The restaurant industry entered 2025 with a retention problem — and the data made that impossible to ignore.

The DataDelivers 2025 Restaurant Guest Engagement Report analyzed guest behavior across more than 2,000 restaurant locations, 180 million transactions, and 68 million unique guests, revealing a clear and urgent reality: guest engagement is declining — but it is also highly addressable when restaurants take the right approach.

As we prepare for the upcoming 2026 Restaurant Guest Engagement Report, it’s worth revisiting the most critical lessons from last year — not as a recap, but as a reset for what restaurant brands must prioritize next.

Guest Retention Was Already Slipping — Before 2025 Began

One of the most concerning findings from the report was how disadvantaged restaurants were entering 2024.

Only 17% of guests who visited in 2023 returned in 2024, matching the prior year’s retention rate — but masking a deeper issue: the total pool of engaged guests continues to shrink each year.

Out of 27 million active guests in 2023, just 4.1 million returned in 2024. Meanwhile, 41 million guests were already inactive heading into the year, having not visited in over 12 months.

The takeaway: maintaining flat retention rates is no longer enough when the active guest base keeps declining.

1:1 Marketing Was the Single Biggest Differentiator

The most definitive finding in the 2025 report was the impact of 1:1 marketing.

Guests who received direct, personalized marketing were:

• 4× more likely to return (34% retention vs. 8%)
• Responsible for 5× more sales per 1,000 guests
• Driving 500% more realized sales than guests receiving non-personalized or no outreach

Less than 1 out of 10 guests returned when they did not receive 1:1 marketing — a stark contrast that reinforced a clear conclusion: broad, non-personalized marketing is no longer effective on its own.

New Guest Retention and Win-Back Proved Engagement Is Fixable

The report also showed that engagement challenges aren’t permanent — they’re actionable.

• New guest retention improved by 300% when first-time guests received personalized outreach
• 92% of first-time guests who did not receive targeted marketing never returned
• Among lapsed guests, win-back rates jumped 550% when 1:1 marketing was used (11% vs. 2%)

The takeaway: guests don’t disappear — they disengage. And when brands reintroduce relevance, many return.

Loyalty Data Alone Doesn’t Tell the Full Story

Another critical reminder from the 2025 report: loyalty programs capture only a fraction of total guests.

While loyalty members often appear highly engaged, they represent a small, skewed segment of the overall audience. Relying solely on loyalty data can lead brands to overestimate engagement and miss opportunities with millions of untracked guests.

The report emphasized the importance of identifying and marketing to known guests beyond loyalty, using connected purchase data and unique guest identifiers.

Why This Matters Even More Going Into 2026

The 2025 report didn’t just highlight what happened — it marked a turning point.

Rising menu prices, shifting guest expectations, and shrinking engagement pools have made direct, data-driven guest relationships non-negotiable. As the industry continues to evolve, the gap between brands using 1:1 marketing and those relying on traditional tactics will only widen.

The upcoming 2026 Restaurant Guest Engagement Report builds on this foundation — revealing how these trends have progressed, where engagement is accelerating, and what restaurant brands must do next to compete.

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