The world of marketing has changed completely over the last few years. Today, restaurants need to get extra creative with their strategies if they want to truly connect with their customers. As the influence of social media grows higher and higher, it’s no secret that it’s become the most important platform for effective marketing right now.

There’s been a huge shift in consumer dynamics as millennials and gen Z have become the primary marketing segment, replacing baby boomers. Raised in the digital era, this set of young people has higher expectations when it comes to the content they consume. Naturally, it’s important to cater to their tastes when devising your marketing campaigns.

One of the most effective ways to connect with these customers is to come up with interactive content, which relies on active engagement from the target audience. Instead of simply scrolling through a blog post or passively watching an ad, customers can get involved in the process. And here’s where quiz-based marketing comes in-quizzes serve as incredibly useful tools in increasing customer engagement.

A&W, a famous American chain of restaurants based in Kentucky is the best example to highlight the magic of quiz-based marketing. Earlier in 2021, it signed five franchise agreements. Its sales also grew by 22% over just one quarter, marking an extremely impressive feat.

A huge chunk of this success can be traced back to just one marketing decision taken by this chain in September 2020. While mulling over the best ways to increase customer engagement, A&W decided to take a shot at a quiz-based approach.

Over time, this translated to the collection of first-hand information about their customers. It also helped with building customer loyalty. Today, the brand has tons of detailed data on customer profiles and preferences. And what’s next? The chain is well on its way to use this information to personalize marketing communications in the near future. This high level of engagement leads to creating a brand that resonates with customers.

As revealed by QSR Web in this article, A&W boasts a 92% rate of completion for its quizzes. Their most popular quiz titled “What kind of road tripper are you?” was completed by 96% of users and it also led to an 85% lead capture rate! These mind-boggling figures could hardly have been brought about with passive content.

Their Digital Manager, Spencer Barrett, revealed how quiz results can be useful- "For example, the majority of respondents said they prefer traveling with their significant other and their favorite part of the road trip is spending time with loved ones. We can utilize this data across multiple touch-points — from the content we post on our social channels to the types of coupons and discounts we offer in our restaurants…”

So, what is it exactly that makes marketing quizzes so effective? Let’s take a look:

Higher Interaction
Essentially, your customers get to have a two-way conversation with your brand. They participate in the marketing process and this feeling of inclusion is one that everyone loves. There’s also a certain kind of novelty in being able to actively play a role in the content that you’re taking in. While posting stories or pictures on Instagram and Facebook may be visually appealing, there’s lesser scope for customer participation with that kind of digital content.

Positive User Experience‍

Polls and quizzes are highly entertaining and pique one’s interest. They’re a fun way to pass the time and the enticing aspect of instant gratification works well in attracting customers too. After all, who isn’t tempted to take a personality test? There’s a momentary surge of endorphins once a customer finds out their quiz results, which makes them come back for more.

Data Capture

A marketing quiz that is tactfully structured can reveal customer traits effectively. And given that this is done through answering quirky questions, your customers won’t feel bored or as if they’re filling out a never-ending questionnaire. Depending on your audience’s responses, you can also get to understand your customers on a more emotional level. This first-party data can be used to create different marketing segments for your brand for sending out more tailored content.

More Clicks

Quizzes might be short and sweet, but they are great at helping you increase the average time spent by a customer on your website or application. The more quizzes you offer, the more clicks you can expect. In the long run, this strengthens your social media presence by a lot.

Pave the Way for More Content

With quizzes, you can keep the conversation going. On the basis of a quiz result, you can always suggest a particular blog post to your customer. Or, you could send a follow-up email for another quiz that might interest them. A single quiz can create room for much more interaction in the future.

Promotion

Whether you’re trying out a new menu or simply introducing a couple of seasonal beverages, quizzes can be used to engage and inform customers in a more light-hearted and fun way. It definitely beats using traditional modes of product promotion.

More Shares

Quizzes are among the most highly shared types of content on Facebook. Such kind of content goes viral extremely quickly among millennials and Gen Z today, especially when the quiz subject is something quirky.

Well-designed quizzes tap into human curiosity, our desire for self-reflection, and overall competitiveness, which are all some of the most common emotions focused on by marketers and advertisers over decades.

Now that you know about the power of quiz-based marketing, it’s time to look into how you can leverage it to improve your current marketing strategy. With a combination of the right tools and timing, you can grow your profits in no time.