Slim Chickens now has a loyalty program app, online ordering platform

Fayetteville-based Slim Chickens has launched a mobile app, loyalty program and online ordering platform in all of its 67 stores nationwide, according to a press release from the company.

The fast-casual chain began testing the system in select corporate locations in mid-October and expanded the services to its corporate and franchise locations in 11 states throughout December.

“We’ve been around since 2003 and franchising since 2014, but in many ways, we are just getting started,” Greg Smart, co-founder and chief brand officer, said in the release. “We’re excited to provide another way for our loyal guests to get our food in an efficient and easy way. We are able to continue to leverage technology and create partnerships to meet our singular goal of giving fans of the brand access to our food in the ways that make the most sense to them.”

Close to half (47%) of Americans surveyed by Pew Research in 2016 said they would be comfortable with a retailer loyalty card that would save them money, in exchange for the store keeping track of their shopping habits and possibly sell this data to third parties.

One-third said it would not be acceptable and another 20% said it would depend on the circumstances of the offer, according to Pew.

A global Nielsen study the same year showed two-thirds of respondents from throughout the world said they belong to one or more brand loyalty rewards programs. Nearly three-quarters of loyalty program participants said they would choose a retailer that has a loyalty program over one that doesn’t if all other factors equal. At the same time, there is often a large gap between the number of programs in which shoppers are enrolled and the number in which they actively participate, according to the study.

More than 15,000 “Slimthusiasts” joined the loyalty program in December, according to Slim Chickens.

“Having online ordering capability is great, but the loyalty program is what our customers had been asking for and what is really going to move the needle for both our customers and for our franchisees,” Smart said. “With the loyalty program, we have clearer insights into our customer, like their birthdays, order frequency, how much they spend, their order history and more. Our ability to segment them into groups based on their behavior lets us market to them in a more personalized and beneficial way. Our 2018 goal is to have 100,000 ‘Slimthusiasts’ and to generate 2% of overall sales from online ordering through the website and Slim Chickens app.”

The Nielsen study shows nearly three-quarters of loyalty program participants said loyalty programs make them more likely to continue doing business with a company, and two-thirds said they shop more frequently and spend more at retailers with loyalty programs.

In fact, research published in 2016 by Forrester Consulting showed personalized marketing leads to a 15% average sales lift over three years.

Slim Chickens has publicly announced a goal to grow its nationwide footprint to 600 restaurants during the next decade.