26 RushReport: The 2023 Restaurant Consumer Experience Report
TA K E AWAY THREE
Younger Customers Have Strong, Tech-Focused Preferences.
Across much of The RushReport, Americans
aged 18-29 have been outliers with
preferences that differ from those of other
age sets. In aggregate, these preferences
are largely defined by:
• An increased rate of ordering out and a
higher share of delivery/takeout orders
• A very heavy reliance on social media as a
primary channel for restaurant discovery
and receiving updates
• A strong preference for ordering via
mobile and online channels
• A high degree of optimism that
restaurants can overcome today's
challenges with smarter uses
of technology
Interestingly, this age set tended to rate less
mainstream technologies like personalization
in emails and ordering via Google Voice or
Alexa as less critical than the next oldest
age set (30-39), consolidating preferences
toward a smaller number of technologies. It
appears that these young Americans are
most interested in using fewer technologies
(namely, mobile apps, online ordering, and
social media) that are better optimized for
convenience and simplicity. In essence,
they want their favorite tools and tech to
work well, and are less concerned with new
platforms or alternative ordering channels
compared to customers aged 30-39.
