McAlister’s Deli
App & Rewards
When loyal McAlister’s fans lost trust in the brand’s glitchy app and broken rewards system, it became clear that no amount of sweet tea could fix the experience alone. From the interface to the incentives we needed to rebuild and get users excited to re-engage.
ROLE
Senior Copywriter
Content Strategy
UX Writing
Cross-Channel Messaging
SCOPE
Map content to key user flows
Write and refine UX microcopy within the app
Build cohesive messaging across touchpoints (app, email, web, in-store, social)
Align tone of voice across the entire rewards ecosystem to brand tone
CREDITS
Focus Brands
Ryan Wagner, Creative Director
Augusta Jones, Senior Art Director
Dominic Prestera, Designer
INITIAL RESULTS
154K+ downloads in week one
#35 on the App Store Food & Beverage Top Charts
Positive user sentiment and re-engagement across loyalty channels. Yay!
Background
Making Rewards More Rewarding
After several years of technical bugs and confusing UX, the original McAlister’s app had eroded customer trust. So weren’t just launching a new app, we were rebuilding loyalty from the ground up. The new experience had to feel not only seamless and modern, but unmistakably “McAlister’s.”
Approach
Sweet Tea & Strategy
This project was as much about strategy as it was about storytelling: identifying the moments that mattered and delivering the right message at the right time, whether a user was downloading the app for the first time, redeeming rewards, or troubleshooting a login.
As Senior Copywriter, I helped reimagine the full content ecosystem surrounding the new app launch. That meant mapping user flows across multiple touchpoints—from app onboarding and product copy to in-store displays, email campaigns, and social content—so the messaging felt cohesive and rewarding every step of the way.
The Work
Serving Up a Fresh App Experience
Inside the app, UX copy reinforced ease and reward: from onboarding screens to points redemption to re-engagement nudges. Everything was written with a warm, welcoming tone that felt right at home with the McAlister’s brand.
The Work
Driving Reengagement
We supported the launch with a cross-channel campaign designed to win back users’ trust and their appetites. From in-store displays to digital banners to targeted emails and social content, every message aimed to reassure users that McAlister’s Rewards were back, better than ever.
The Work
CRM for New & Migrating Rewards Members
The app and rewards system had frustrated longtime users, and a new experience meant carefully onboarding two distinct groups: loyal members who needed clarity and reassurance and new users who needed a fresh, compelling value prop.
-
![]()
New Members Welcome Email
This is the first email new rewards members receive after signing up on the McAlister’s app.
-
![]()
New Member Rewards 101
New McAlister’s Rewards members received this email introducing them to all of the features of the program and how to earn rewards.
-
![]()
New Member Visit Bonus
To encourage new rewards members to take advantage of their benefits by earning rewards, this email was sent after their first visit.
-
![New Member 2nd Visit Email]()
New Member 2nd Visit
This email was crafted specifically for brand-new rewards members after they completed their second visit and earned a free entree.
-
![]()
Migrating Members Welcome
Email designed specifically to explain new features to McAlister’s Rewards members migrating from the previous program.
It really was a rewarding experience
Revisiting this project with a design thinking lens reminds me how valuable it is to think beyond a single screen. UX doesn’t start in the app store and end at checkout, it’s everything in between. Understanding where users are coming from, and adapting the message to meet them there, was as important to earning back trust and building excitement as was building an intuitive, branded experience across every touchpoint.
Plus the results were pretty great:
154K+ downloads in week one
#35 on the App Store Food & Beverage Top Charts
Positive user sentiment and re-engagement across loyalty channels. Yay!
