Offering the convenience of online ordering to your customers with a mobile ordering system for your restaurant might be the turning point of your business. It can make ‘you’ more reasonable than your customers. Wondering how so? Let’s look at some statistics:
- Restaurants fulfill orders up to 2.4 times quicker when utilizing mobile ordering compared to traditional methods.
- These technological advancements have enabled 77% of the restaurants to witness increased efficiency and 61% said that there’s reduced work pressure on the staff.
- Amongst the best performing restaurants, about 92% provide mobile order-ahead and loyalty rewards programs.
Consider the convenience that this technological integration brings to your customers. They can leisurely browse through your digital menu, make personalized customizations, and place orders from the comfort of their homes. This frees you up to focus on what you do best-delivering delicious food. With service and cleanup time reduced by almost half, you can redirect this time to more critical tasks.
But it isn’t just about freeing up your time. So, let’s understand how mobile ordering can streamline your operations and why you should leverage this technological marvel for increased profitability and customer satisfaction.
Understanding the Growing Importance of Mobile Ordering
Mobile ordering has exploded in popularity, fundamentally changing how we interact with restaurants. Let’s dive into the biggest trends and adoption rates to highlight its growing importance.
Mobile Ordering Trends
1. Convenience Reigns Supreme: Ordering with a few taps on your phone is undeniably convenient. Customers can browse menus, customize orders, schedule pick-up times, and pay seamlessly—all from the comfort of their couch.
2. Apps Drive Loyalty and Personalization: Restaurant apps are becoming one-stop shops for ordering, loyalty programs, and exclusive offers. This allows restaurants to personalize the experience, recommending dishes based on past orders and offering targeted promotions.
3. Blurring the Lines: Take-Out or Delivery? Why Not Both!: Mobile ordering platforms are increasingly offering both take-out and delivery options. Customers can choose what suits their needs, whether a quick pick-up on their lunch break or a cozy night in with delivered food.
4. Data and Insights Drive Menu Innovation: Mobile ordering platforms generate valuable data on customer preferences and ordering trends. Restaurants can leverage this data to refine their menus, introduce popular dishes, and personalize promotions.
Usage By Customers And Adoption By Restaurants
Benefits of Mobile Ordering for Restaurants
Apart from the convenience it offers customers [and restaurant owners], what are the other benefits of mobile ordering systems in restaurants that are fuelling the growing adoption rate? Let’s check them out:
- Improved Order Accuracy: Misheard orders over the phone or errors caused by language barriers become a thing of the past. Mobile ordering allows customers to customize their meals precisely through user-friendly interfaces, language preference options, and clearly defined options. This leads to fewer errors, increased order accuracy, and happier customers.
- Faster Service: Mobile ordering eliminates the wait time associated with phone calls and crowded counters. Customers can submit their orders quickly and conveniently, leading to faster service and quicker order fulfillment. This means shorter wait times and enhanced dining experience for dine-in customers.
- Increased Sales and Order Volume: Mobile ordering removes the friction of phone calls and long lines, making it easier for customers to order. This can lead to a significant increase in orders and overall sales.
- Improved Operational Efficiency: Say goodbye to order-taking chaos! Mobile ordering streamlines the process with digital menus and direct order transmission to the kitchen. This frees up staff to focus on food preparation and customer service.
- Valuable Customer Data and Insights: Mobile ordering platforms collect valuable data on ordering trends, customer preferences, and peak ordering times. This goldmine of information allows restaurants to optimize menus, target promotions, and make data-driven decisions.
- Upselling and Increased Revenue per Order: Mobile apps offer opportunities to showcase appetizers, desserts, and special combos, enticing customers to spend more per order.
- Enhanced Customer Engagement and Loyalty: Restaurants can build customer loyalty and encourage repeat business through mobile apps that offer rewards programs, exclusive deals, and targeted notifications.
- Reduced Labor Costs: While mobile ordering doesn’t eliminate staff needs, it decreases the number of additional employees needed for taking orders especially during peak hours. This results in lower labor costs in the long run.
- 2x Customer Satisfaction: With enhanced order accuracy, convenience of remote ordering and reduced wait times, restaurants can achieve 2x customer satisfaction. When customers get their food quickly, exactly as they ordered it, they’re more likely to leave positive reviews. Mobile ordering helps restaurants deliver a consistently satisfying experience.
How to Streamline Restaurant Operations with Mobile Ordering
Now that you are on-board with implementing a mobile ordering solution in your restaurant, let’s check out the steps to ensure a seamless integration:
Step 1: Choose a Digital Ordering Platform That Aligns with Your Needs
Spend some time on research and ensure you are checking off the following boxes:
- Features: Consider features like order customization, menu management, mobile menu optimization, integration with your existing POS system, loyalty program options, and delivery service partnerships.
- Data security: Ensure the platform uses stringent security and safety measures to secure customer and restaurant data.
- Cost: Pricing models can vary. Look for solutions that fit your budget and transaction volume.
- Ease of Use: When choosing a platform, prioritize those with a user-friendly interface for customers and staff that allow for easy branding.
- Scalability: Ensure the platform can handle your current and future order volume.
Step 2: Work on Optimizing Your Mobile Menu and View
Customers should be able to view your entire menu and offerings on their mobile devices, no matter the size of the screen. So, ensure the platform allows you to optimize the following details:
- High-Quality Photos: Mouthwatering visuals are crucial for enticing customers. Ensure you have uploaded high-definition photos of your products on the platform.
- Clear Descriptions: Include accurate descriptions with plenty of customization options to accommodate a wider base of customer preferences.
- Categorization and Search: Organize your menu logically for easy browsing. For example, if you are an Italian restaurant, you can organize your menu with types such as salad, breadsticks, pizza, pasta, drinks, desserts, etc.
- Highlight Popular Items: Showcase best-sellers and special offers prominently. Highlight combos, seasonal offers, event offers, discounts at the top.
- Mobile-friendly Design: Ensure your menu displays well on all devices.
- Ease of Menu Management: Ensure the platform allows you to easily manage your menu in real-time. This helps you to adapt to changing customer preferences, trends, needs, etc. It also allows you to modify your existing menu and as per your inventory.
Step 3: Integrate with Your Existing POS System
Ensure mobile orders are seamlessly tracked and recorded in your existing POS systems to ensure accuracy and save time.
- Seamless Order Flow: Orders should automatically flow from the mobile platform to your POS system, eliminating manual data entry and reducing errors.
- Inventory Management: Ensure the platform provides real-time inventory updates to avoid oversold items and customer disappointment.
- Kitchen Display System Integration: Integrate with your kitchen display system (KDS) for clear order communication and efficient preparation.
Step 4: Train Your Staff
The last step is to provide training to your employees prior to launching the mobile ordering service to customers.
- Order Management: Train staff on how to handle mobile orders, including processing payments and order fulfillment.
- Customer Service: Train staff on addressing mobile ordering inquiries and ensuring a smooth customer experience from order placement to pick-up or delivery.
- Troubleshooting: Equip staff with the knowledge to troubleshoot common mobile ordering issues.
| Expert Tips! Pilot Testing: Before a full launch, consider a pilot test with a limited group of customers. This allows you to identify and address any potential issues with integrating mobile ordering into your workflow. Constant Evaluation: Mobile ordering is an ongoing process. Continuously evaluate how it integrates with your existing workflows and make adjustments as needed. |
Case Study:
The Tale of Chipotle Mexican Grill and Their Ability to Recognize the Importance of Mobile Ordering
Chipotle Mexican Grill, one of the biggest restaurant chains, was struggling with order accuracy and longer wait time, primarily due to the customization in orders. Since they offer customizable burritos and bowls, the staff struggled big time to manage all the customization requirements of all the customers. This was especially troublesome during peak hours.
So, in 2008, they decided to implement a user-friendly mobile ordering app. Customers could build their meals exactly as desired, reducing errors and streamlining the ordering process.
Impact: Chipotle reported a significant reduction in wait times during peak hours. Order accuracy also improved, thanks to the clear visual interface of the app. The convenience of mobile ordering led to an increase in overall sales and customer satisfaction. Infact, Chipotle saw a revenue jump of 15% in Q3 in 2019. Also, the digital orders increased by 88% in the same quarter when compared to Q3 performance in 2018.
As of 2023, Chipotle Mexican Grill has an American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) score of 75, beating McDonald’s, Subway and Dairy Queen.
Conclusion
The rise of mobile ordering has transformed the restaurant landscape, offering a win-win for both busy customers and restaurants with a vision to grow. By embracing this technology, restaurants can unlock a treasure trove of benefits: from streamlined operations and increased efficiency to enhanced customer satisfaction and a boost in sales.
So, are you ready to take your restaurant operations to the next level? Let EZ-Chow be your trusted partner! Our digital ordering platform not only provides a comprehensive suite of mobile-friendly features but also integrates with your existing POS system. Intrigued? Go ahead and book a demo today!
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Author
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