Breaking the promotion cycle

For years, casual dining has been caught in a loop of limited-time offers, coupons, and price-based promotions designed to hold onto traffic. These short-term tactics might fill seats in the moment, but over time they train customers to wait for deals and erode brand equity — the exact opposite of what premium casual dining brands want to achieve. 

Bloomin’ Brands is deliberately breaking that cycle. Leadership has made clear that the company’s path forward centers on simplification, operational efficiency, and everyday value — not constant promotional churn. 

But that shift creates a new challenge: How do you deliver value to guests who need it without sacrificing margin or cheapening your brand? 

The answer is a smarter, more strategic lever: personalized cash-back offers powered by Upside.

The problem with blanket discounting

Frequent promotions come at a real cost. They create brand fatigue, compress margins, and dilute the perception of quality. Every new LTO means operational complexity — new menus, revised staff scripts, and shifting price points that distract from what matters most: consistent guest experience.

For brands like Bloomin’ which are repositioning around premium dining and streamlined operations, frequent discounting sends the wrong message. 

Yet traffic growth is still critical. The key is to deliver value precisely where it’s needed, without retraining guests to expect lower prices across the board.

The value of cash back — and how it’s different

Cash back reframes value in a way that protects brand integrity and preserves pricing power. Instead of lowering the check at the register, Upside’s model rewards guests after the fact for behaviors you want to encourage. 

• Guests pay full price, keeping menu integrity and perceived quality intact.
• The reward is framed as a bonus for smart behavior, not a markdown. 
• It feels exclusive and appreciative, not promotional or desperate. 

For the guests, it’s a reward loop that feels personal. For the brand, it’s a margin-safe way to drive behavior change that aligns perfectly with Bloomin’s shift toward everyday value and long-term brand strength.

Why cash back works better

It’s a bonus, not a bargain: Guests see cash back as found money, not a discount — creating loyalty instead of eroding value.

Loyalty through loss aversion: Knowing they could earn cash back keeps diners choosing your brand, since missing out feels like a loss.

Habit loops drive repeat visits: Each reward reinforces the behavior, turning infrequent guests into regulars and driving sustainable traffic growth.

Strategic fit: personalized, targeted, and proven

Upside’s cash-back model is precision-built for Bloomin’s business priorities. Offers adjust to exactly the amount it will take to nudge each customer. And every campaign is measured via test-versus-control analysis, quantifying incremental lift in traffic, spend, and ROI.

Finance teams get transparent, verifiable reporting; operators see the benefit in the form of incremental revenue and profit, with zero added operational lift.

With Upside, Bloomin’ can drive traffic without sacrificing what matters most: quality, simplicity, and return on every dollar spent. In a market where brand integrity and profitability are non-negotiable, cash back delivers value that lasts — rewarding guests, protecting margins, and giving leadership the measurable ROI they demand.

Ready to learn more? Reach out.