Inside Jollibee, City Barbecue, and Blaze Pizza’s Personalization Strategies

From automated loyalty check-ins to multi-channel ordering experiences, three restaurant brands shared how they’re using technology to build lasting customer relationships at MURTEC 2025, Experience Matters.

Anna Wolfe

3/17/2025

Chris Demery, Blaze Pizza; Bryan Myers, City Barbecue and Kevin Bentley, Jollibee Foods, shared how they’re harnessing data, enhancing guest engagement, and building loyalty through personalization.

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What does personalizing the guest experience mean for a restaurant brand?

Ask three restaurant operators, and you’ll get three distinct yet complementary answers. Personalization today is about more than just discounts—it’s about creating memorable interactions that keep guests engaged and coming back.

At MURTEC 2025, Experience Matters, three top restaurant technology leaders shared how they’re harnessing data, enhancing guest engagement, and building loyalty through personalization in the MURTEC University session, Personalizing the Guest Experience.

Featuring:

Kevin Bentley, Head of Technology NA, Jollibee Foods Corp.
Bryan Myers, CIO, City Barbecue
Chris Demery, CTO, Blaze Pizza

Defining Personalization Across Brands

For Jollibee Foods, personalization is about understanding guests on an individual level. “It's not just about saving a dollar here and there,” said Kevin Bentley. “It’s about the overall experience that keeps guests engaged with our brand.”

At City Barbecue, personalization varies by channel. “Online, 80% of our transactions are loyalty transactions, allowing us to deliver personalized offers. But in the drive-thru, where only 4% of guests check in, we needed a different approach,” explained Bryan Myers. To tackle this, City Barbecue recently partnered with Flybuy Networks to enable automatic check-ins via Bluetooth for loyalty members who have opted in.

Blaze Pizza realized that while it offered multiple ordering channels for off-premises guests, in-store guests, who wait 8 to 12 minutes for their order. were offered one ordering experience. “We needed to enhance that first phase of the guest journey,” said Chris Demery. The brand introduced kiosks and QR codes alongside traditional counter service to give guests more control over their ordering experience.

Technology-Driven Loyalty & Engagement

City Barbecue is leveraging a Customer Data Platform (CDP) to understand and engage first-time guests. Data showed that first-time visitors who try the pork sandwich have the highest return rates—insight that’s now shaping their marketing strategies.

Jollibee, operating under 19 banners globally, is using data tokenization to create 360-degree customer profiles. Bentley emphasized that loyalty isn’t just about rewards—it’s about delivering VIP-level experiences, much like Delta Airlines’ elite frequent flyer perks.

City Barbecue also found that getting a first-time guest to sign up for loyalty during their first visit significantly boosts retention—60% return within 90 days versus 20% otherwise. To streamline sign-ups, the brand is exploring customer-facing screens for quick opt-ins.

Preventing Loyalty Program Fraud

An audience Q&A session surfaced a hot topic: combatting loyalty fraud. The panelists shared best practices, including:

Requiring a purchase for free rewards (e.g., a $15 minimum spend to redeem a free product).
Using AI-powered fraud detection to flag suspicious activity, such as duplicate accounts.
Balancing security with guest experience—overly aggressive fraud prevention can alienate legitimate customers. Assume 95% of sign-ups are legitimate, said Meyers.

These are just a few of the highlights from the 20+ educational sessions at MURTEC 2025: Experience Matters. Stay tuned for more recaps on hospitalitytech.com and featured in HT Alert.