Restaurants today have moved on from having no technology more modern than a cash register. Technology can be almost as important as the food or the customer service and can help augment the other parts of your business. Here are a few ways in which technology can make a difference.
Marketing tools
Before your customers ever enter your restaurant, you can use marketing technology to increase its appeal. Social media technology like Buffer can help manage different social media accounts and save you time. You can also get more data about what sorts of social media posts get the most follows and ensure that your posts are made regularly. In social media marketing, consistent content is just as important as content quality.
Other technologies can also help manage your rewards programs and personalize your marketing. You can make one social media post or email which appeals to the elderly and another for families. Technology can ensure that the two posts get out to the right people.
Self-serving kiosks and apps
Many restaurants today rely more on apps, kiosks, and other technologies which let customers order food without a waiter. This offers multiple advantages. It lets those still concerned about COVID continue social distancing. Restaurants struggling with labor costs can keep them down after an initial investment.
Kiosks and apps can do more than just act as a place to order food. They can also upsell in ways which would be considered rude by a human. Some people may not be used to this ordering technology yet, but that will change over time.
Point-of-sale systems
At a sit-down restaurant, the end of a meal can be an annoying experience for customer and server alike. The customer waits impatiently for the server, while the server is running around trying to attend to so many customers.
New POS systems can fix this problem. A server can use a tablet which lets customers pay and order right at the table, instead of having to go back to some central terminal. This means that servers can handle more guests more efficiently and the guests have a shorter wait.
Kitchen-display technology
Technology in the back of house can be just as important as at the front. For example, kitchens today are putting aside paper orders in favor of a larger display. It is more environmentally friendly as no paper is being wasted. It is more legible than a waiter’s scrawls and can be seen by everyone in the kitchen at a distance. Kitchen staff can see all orders in one place, making for a more efficient system with less waste.
Final thoughts
More advanced technologies are being developed that can improve restaurants, such as a robot that can cook burgers. But there still will be a need for a human face and strong customer service whether you run a quick-service franchise or a steak restaurant. Instead of worrying about technology, think about how it can help humans and restaurants work more efficiently using the above examples among others.
This article was written by Hugh Grant from TechBullion and was legally licensed through the Industry Dive Content Marketplace. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
