The ubiquity of mobile devices has dramatically changed the landscape for restaurant advertising, particularly for Quick-Serve & Fast Casual. No longer constrained to the desktop, digital advertisers have embraced the possibilities of mobile data and continue to do so—digital ad spend for QSR & Fast Casual increased by over 1,000% between 2014 and 2018.

Foot traffic measurement offers a unique way to optimize that investment, as visitation provides stronger signal for restaurant sales than clicks. Additionally, it can be used to measure incrementality, de-duplicate conversions across an entire media plan, and serve as a common currency across different channels.

In this paper, we explore unexpected and useful insight that can be used to guide advertising strategy, gained through nuanced location analysis:

• QSR marketers do better than average in terms of lift & efficiency
• Audio & Social apps are the most cost-effective channels for influencing QSR customers
• QSR & Fast Casual marketers spend efficiently on TV
• Tactical incrementality is strongest for younger & less loyal customers