Types of Customer Data and Why They’re Useful

A wave of data science disruption is making its way through one industry after another, and restaurants and bars are catching on. You have opportunities to collect information every day in places like your bar POS software, customer satisfaction surveys, social media, and even your employees. However, capturing detailed customer data can be a challenge since people have become so careful about protecting their privacy. People only share information with companies they trust, and technology is making it easier to gather data if you take the time to build trusting relationships first. 

In this blog, we’ll take a look at some of the most valuable types of customer data and how they can help you improve your business.

Buying Behavior

What do people buy and when? What are the most common ways that customers ask to modify their orders? Are certain items more popular with customers who spend a lot of money? When are your customers most likely to bring friends with them? You can get some of this information from the reports section of your POS software, for instance, if you use the Toast bar platform. You can use buying behavior data to optimize your menu and increase order amounts by identifying trends and using your pricing strategy, promotions and marketing to entice customers to indulge in what they already like.

What most platforms can’t tell you is which customers are coming back again and again—what their demographics are and what they like. Beta test results from 25 venues that tried SipScience in New York City showed that 23% of SIP members were still buying drinks with their app membership after 27 months. It turns out that our membership model and touchless payment were popular with this crowd, and as our pool of data grows, the bars and restaurants they visited will get to know exactly who their best customers are. 

Customer Satisfaction

Bars may have a hard time getting customers to fill out satisfaction surveys, but it’s important to understand how they feel about your ordering and checkout processes. Don’t forget that the average tip is an indicator of how satisfied customers are with their experience! Your POS may also have a function to turn on a quick optional rating question at checkout. Find out what customers like, what they don’t like, and what’s important to them throughout the customer experience. With this data, you can optimize your processes and train your staff on specific ways to strengthen customer relationships. You can also test what kinds of marketing messages get the best response to drive more business. 

Customer Contact Information

Even though they may be wary about giving away too much personal data, it is possible to gather your customers’ contact information for specific purposes. Texting and email campaigns can be effective if you’re crystal clear about why customers should share this information and what kinds of communication they can expect. With a database of phone numbers, email addresses or social media handles, you can strategically bring in customers when you need them. Whatever you do, make sure you understand any data collection laws that may apply. Or you can use SIP to learn about your customers without collecting any contact information at all!

Customer Demographics, Personality and Interests 

This type of data is a lot harder to get than the others. For a long time, venue owners have been limited to what you can observe in your space and at your competitors. Finding out demographic data and commonalities between your highest spending customers can give you a huge advantage on business development ideas, crafting an experience existing customers will love and building marketing campaigns and targeted ads. With the SIP POS extension, regular customers pay a subscription for discounted drinks and voluntarily give you valuable information about who they are and what they like. 

What Makes Your Customers Tick?

So what are you itching to know about your customers and how can you get that information? For deep demographic insights, SIP is a secure and reliable option that customers really enjoy engaging with. Book a demo to find out how to grow your bar or restaurant with SIP.

Article by Kelsey Hoff