QSR Loyalty Index Rating Measures Customers' Actions

By: Multi-Unit Franchisee
Published: October 11th, 2017

The QSR segment is crowded, competitive, and consumers can be fickle. But some brands are doing better than others when it comes to catering to customer loyalty and building a healthy bottom line. Foursquare, the location intelligence company, has released its first annual "QSR Loyalty Index" report offering an assessment of the top 50 QSR chains in the United States ranked according to customer loyalty.

Foursquare's new report assesses a number of behaviors and inputs, and organizes the data into a single metric that can be compared across chains and QSR categories. Their analysis looked at market penetration, visit frequency, share of wallet, and fanaticism to determine which QSR brands have the most loyal visitors.

Not surprisingly, Starbucks, McDonald's, and Dunkin' Donuts top the loyalty list. Of course, these brands are known for loyalty rewards programs (Starbucks' Gold Member rewards), convenience, nationwide presence, and dependable food quality and service both nationally and abroad. Rounding out the top 10 are Tim Hortons, Chick-fil-a, Whataburger, Sonic Drive-in, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Taco Bell, and Panera Bread.

Some notable findings of the study include:

• Bigger is not necessarily better. Regional brands like Whataburger and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf beat out much larger national competitors. These brands have developed a loyal fanbase in their respective regions, luring customers back into stores with their own great service and loyalty rewards programs.
• Breakfast drives frequency. The report's data shows that customers visit coffee shops more than any other type of restaurant. QSR food chains are taking notice and expanding the morning menu, allowing customers the opportunity to come in for a morning coffee and something to eat. Brands like Starbucks, McDonald's, Dunkin Donuts, Tim Hortons, Panera, and Taco Bell have all expanded their morning offerings to maximize their share of the market.
• Limited correlation between healthy food and loyalty. Even though consumers say they are more health conscious these days that doesn't necessarily mean they put their money where their mouths are. Many of the top rated brands offer less-than-healthy options such as burgers, tacos and chicken.

You can download the complete report here: https://enterprise.foursquare.com/qsr-loyalty-index-2017

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