How COMBO works: restaurant rewards guests actually use
A walkthrough of COMBO: scan a table QR, play a game in your brand, win a reward, redeem a single-use code and come back for points and quests.
COMBO is rewards and loyalty for independent restaurants, cafes and QSR chains. Guests scan a QR code at the table, play a short game in your brand, win a reward and come back to redeem it. Here is how it works, for the guest and for the owner.
For the guest: six steps
- Scan. A QR sticker on the table opens the game in the phone's browser. No app to download.
- Play. A short game in your colours, with your food in it, while the order cooks.
- Win. The server picks the prize, using odds you set.
- Claim. The guest shares an email to keep the reward. That is the only time they are asked, and it adds them to your list with their opt-in.
- Redeem. On the next visit, staff scan a single-use code that works once.
- Come back. Points, streaks and quests build up, with an email nudge if they drift.
For the owner: set it up once
COMBO works for one cafe or a whole chain.
Your menu in the game
Your dishes become power-ups, and each location can have its own mascot.
Odds on every prize
You set the odds for each prize, such as free fries, a milkshake upgrade or "try again tomorrow". The server picks the winner, so nobody can tamper with it on their phone.
Reasons to return
Tiers, streaks, a punch card and birthday treats. Members earn points on every visit, and higher tiers earn faster.
Protection against screenshot fraud
Reward codes are single use. The member QR changes every 60 seconds, so a screenshot is no good next time.
Win-back for guests who drift
COMBO tracks each member's last visit. When someone drifts, a message you approved goes out by email and to their in-app inbox. You can set up welcome, birthday and we-miss-you messages, and see what is waiting for approval, scheduled or running, such as:
- No visit in 30 days: waiting for approval.
- Birthdays this week: scheduled.
- Vouchers expiring Sunday: scheduled.
Reviews, by the rules
Players are invited to leave a review, and the prize never depends on it. The reward is theirs either way.
Several locations
Each venue gets its own character, scanner and offers, while points and the guest list are shared across the group. Owners see one dashboard for who joined, who redeemed and who drifted, by location.
A Saturday at a three-site burger chain
- 12:40. Table 6 scans. A couple plays the game while the order cooks.
- 12:43. A win and a claim: free loaded fries, claimed with an email.
- 12:45. An invitation to review, with the fries theirs either way.
- Thursday. She is back. Staff scan the code, and her points and streak tick up.
- Monday. The owner checks who joined, redeemed and drifted.
Your guest list stays yours
- Your own database. COMBO runs in your cloud or self-hosted.
- You approve every offer. Nothing reaches a guest until your team says yes.
- Opt-in on every message. Guests opt in, can opt out anytime, and reviews are never bought.
- A team that stays. Thinkiyo builds your game and keeps tuning the offers with you.
Works with other Thinkiyo products
- Relay to answer every review your players leave.
- Cadence to announce prizes and high scores on every channel.
- Mosaic to join members, orders and bookings into one profile.
What it replaces
- Paper stamp cards, lost in wallets and stamped twice by a friendly cashier.
- A POS loyalty add-on that nobody signs up for at a busy counter.
- Discount codes on Instagram that mostly reach people who were coming in anyway.
- A quiet review page where happy regulars never write.
Instead of a discount handed out at random, COMBO gives guests a reason to share their number, a reward that brings them back, and a record of when they last visited.