After A Successful Pilot, The Cheesecake Factory Is Launching A Rewards Program

The Cheesecake Factory is known for its staggeringly large menu of food and decadent, delicious cheesecake in every flavor imaginable. A staple of the American mall, the company has been a master at giving its customers what they want — indulgent meals, brown bread, and delicious cake. Now it is offering something else that's sweet — a rewards program for loyal fans of The Cheesecake Factory.

The company announced that it would be rolling out the program nationally sometime midyear after running two previously successful pilots. While some rewards programs use a point-based system or look closely at dollars spent, The Cheesecake Factory is taking a different approach. On the most recent quarterly earnings call, the company's president, David Gordon, said the program's goal was to "surprise and delight" customers via perks that include a free slice of cake on their birthday and access to reservations to dine at its restaurants. Anyone who has had to wait for a table at the popular restaurant with an empty stomach will agree; those perks sound good.

The new rewards program may come with some sweet perks for cheesecake lovers all over, but the company believes the program will give them something important, too: Data. The Cheesecake Factory plans to use the data from how customers use the card to better foster engagement with them and increase incremental sales. There are indications it will work, too. The company ran two limited pilot programs in Houston and Chicago last year with positive results.

The rewards program led to higher rates of customer acquisition, as well as increased customer activity. The Cheesecake Factory expects those results will be repeated with the larger introduction of Cheesecake Rewards and that the program will run without impacting the bottom line. On that same earnings call (via Restaurant Dive), David Gordon said, "Our goal is to not have this program impact restaurant-level margins." The Cheesecake Factory hopes easy reservations and complementary birthday cheesecake are the ticket to sweeter sales numbers, and honestly, who's going to turn down free cake?