALSE
Though surveys are certainly an important way to get direct feedback from your customers, they are by no means the only tool you should be leveraging.
Surveys only allow you to get insight into a portion of the customer experience. Let’s look at an example of how you can use feedback from multiple channels to identify a pain point.
- Survey Response: “The staff were not attentive; no one was around to help me”
- At face value, this response would suggest that the staff was performing poorly. But, why was that the case?
- Consumer Social Signal: “Your staff look EXHAUSTED! No wonder everything is so slow.”
- Now we are getting closer to identifying the problem. Clearly the staff was tired, which was causing them to be inattentive and perform poorly. But, why was the staff so tired?
- Employee Social Signal: “I’m overworked […] My manager just gives me MORE tactical work!”
- Finally, we have arrived at the root of the problem. The staff’s poor performance can be traced back to a management issue. From collecting feedback from multiple different channels, now you are able to create an actionable insight that there needs to be a change in the management processes.
MYTH #2: Surveys Alone Will Help Gauge My Customer’s Journey
NOT COMPLETELY TRUE
Surveys are a great way to gauge the customer journey, yes. But, they are not the only tool you should be utilizing to do so.
As a matter of fact, the majority of your customers would rather interact with you in a different form than a survey.
Most of your customers would prefer to interact with your brand through ratings and reviews. You need to be utilizing these, along with other methods, in order to fully gauge the customer journey.
MYTH #3: Consumers Care More About Price Than Product Value
NOT COMPLETELY TRUE
Yes, customers will always consider the price of your offerings before purchasing. But, price isn’t the biggest driver of purchase. When considering making a purchase, consumers report that their biggest driving factor is based on reviews.
After that comes price, seasonal offering, personal preference, or other reasons.
MYTH #4: Consumers Find it ‘Creepy’ When Brands Use Social Signals
At this point, we’ve all had this experience: you’re talking with your friends about a product you’ve found and are considering purchasing. The next day, your Instagram feed is packed with ads about that particular product. Creepy? Maybe you thought so at one time, but today, not so much.
Before COVID-19 (2019), 75% of respondents found personalization to be at least somewhat creepy. Today, only 11% of restaurant consumers consider personalization to be creepy, a decrease of 64% in just three years.
Adding emphasis to this change in consumer behavior is the fact that 45% of consumers actually feel positively about personalized ads and the like.
So what does this mean for food service brands? Don’t be afraid to leverage social signals to personalize digital experiences! There’s no need to be concerned about consumers feeling creeped out—they’re more likely to appreciate your efforts.
NOW YOU KNOW WHAT’S NEXT
Here’s How to Take Action
Listening and analyzing to gain insights is only half of the battle when it comes to business strategy—your success truly hinges on your ability to take action based on your understanding.
Share & Align with the New Drivers of Purchase
This sharable chart breaks down the purchase drivers so you can refer back to them during strategy sessions and beyond:
But printing this chart out or saving it to your desktop won’t enact any change. These insights (as well as any insights you gain from your CX program) are only valuable if you share them with the people in your organization who can take action.
This is where a cross-functional CX governance group comes in handy. If you haven’t already, we highly recommend creating a cross-functional group where you can meet and share relevant insights with organization leaders.
Not only will this enable you to showcase your learnings, but it’s an opportunity to tailor those learning to leaders and show them exactly what they have to gain by getting involved in your CX program.
