Papa Johns lures customers with new loyalty programme
The reward system covers more products and requires a lower minimum purchase.
Papa Johns has launched a reward system in the UK to lure more customers amidst a looming cost of living crisis that threatens market growth.
Called Papa Rewards, the programme offers customers a streamlined way to earn points and redeem them with Papa Dough, its flexible discount system. Acting as in-store credit, Papa Dough, the heart of the new scheme, can be applied to all online or app orders at checkout, to give customers an instant discount on all menu items. Before, the loyalty programme was limited to certain items and conditions; for instance, to earn a large pizza, customers would have been required to cumulatively spend at least $126 (£100).
Robert Beattie, Vice President for International Technology at Papa Johns, said this is a direct response to demand for instant gratification.
“People want clearer, more immediate value from their reward programme,” he told QSR Media in a Zoom interview. “Historically, our reward programme was more geared towards big spenders, people who generally want to save up their points. But now, we see sentiments have changed. They want to see tangible benefits more quickly.”
Nine of 10 British adults have signed up for at least one loyalty programme, with food and beverage coming in second after supermarkets as the most popular category, according to a survey by market research firm YouGov Plc in July.
Beattie said most of the feedback they got from customers was about wanting easier access to rewards and more products that they can use their points on.
“Most people don’t order pizza every week,” he said in a Zoom interview. “So with the typical frequency, they often just opt out of the programme and do guest checkouts, simply because the core proposition isn’t good enough. So what we did was give customers control over their rewards.”
Papa Johns hopes to attract and retain more customers with their latest reward programme.
UK inflation quickened to 3% in January from 2.5% a month earlier, driven by rising food prices, air fares and an increase in private school fees, the Office for National Statistics reported on 19 February. Price increases were the fastest in 10 months.
Papa Johns’ focus remains on optimising pricing strategies and product offerings, Beattie said, adding that they see machine learning and artificial intelligence as critical tools to analyse customer behaviour, streamline operations, and adjust pricing dynamically.
"We're certainly doing a lot more of that in terms of how we optimise our menu and product range, as well as the customer experience,” he said. “By removing friction from the ordering process and making operations more efficient, we can pass on savings through more competitive pricing.”
This technological investment also aims to support franchisees by improving store-level efficiency. Faster preparation and delivery times not only enhance the customer experience with hotter, fresher pizzas but also help franchisees remain profitable in the face of rising labour, energy, and delivery costs.
Beattie noted that while inflationary pressures persist, the company is confident in its core differentiator — high-quality pizzas made with fresh ingredients.
“We don’t foresee ourselves getting involved in an aggressive price war. Our product speaks for itself, and customers value the quality we deliver,” he said.
