Pizza Restaurant Direct Mail Success Story
Pizza Restaurant Direct Mail Success Story
Customer Objective
A national pizza chain customer wanted to enhance their current print program by combining loyalty and acquisition messaging in the same mailing to save money and increase return on investment. They were also looking to increase year-over-year sales and drive more customers to their stores.
Campaign Strategy
Target full zip codes within delivery area around each location
Create multiple consumer segments:
- Current Customers & Loyal Customers based on online ordering frequency
- New Customers
- Potential Customers
Vary messages with different offers to each group
Establish a mailing frequency maintain customer attention and stay top-of-mind
Pizza Industry Trends
Changing consumer preferences and a crowded pizza market have created tougher competition in the pizza category. This has resulted in successful pizza restaurants changing their strategy. Some of these changes include offering lunch combos, pizza customization, unique toppings, and individual servings. Along with the Super Bowl, top holidays for pizza sales include Halloween, the day before Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. In the Southeast, consider college football season as favorable months for pizza sales.
Here are some more stats around pizza industry trends for the 5 past years.
Pizza Industry Trends
Changing consumer preferences and a crowded pizza market have created tougher competition in the pizza category. This has resulted in successful pizza restaurants changing their strategy. Some of these changes include offering lunch combos, pizza customization, unique toppings, and individual servings. Along with the Super Bowl, top holidays for pizza sales include Halloween, the day before Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, and New Year’s Day. In the Southeast, consider college football season as favorable months for pizza sales.
Here are some more stats around pizza industry trends for the 5 past years.
The Pizza Restaurants industry has produced steady growth over the five years to 2016 – Annual growth from 2011 to 2016 is at 1.9%
There are a total of 91,760 pizza restaurants in the United States
Technology has infiltrated the industry in a big way over the past five years
Pizza chains catering to lower incomes are competing in a very saturated marketplace
Decreasing unemployment coupled with an increase in consumer spending has aided industry operators over the five-year period, particularly as consumers demand more convenient and expedited food choices
External competition from a variety of new food-services concepts and an increase in health consciousness among consumers have pressured industry operators significantly
Despite these obstacles, many operators have performed well, adapting their menus and investing in advanced technology, including sophisticated web-based ordering systems, to boost efficiency and improve profit margins
Sources: IBISWorld 2017
Pizza Advertising Opportunities in Rural America
Pizza restaurants are targeting more Hispanics with promotions as research shows that demographic group is more likely than the average consumer to opt for pizza as a fast food meal
Independent pizza shops continue to struggle – Their sales dropped 5% while pizza chain sales increased by the same amount – Experts believe independent shops must deploy online ordering capability to recover lost sales
Consumers are averaging 4 pizza occasions a month, a trend which bodes well for restaurants
Pizza restaurants can increase business by promoting unique toppings which are now important to 39% of consumers
The pizza chain market is getting crowded so operators are looking for ways to differentiate their products – Pizza specialists are offering lunch combos, customization, and individual servings
Sources: Spring 2017 NHCS Adult Study 12-month
How Do I Find My Best Rural Pizza Customers?
Our Consumer Analytics team are highly skilled in the science of micromarketing. What does that mean? Micromarketing is another way of saying that we develop a marketing strategy in which your direct mail advertising efforts are focused on a small group of highly-targeted customers. This gives your message the best chance possible to be seen by the right customers at the right time.
Direct Mail’s Influence on Pizza Customers
- 79% of pizza lovers responded to an ad received in the mailbox in the last 12 months
- Direct mail drives online activity and sales and this could potentially translate into online pizza orders – in fact, there is a 28% likelihood that direct mail will prompt online shopping
- 38.7% of adults ages 22-24 read direct mail immediately and 38.2% of adults ages 25-34 read immediately
- According to the DMA, direct mail response rates are on the rise – last year average response rates were at 5.3% – a 43% increase from the previous year and the best it’s been in the last 13 years
Source: AdMall 2017, AudienceSCAN 2017, 2017 DMA Response Rate Report