Cross-Channel Impacts of Platform-Based Online Promotions: Evidence From a Leading Restaurant Chain in China

Abstract

Food delivery platforms have fundamentally reshaped the restaurant industry, yet the impact of platform-based online promotions on offline and overall performance remains underexplored. Drawing on theories of consumer attention, anchoring effects, and cue utilization, this study examines how online price promotions affect restaurant performance, using weekly sales data from 127 restaurants of a major chain in China (2018–2019). Our analysis reveals multi-faceted promotional dynamics. First, promotions generate an immediate boost in offline sales but are followed by a decline in the next week. These intertemporal effects result in a positive overall impact, with no evidence of compromising long-term revenue stability. Second, promotions at nearby chain locations in overlapping delivery zones reduce a restaurant’s offline and total revenue, revealing significant crowding-out effects. Third, restaurants with lower ratings on Dianping.com tend to benefit more from online promotions. These findings enhance understanding of cross-channel promotional dynamics and offer practical insights for optimizing strategies across locations and channels.

Keywords

food delivery platforms online promotions restaurant performance offline sales intra-brand crowding-out online reviews

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