Robust guest insights from Bikky and refined, data-driven marketing enhance City BBQ's acquisition and retention efforts
NEW YORK, Feb. 05, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Bikky, a customer data platform built exclusively for multi-unit restaurants, announced a partnership with City BBQ, an award-winning fast-casual brand that's smoking and serving up tastes of the nation.
Founded in 1999 in Columbus OH, City BBQ has found steady success showcasing the breadth and depth of BBQ found across the country. The brand has been recognized by everyone from the Kansas City BBQ Association to Men's Journal for their outstanding cuisine, most recently winning Nation's Restaurant News Barbeque Showdown.
With ambitious plans to expand nationwide-something few BBQ chains have done before-City BBQ wanted rich guest insights to guide their growth and ensure a best-in-class experience. Having worked with a restaurant CDP in a previous role, City BBQ's Chief Brand Officer, Annica Conrad, directed the team to Bikky.
"I knew Bikky would be instrumental in helping us achieve our goals,” said Conrad. "Their robust data brings a whole new level of sophistication to our marketing, menu, and operations.”
With this partnership, City BBQ can track and analyze the long-term behavior of their guests, empowering the brand to measure promotions, campaigns, and menu changes with precision. The team recently used Bikky to gauge the impact of a month-long acquisition campaign in honor of their 25th anniversary. They offered every member in their loyalty program, and anyone who joined within the month, a 25 cent pulled pork sandwich.
While redemption was extremely high, the brand wondered if new members were simply one-time value seekers or if they would return. Data from Bikky revealed a significantly higher return rate among new members compared to general visitors. "Before Bikky the promotion would have been a one and done because we had no way to understand the long-term impact or if it was worth repeating,” said Conrad. "With Bikky, we know for certain that it was an effective acquisition offer and we'll likely run it again in the future.”
City BBQ also finds tremendous value in Bikky's segmentation capabilities, which allow for highly targeted communication and engagement. The team is now segmenting guests by location to benchmark return rates and menu preferences at each of their restaurants, and have experimented with personalized ads featuring guests' most frequent orders. "We tested serving guests ads that feature their favorite products, and we've seen much better return rates on those particular ads.”
Outside of marketing, Bikky is helping the brand optimize their menu and operations based on guest preferences. City BBQ had always known that their macaroni and cheese was a top-selling product, but Bikky's insights showed that it's the most popular item among new guests. "We didn't realize how many new guests ate mac and cheese,” said Conrad. "Now we're working hard to optimize that product because if it's the first thing a new guest eats, it has to be the best it can be.” The team is keeping a close eye on which menu items rise to the top and which drive repeat visits so they're always on top of guests' needs.
Like many brands, City BBQ's primary focus for 2025 is increasing traffic. They're certain Bikky's guest insights give them a serious advantage as they scale. "With Bikky we're continually refining our loyalty program so it continues to grow traffic,” said Conrad. "We believe that understanding the behavior of new guests and increasing personalization through segmentation is the best way to deliver on our goals.”
"We're excited to support City BBQ as they scale to become the premier BBQ-focused fast casual brand in the nation,” says Abhinav Kapur, co-founder and CEO of Bikky. "They're a clear leader in their category, and now at the forefront of how restaurant brands use customer data to grow traffic, frequency, and sales.”
The fastest-growing, most innovative restaurants in today's competitive market look to Bikky for insight into how their decisions impact key metrics like frequency and traffic. City BBQ joins a growing roster of brands, including Robeks, WaBa Grill, and Dave's Hot Chicken, which rely on Bikky's groundbreaking guest data and analytics platform.
About City BBQ
City Barbeque has been proudly serving the flavor of America since opening its first joint in 1999 and has consistently been recognized as a top BBQ spot, most recently winning the Nation's Restaurant News BBQ Showdown. The company is also celebrated as an outstanding employer and community partner, hosting thousands of fundraisers for local charities and nonprofits. Today, teams at more than 70 locations smoke meats on site over local hickory wood and prepare homemade sides and desserts fresh every day. The growing fast-casual brand operates in ten states and counting, serving the city's best barbeque for dine-in, carryout, delivery, and catering.
For more information, visit City Barbeque at www.citybbq.com
About Bikky
Bikky is a customer data platform exclusively for multi-unit restaurant brands.
With Bikky, brands like Dave's Hot Chicken, Bojangles, and Robeks clearly understand how their marketing, menu, and operations impact guest traffic and frequency. By connecting with your entire tech stack-from POS to loyalty-Bikky delivers insight on up to 90% of your guest base, empowering you to make informed, fast decisions that drive incremental sales.
Bikky is based in New York City and has raised nearly $15 million in funding to date.
Contact:
Abhinav Kapur, Founder & CEO, Bikky
