Pasta Evangelists was founded in 2017 with the aim of bringing delicious, fresh, artisanal pasta to UK homes. They have quickly built a customer base that is as passionate about their home delivery pasta as they are, with recipes available as subscription boxes or individual purchases.
In early 2018, Pasta Evangelists partnered with Mention Me to launch their refer-a-friend program, and the results have been nothing but astonishing. Within a year, Pasta Evangelists have become synonymous with fresh, high-quality pasta, and their referral program has grown into one of the most powerful marketing channels. Rewarding customers for referring friends, Pasta Evangelists has quickly expanded their customer pool and turned satisfied customers into loyal ambassadors of the company.
Download the full Pasta Evangelists & Mention Me referral marketing case study to see exactly how Pasta Evangelists’ refer-a-friend program helped them grow.
Referral programs can revolutionise food delivery businesses here in the UK, allowing them to grow a customer base and foster loyal support via word-of-mouth marketing. For companies like Pasta Evangelists, renowned for excellence in fresh pasta, an appropriately designed referral program unlocked customer passion and made them zealous advocates for the brand.
Referral programs work particularly well in the food delivery segment, where satisfaction is a key factor for consumers. In the case of Pasta Evangelists, customers are buying an experience, not just food. They give customers the opportunity to sample the premium, authentic pasta recipes that Pasta Evangelists offers, and they are far more likely to share that great experience with friends and family. This can be encouraged through rewards with a refer-a-friend program at Pasta Evangelists, which will, in return, encourage word-of-mouth recommendations to attract new customers without having to spend valuable resources on advertising.
Referral programs offer a cost-effective customer acquisition channel for fast-growing businesses like Pasta Evangelists, much more so than traditional forms of marketing. Rather than spending millions on mass adverts, at Pasta Evangelists, customers are paid only when a new customer buys something. This performance-based approach means that every penny spent on referral marketing is accountable to new customer acquisition and, therefore, maximises the effectiveness of their marketing spend.
One of Pasta Evangelists' standout elements is their customers' deep passion for the product. As the brand has grown, it’s become clear that its customers were just as passionate about great fresh pasta as they were—a dream come true. The understanding of this naturally developed into a refer-a-friend program.
In return for encouraging customers to share their love of Pasta Evangelists with others, the enthusiasm of the business speaks for itself—it converts an existing customer base into a set of loyal evangelists who can help spread the word.
Referral programs are a two-way action in attracting new customers by strengthening the loyalty of the already existing ones. With great incentives like discounts or free products, Pasta Evangelists created a circle of recurrence because a customer will always return to a company that shows appreciation for its customers. The loyalty was secured further with the referendum process, promising that a referrer and the referee benefit, making it a win for all parties.
A subscription-based model works in great harmony with a referral program for Pasta Evangelists. The more customers taste the delightful pasta recipes, the more likely they are to subscribe to regular deliveries. Here, a referral program works as an added incentive to encourage customers to keep their subscriptions going while sharing the service with others. This will bring a snowballing customer base that is long-lasting to create continuous growth.
