NPD Group released new research on the effectiveness of online marketing. Its CREST study finds 6% of restaurant visits (926 million visits) were influenced by online marketing during the first quarter of 2012,. Those online-influenced visits accounted for 8% of restaurant spending.
Not surprisingly, what had the most impact were pocketbook-targeted applications: deals and special offers accounted for 37% of visits that had been influenced by online marketing. Menu details were the second most effective application at 30% of influenced visits. Nutrition information? It doesn’t drive customer traffic.
NPD also says that 26% of restaurant visits influenced by online marketing were first-time visits, which is double the “new buyer incidence” for all restaurants overall. Further, NPD reports that consumers who use online marketing have higher revisit intentions than diners who don’t.
Most visits influenced by online marketing are to QSRs, casual dining gets a disproportionate share, according to NPD’s CREST survey. It finds that while casual dining accounts for one in 10 restaurant visits, it is the destination for one in six visits prodded by online marketing.
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