Thanx hosted its first-ever Loyalty UNconference this April in Scottsdale, Arizona. It wasn’t a trade show. It wasn’t a panel-heavy conference. It was something completely different… and it worked.

Rather than handing a mic to a single keynote speaker, we invited the best minds in restaurant marketing, digital, and operations to sit around one U-shaped table. The conversations were raw, tactical, and focused on the same thing: how to drive business outcomes through loyalty.

Loyalty Is Not a Department. It’s a Strategy.

Zach Goldstein, CEO and Founder of Thanx, opened the event by reframing loyalty not as a program, but as a lever for revenue growth. “If loyalty isn’t driving revenue, it’s not a loyalty program,” he told the room. “It’s a money pit.“

That message set the tone for the conversations that followed.

The Data That Matters (And the Vanity Metrics That Don’t)

Emily Rugaber, VP of Marketing and Partnerships at Thanx, walked attendees through a loyalty measurement framework that challenged the status quo. She focused on three core metrics:

• Capture rate: What % of spend is tied to identifiable guests?
• Activation rate: What % of loyalty members are actually transacting regularly?
• Average Monthly Value (AMV): Are loyalty members worth more over time?

These metrics resonated. Multiple operators spoke up about pressure to report on app downloads or list growth. The consensus: those numbers can be gamed. Revenue can’t.

Proof, Not Promises: Real Results from Operators

Across sessions, operators shared hard proof that modern loyalty works when done right.

• Velvet Taco saw a 29% increase in guest frequency since 2023 by embedding loyalty into every campaign. Loyalty isn’t siloed — it’s baked into brand marketing.
• DIG moved away from discounting and used early access to build urgency. The result: higher digital ordering volume and improved engagement across first-party channels.
• Sonny’s BBQ tiered its loyalty program using sauce names. Their top-tier members now visit 10x more and spend 44% more per visit than baseline customers.
• Eureka! launched a parallel Whiskey Club to deepen loyalty with high-LTV guests. These members visit 5x more and spend 3x more than regular loyalty users.
• Ruby’s Diner modernized its program without losing brand authenticity. The relaunch led to a 21% increase in monthly customer value, a 6% lift in frequency, and a 14% boost in average check.
• Hopdoddy introduced Legend-tier perks like early access to the Burger of the Month. The result: top-tier guests now visit 2x more often than the average diner.

Loyalty is Cross-Functional. So Were the Conversations.

Anita Walker (Flower Child) and Tom Lockwood (Hopdoddy) shared how their teams build loyalty execution into operations—training managers to table-touch high-value guests and experiment with surprise-and-delight moments.

Kim Myers (Ruby’s) spoke about staying true to brand values, especially when relaunching loyalty in a legacy brand. Her advice? Nostalgia builds trust. Discounts erode it.

Brooke Perry (Velvet Taco) emphasized the power of exclusivity. She’s over “double points days.” Instead, her team offers rare rewards to a small group of top-tier fans. It creates buzz and it protects margins.

Using AI Like a Marketer, Not a Magician

In one standout session, Thanx Chief Data Officer Aaron Newton explored AI’s real utility—not as a magic wand, but as a time-saver.

Marketers talked openly about shifting from executors to editors. Thanx previewed how AI might assist with campaign planning, segmentation, and board reporting. For many attendees, it was the first conversation about AI that felt practical.

Community Over Competition

Attendees weren’t there to posture. They came to build. Throughout the event, operators jotted notes, passed around metrics, and shared what worked (and what didn’t) in their brands.

As one participant said, “I expected to get some ideas. I didn’t expect to fill five pages.”

What’s Next

The next Loyalty UNconference will take place November 12–13, 2025, in Las Vegas. It will immediately follow the Restaurant Finance & Development Conference. Attendance is limited and invite-only.

If you’re ready to stop talking about loyalty as a buzzword—and start treating it like a P&L driver—this is where you need to be.

Learn more and apply to attend here.