Introduction
A Fortune 500 quick-service restaurant (QSR), known for its iconic offerings and strong customer loyalty, set out to modernize its digital strategy in response to evolving customer behaviors. With mobile orders rising and dining routines evolving, the brand needed smarter ways to re-engage customers and grow average order value with relevant, well-timed experiences. The marketing technology team adopted mParticle’s predictive insights and real-time analytics to better engage customers, improve efficiency, and accelerate business outcomes.
The challenge: Overcoming data silos and manual inefficiencies
Delivering timely, relevant messages to app users was essential for driving retention and growth, but several bottlenecks were holding the team back:
- Third-party dependency: Identifying at-risk customers—those less likely to return within a given timeframe—required external agency support, adding cost, delay, and complexity.
- Lagging insights: Without real-time data, the team missed key engagement windows.
- Generic targeting: One-size-fits-all campaigns overlooked individual behaviors and preferences.
A Product Lead for Marketing Technologies for a Fortune 500 QSR said,
We need to stop relying on outside help. Full data ownership--and faster decision-making--were a non-negotiable.
The solution: Predictive intelligence for personalization at scale
With mParticle’s Predictions and Analytics, the team took control of customer data, enabling smarter decisions and faster execution across campaigns.
Identify and re-engage lapsed guests
The QSR used real-time behavioral signals to identify lapsed customers—those unlikely to return soon—and re-engage them with timely, personalized offers, eliminating agency delays and manual churn modeling.
Drive premium conversions with predictive insights
Predictive Attributes helped pinpoint customers most likely to upgrade from a standard item to a more premium combo. With targeting accuracy within 1% of actual outcomes, the team delivered tailored offers to high-propensity segments and saw meaningful lift.
Time each engagement to maximize impact
Propensity scoring determined the ideal time to engage each individual based on their unique behavior. For example, the system identified that many tradespeople took meal breaks around 9 AM, earlier than the traditional lunch window. This enabled precisely timed offers that aligned to each customer’s routine.
Adjust campaigns in real time
Through mParticle’s end-to-end audience activation, the team was able to:
- Dynamically adjust campaigns based on real-time behaviors
- Instantly optimize promotions instead of waiting weeks for analysis
- Run multivariate tests to refine engagement strategies
Troubleshoot fast, improve faster
Analytics revealed hidden issues in the customer journey, such as users being inadvertently signed out of the app. This enabled the team to resolve problems quickly and protect the user experience.
Results: Data-driven gains in engagement and retention
With mParticle powering real-time targeting and personalization, the QSR achieved measurable improvements across conversion, retention, and execution:
- 30% lift in conversions from personalized, timely offers: Tailored engagement based on behavioral signals led to significantly higher response rates.
- 4.4× more at-risk customers identified: Predictive modeling surfaced churn-prone users missed by manual, heuristic-based segmentation, enabling earlier and more targeted retention efforts.
- 99% accuracy predicting upsell conversions: AI-powered scoring pinpointed users likely to upgrade, tracking within 1% of actual purchase behavior over 14 days.
- Faster execution and greater autonomy: Centralized insights and automated activation helped the team move quickly and independently, reducing reliance on third-party resources.
A Product Lead for Marketing Technologies at a Fortune 500 QSR said,
Predictive insights didn’t just improve campaign performance—they gave us control. We’re no longer waiting for someone else to tell us what to do. Now, we act faster, work smarter, and deliver better results.
Looking ahead: Scaling AI decisioning
Building on early success, the QSR is now expanding its use of mParticle’s Next Best Action to automate real-time decisioning. By eliminating manual experimentation, the team can assign the right offer to the right customer with greater speed, precision, and relevance.
A Product Lead for Marketing Technologies at a Fortune 500 QSR said,
Next Best Action will streamline how we act on insights, and make personalization even more effective.
With predictive intelligence as the backbone of its digital strategy, the brand is scaling smarter engagement, faster execution, and more durable customer growth in a highly competitive market.
