The COVID-19 pandemic changed everyone’s way of life. What appealed to restaurant customers in January 2020 isn’t relevant anymore. As guests adapted to dine-in restrictions and mask mandates, their priorities shifted. Amidst changing consumer trends, restaurants need to meet their needs in-store, online and anywhere else that a touchpoint exists.
Tech-forward solutions create a smoother dining experience every time. Whether the customer wants curbside pickup or prefers self-service, restaurant technology exceeds expectations.
Consumer Trends
Social Distance
Online sales probably account for most of your revenue since the severe restrictions on dine-in seating. The more comfortable customers become with digital channels, the more likely they are to continue online ordering in the future. Already the trend is projected to last long past the end of the pandemic. Trends today shape consumer behavior of the future.
Advertise on the internet to optimize your online presence. Improve customer engagement by connecting directly with your best guests on places like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Since COVID-19 started, restaurants have had concerns about how to convey the same quality of customer service as they do in-person. Guests’ discomfort with face-to-face interactions has made it difficult for servers to lean on their talents when it comes to improving these relationships and thus generating loyalty.
Social media is the new frontier for engagement. Talk to your following, invite questions and open contests on the platform they frequent the most. Use all the online tools at your disposal to continue making guests happy while complying with social distance.
Order Accuracy
Online ordering results in increased accuracy. Whether restaurants use their own app or third-party delivery services (although most businesses overwhelmingly prefer using their professional channels so they don’t have to pay excessive commission fees), customers get more out of mobile options. The nature of self-service gives them the opportunity to look over tickets before submission to guarantee it’s right. Additionally, inputting it themselves takes out the middleman so there’s less room for human error.
Whether they invest in QR codes that bring up a digital menu on a mobile phone, streamline the online ordering platform on their website, or use a Self-Service Kiosk, restaurants are meeting consumer expectations for order accuracy in-store, at home and on the go.
Speed and Portions
Upgrading to a smart Point of Sale system will help you contend with all these developments. As consumer trends evolve, cutting-edge technology gives you the flexibility to grow and change for whatever comes next.
Digital menus enable small changes, like a price update, to instantly disseminate to every device in the network. All your customers and servers have real-time information and meanwhile you save money on printing costs. Don’t forgo updates just because it would be a hassle.
Rewards programs foster customer loyalty by offering small incentives to come back again and again.
Menu optimization gives you the power to design the menu in a way that promotes certain dishes and specials. Easily rotate out seasonal menus or experiment with ingredients that are about to expire.
Contactless payment integrated into your POS gives guests a completely touch-free experience from start to finish.
Photo courtesy of eatOS.
The Future of Food Service
As 2021 progresses, it will inevitably bring more challenges—but hopefully good news, too. Restaurant technology like the Point of Sale powered by eatOS is designed with restaurants’ needs in mind, so we offer features and capabilities unmatched by anything you’ve seen before. As consumer behavior evolves, you need technology that grows with your business.
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