Nearly 86% of Australians are enrolled in at least one loyalty program, yet only half actively use them. This gap signals a deeper problem: the way rewards are earned, stored and delivered is broken.

Why Most Loyalty Programs Fall Short

Paper cards get lost, points confuse people, and third-party apps take customers away from your brand. Rewards end up forgotten or ignored because they aren’t built into the dining experience. 

Many loyalty programs that live in Apple Wallet suffer from low visibility and usability. Guests must first download a merchant’s app, manually add the pass, and remember to present it at checkout. Any break in that chain means the reward goes unused. In Australia, well-known systems like Flybuys and Everyday Rewards offer Wallet integration, but users still must activate offers through the app and scan each time. There is no seamless “tap and go” flow. This friction leads to wasted loyalty opportunities.

So while signing up is tempting and many diners do it, they end up not using the rewards at all. This means lost revenue and retention for you. 

That’s why you must fix your broken loyalty program.

Your Restaurant’s Own Digital Wallet

How do you not let rewards be forgotten? You weave them into the customer’s ordering and payment journey. When they are visible, easy to understand and tempting to redeem, they guarantee active usage. And by extension, sustained loyalty.

Loyalty isn’t just an aspiration - it is measured in increased visit frequency, average order values, and overall revenue. Getting this right matters. 

The way to achieve this is a branded native wallet. A branded native wallet is your restaurant’s own digital wallet inside your digital ordering platform - like the powerful combination of Liven OrderUp and Magic App. It is part of the online ordering flow and stores rewards, prepaid credit, and loyalty offers that customers earn whenever they order or pay. Because it is built into the same app they use to view menus, place orders, and make payments, it keeps rewards connected to your brand and always in front of the customer.

It delivers a personalised experience by showing balances in real time and sending targeted notifications or perks when they matter most, like after a meal or on birthdays. This makes loyalty effortless to use and always connected to your brand.

Rewards are no longer lost, confusing, or hidden in third-party apps. They stay in your Magic App, under your brand, ready to use every time a guest orders or pays.

What Makes It Better

• Real-Time
  Rewards appear instantly in the ordering journey. They are branded to your venue and visible at the exact moment guests are most engaged, making them easier to remember and more likely to be used.

• Frictionless
  Customers don’t need to download an app, carry a paper, or enter a code. Rewards are earned and redeemed automatically when they pay by card, QR, wallet, or kiosk. Everything runs in the background, with no extra steps for staff or guests.

• Programmable
  Instead of giving the same reward to everyone, you can set rules to shape behaviour. Offer extra rewards on quiet Mondays, bonus credit when customers spend over a set amount, or special perks for your VIPs.

• Brandollars
  Your own venue currency that feels like real money. Customers can earn, pre-purchase, or receive them in tiers, and redemption rates are over 80 per cent! Brandollars lock in future spend and encourage guests to commit more upfront.

• Brandollar Connect: Automatically rewards every customer at checkout, converting first-time guests into loyalty members and driving over 70% of them to return.

Done right, the best operators see a 15–25% revenue lift as a starting point - and more after that.

Branded wallets are the way to make this happen. What makes branded native wallets especially powerful is how simple they are to run day-to-day. By embedding loyalty directly into the customer experience, operators not only reduce friction but also gain a powerful channel for upselling, cross-selling, and building long-term affinity.

Restaurant owners should prioritise branded loyalty wallets that integrate rewards seamlessly into the dining journey where they matter most. Talk to Liven about making loyalty work for your venue.