Or even worser at one of the Garcia's in Phoenix. I put down $24.99, which included a 20% tip and to avoid having to submit receipt when doing my expenses (receipts are needed >$25). That got posted as $25!!! Double-Grrrr! Is that fraud, stealing my penny? (hehehe)

My understanding is that the Credit Card Bank is the one to notify Idine for the posting of miles, not the restaurant.

:-: :-: :-:

It's not peevish! A lot of restaurants would love to know this. The turnover would be much less if more members vocalized their experiences. A lot of restaurants cancel because they feel they would have the business anyways. When I love a restaurant, I will leave a comment on the after dine member survey telling the restaurant I tried them out because of the USAirways Dining program.

Restaurant owners beleive the members were already coming in and will continue to come in without the loyalty program.

While we realize this is true in sometimes, but not always. There are members who had not dined until they saw the listing, the out of town diner, the accidentally dined but now I'm hooked diner, etc... Your voice is the only tool we have towards retention. More owners need to hear comments like these to know and there would be a lot less restaurants cancelling!

Restaurants and Idine
 

It is my understanding, that restaurants borrow money from Idine for any improvement like chairs or pots&pans or whatever. They pay off Idine from a percentage of the guests credit card payments for dining. When the loans are paid off, they are no longer part of Idine. In other words, the restaurant does not decide to be a member or not until they contract for more money for more improvements, etc.
Being on the List of Restaurants brings in NEW or more Idine customers looking for more miles.
In cases where places get busy, they might choose to pay off Idine and save the charges, that Idine makes to them.

It works for a new restaurant, that has capitol investment and needs more patrons. I have found a number of good restaurants, that I would not have dined at locally or while traveling. Only a couple were not what I call up to the minimum, that I expect. I do tend to avoid Fast food places, but on occasion for convenience, I wil hope the miles are posted! :D

thanks!
 

Restaurant owners don't have to join the program throught the "dining credits" program, they can join on a pay on performance/services only basis. A lot of restauranteurs choose the cash payment upfront because of the need for pots and pans like you said, but then don't get the overwhelming vocallization of interest from the members and choose to cancel. Members like the program, I just wish more owners could hear their stories so they could assign the value.

Idine is a Financing program
 

THere have been restaurants, that have paid off their balance due and opted out of the program. Some said they felt that Idine was too expensive, therefore taking too much of the credit card payment . Others tried to get around Idine by asking for cash rather then Credit Card payment in violation of their agreement.

Most likely there have been modifications to program and subject to vary from the above.

:confused:

Rewards Network is a dining rewards and loyalty program company first and foremost and restaurants can choose to join the program through the dining credits program (commonly confused as financing) or the marketing services program. Either way the services are the same, the difference is if the restaurant wanted an up front payment for dining credits or they could join on a pay for performance basis instead.

I hope the restaurants would recognize the absence after the number of responses in this thread.

I hope this clears things up for you, CaveatEmpty.

thats part true and part false...

Rewards Network formely known as iDine is not a lender, they are a restaurant Marketing and Loyalty program provider. In the past things could have been different, like you said, but I know there is no loans or interest rates or things like that going on.

One of the ways a restaurant can join is to sell Rewards Network a dining credits house account and in the past when the restaurants exhausted the credits, they would drop off suddenly. Realizing this was a big mistake to members, now the restaurants will flip to marketing services and if they choose to cancel they will have to work a notice, which will allows time for the benefit alert. :-)

About the owners demanding cash instead of accepting a credit card....they could lose the right to accept cc for doing that...that's bad!

I hope this helps...

When I see a restaurant I like that's about to leave the program, I review it at the iDine/RN site, and one of the questions it asks is when I'm likely to return. I then add a comment stating how soon I'm likely to return if they renew, but how unlikely I am to return often if they drop out.

I've done this with a few restaurants in the past year, and at least one of them came back a month or two later!

Welcome repinCharlotte and awila.

No Idine for me tonight. No Idineries in Cambria, CA. Besides, my Mother in Law and Sister in Law are cooking a Chinese New Year's feast.