What Is Royal Perks? Burger King Customers Can Get Free Food With Rewards Program

Burger King is launching its new Royal Perks rewards program nationwide in an effort to boost sales and reward customers for staying loyal to the brand.

Two-thirds of its restaurants are on track to offer rewards to customers by October. The program is already active for orders placed through the Burger King app and was first tested in certain markets this past February. Users can sign up for the loyalty program via text, QR code, or shortcode.

The program will offer “10 crowns” for every $1 spent and will allow customers to enjoy free perks such as upsized fries and drinks. Patrons can also redeem points for free food items across the menu.

“Customers are looking forward to getting items and menus that are personal to them and more useful to them,” Ellie Doty, chief marketing officer of Burger King, told Nation’s Restaurant News. “They expect to be rewarded today for their loyalty to the brand and frequency of use. I think that is true more so today than even two years ago because customers are looking for brands to understand what their past behaviors were to make their experiences moving forward even better.”

“We want to make sure that our loyalty program is as easy as it can possibly be and actually improves our guest experience versus creates a new step for them,” Doty added.

The pandemic greatly accelerated online orders as it encouraged Burger King’s competitors, McDonald’s and Wendy’s, to roll out their own rewards programs. According to market researcher NPD Group via CNBC, digital orders have surged 124% in the year ending in March.

“I think especially as we’ve all gone through the pandemic, we know that a lot of digital-enabled behaviors really ramped up very quickly, and we think this is one that we believe will stay,” Doty told the outlet. “Guests are really seeing the ease and benefits of being a part of loyalty programs.”

In the last quarter, Burger King reported a 13% increase in U.S. same-store sales, compared to a 9.9% drop in U.S. same-store sales one year ago. McDonald’s and Wendy’s have seen stronger numbers in recent months as all three burger chains look to expand their businesses after the lockdowns.

“We haven’t put enough focus on the few priorities that will have the biggest impact, and we haven’t moved fast enough on these priorities to accelerate the business performance to the level we know we’re capable of,” said Restaraunt Brands CEO Jose Cil.

Shares of Restaurant Brands International, Burger King's parent company, have risen 5% this year, giving it a value of $29.9 billion.