LAS VEGAS, NV (May 7, 2024) -- The CMO Council has announced it is teaming with tech innovator uKnomi, fast casual restaurant marketers and industry domain experts, on ways AI-driven technology can uplift the consumer experience at 200,000 drive-thru lanes. Some six billion consumer visits are made to these locations annually.

The CMO Council, which represents more than 16,000 marketing leaders worldwide, and uKnomi, a marketing-in-moment technology integrator, are making the announcement in advance of the Food on Demand Conference. uKnomi will be presenting at the show which runs from May 8 to 10 at The Bellagio Hotel.

Some 60-70% of the $350 billion in quick service restaurant sales comes from drive-thru sector, which has multiplied as a result of Covid and the nation’s growing appetite for speedy, tasty, convenient, and affordable meals away from home.

An estimated 84 million people consume fast food daily, reports the CDC. There are now 2,000 unique foodservice chains offering 125 different cuisine types. This reflects a diverse consumer palette and the new multicultural mainstreaming of American households. 

The new thought leadership initiative – Adding Customer Glue to the Drive-Thru -- will map, model, specify and validate the deployment of a data-driven, AI-based QSR experience that uses digital innovation to personalize, expedite and reward every customer drive-thru visit. Those interested in contributing views and insights can find additional information here:  https://www.cmocouncil.org/thought-leadership/programs/adding-customer-glue-to-the-drive-thru

The uKnomi connected guest services platform is based on combining individualized customer identity recognition technology with AI automation and enriched customer data insight to deliver business building menu marketing and customer value in the moment of service. The end-goal being to heighten personalized human interaction, efficiency, satisfaction and value in what is perceived to be a time, commodity, and volume-driven impersonal service sector.

Marketing-in-the-moment service models, such as the uKnomi visual and digital ID system, measurably improve order fulfillment, transactional volume, operational efficiency, repeat visits and order value. At the same time, they mitigate some of the issues associated with highly trafficked drive-thru restaurant operations.

Mainstream deployment of digital AI-driven identity innovation in drive-thru lanes is predicted to:

• Automate individual customer knowledge gathering at scale


• Leverage personal meal preference and order history insights


• Prompt added-value, higher margin menu suggestions


• Acknowledge and reward frequent customer visits better than mobile apps


• Speed up accurate drive-thru service and build consumer brand preference

“The biggest draw of QSRs for customers is their speed and convenience, which means it should be no surprise that digitization has rapidly taken hold in this industry,” notes industry analyst AlphaSense. “Today, mobile ordering, app-based rewards, and ordering kiosks are all elements customers have come to expect when they visit QSRs. In 2024, digitization is expected to take over even more of the QSR infrastructure.”

About uKnomi
uKnomi is an AI-driven, “in-the-moment marketing” platform enabling chain restaurant operators to digitally transform how they recognize all customers in the drive-thru and empower service staff to deliver more personalized, predictable and rewarding experiences.  By understanding individual customer visit frequency and preferences, uKnomi empowers staff to provide a faster, more friendly and efficient service through personalized interactions, recommendations and perks that lead to greater visits, customers and sales. Learn more at www.uknomi.com.

About the CMO Council
The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council is dedicated to high-level knowledge exchange, thought leadership and personal relationship building among senior corporate marketing leaders and brand decision-makers across a wide-range of global industries. The CMO Council’s 16,000+ members control more than $1 trillion in aggregated annual marketing expenditures and run complex, distributed marketing and sales operations worldwide. In total, the CMO Council and its strategic interest communities include over 65,000 global marketing and sales executives in over 110 countries covering multiple industries, segments and markets. Regional chapters and advisory boards are active in the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa. The Council’s strategic interest groups include the Customer Experience Board, Digital Marketing Performance Center, Brand Inspiration Center, Marketing Supply Chain Institute, GeoBranding Center, and the Coalition to Leverage and Optimize Sales Effectiveness (CLOSE). To learn more, visit https://www.cmocouncil.org.

Media Contact:

Kevin Sugarman
ksugarman@cmocouncil.org