Boston Pizza has always had a close relationship with local sports teams. For years, this relationship was nurtured at the restaurant level: teams would eat at their local Boston Pizza and managers would reward them for their loyalty. Each restaurant had a different program, a different set of rewards, and a different way of doing things. This made it difficult for Boston Pizza to grow its relationship with these local sports teams beyond the restaurant level. Plus, restaurant managers had to deal with the added stress of maintaining their individual in-store programs.

“Team HQ” is a new national program that rewards local sports teams for eating at Boston Pizza. It’s a key program within Boston Pizza’s “MyBP” program that drives in-store loyalty. It addresses the pain points associated with the “old way” of doing things and gives Boston Pizza the ability to connect with local sports teams on a deeper level. How? For starters, agency ICF Olson created a new website – as well as apps for iOS and Android devices. Now, “Team HQ” members can get access to everything they need, wherever they are. This not only encourages a deeper level of engagement, but it also delivers a consistent experience for all members.

Boston Pizza’s agency, ICF Olson, also created a single set of rewards. Every time a team member submits a receipt from Boston Pizza, the team collects 10% of the spend. Receipts can be submitted, quickly and easily, on the site and the apps. Team members can eat at any Boston Pizza location to earn rewards (something that wasn’t possible before, when individual restaurants ran the program). To increase engagement, incentives for good play were developed. The top performers on each team receive special badges, like “MVP” and “Online Hero.” Even the benchwarmers get recognition (there’s a special badge for them too). Teams can also go head-to-head against other teams at their local Boston Pizza and claim the top spot on the restaurant’s leaderboard – adding a layer of competition to the program, and driving additional sales. Plus, every member of Team HQ gets access to the benefits of MyBP; in particular, exclusive offers and a faster, easier online ordering experience.

Since the program launched nationally on September 8, 2017, it has quickly become a success, with 3,600 teams having signed up -- with 10,000 team members. In all, $2.25MM worth of receipts were submitted and $83,000 worth of rewards were redeemed.

Members aren’t just participating in the program; they’re engaging in it as well. Emails have a 46.7% open rate. Also, 99% of all team captains — and 83% of all members — have opted in to receive emails. Overall, teams are spending more at Boston Pizza than they did before “Team HQ,” there is less work for restaurant managers, and customers have a great reason to keep coming back.