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Did you know that by 2025 online orders are projected to reach 30% of total restaurant sales?
The rise in online ordering has rocked the restaurant industry and is only beginning.
We work in a fast-paced environment that lives off satisfying the needs and desires of consumers. This includes preparing for sudden changes in this ever-changing world.
Currently, the restaurant industry is wreaking havoc in the treatment of the coronavirus (COVID-19). According to Datassential, 92% of restaurant traffic is now handled off-site.
That means, to keep your restaurant afloat during these uncertain times, you must offer online ordering.
Each restaurant can benefit differently from offering delivery and take-out during this time. In this post we will cover the benefits and challenges that come with online ordering.
Preconfiguration
The first thing is to physically obtain the online order settings within your restaurant. In most cases, you may need to change your point of sale (POS) system and make changes focused on an online presence.
Here are a couple of things to keep in mind when starting out:
- Get a website for your business
Did you know that 70% of people look online to plan their next meal? To capture as many consumers as possible, you need to be online.
Whether you have a quick or full service restaurant, having a website will help. This provides a place to display restaurant information, menu, and food photos. It also gives a reason to integrate with your POS system and start accepting online orders as soon as possible.
- Switch from a traditional POS system to a cloud-based POS system
With what type of POS system do you operate? If you’re still working with a traditional POS system, it’s time to make the switch. Your restaurant is losing money maintaining internal servers and you are missing the opportunity that a cloud-based point of sale offers.
Use that money and invest it to switch to a cloud-based POS system. This will allow your restaurant to access the expanding world of third-party apps and have a mobile-first mindset.
Mobile transactions with online orders are a must. But, this is something that can only be done through a cloud-based POS system.
- Find out which system would work best for your restaurant
Does your restaurant have the ability to offer deliveries on its own? Would it be better to partner with a third party delivery service?
These kinds of questions should be asked when deciding which route to take. This influences the impact online ordering will have on your restaurant.
How will ordering online affect the workload of the kitchen staff? This makes you wonder, “Will I have to hire more staff to get this going?” The last thing you want to happen when you allow online ordering is having the inability to cope with volume.
The benefits of ordering online
- Increase revenue
Would you like to increase your takeout income by 30%? Restaurants that are on online ordering services can do this. Online ordering is an additional line of income for your business and the more the merrier.
You’ll increase your revenue when you improve the ways your customers can order. During this time, being digitally accessible is crucial to your income stream especially during this long quarantine.
- Create online presence
Online is the new “in person.” Being online allows your customers and potential customers to find your restaurant. With the current pandemic, being online is the key to survival for many restaurants.
The Internet is available to your customers and you should be too. Your menu should be displayed on your website, as well as on review sites like Yelp. This allows for greater visibility online and discovering different ways.
- Increase order accuracy
When customers have the option to choose every detail about their food, you reduce errors and lead to greater satisfaction. An employee no longer needs to write an order over the phone and then place it at the POS.
With an integrated online ordering system, frustrating phone orders can end. Restaurants can be noisy at times and it is difficult to hear customers on the phone. Once your business gets a setup from the online ordering system, this will be a thing of the past.
- Simplification of the process.
Goodbye to the days of calling the restaurant to place an order. Simplify your operations with a POS system that directly integrates online orders with the kitchen. Make sure your system is accessible and easy to use.
This makes staff work easier and gives them more time to focus on customers. The latest technology is needed in restaurants, including an online ordering system.
Save money with the right system
The biggest challenge restaurants face in deciding on an online ordering system is cost.
Third-party delivery services can often cost 15-20% per order. You can reduce third party fees with a good online ordering solution.
Why is this important? The ease and speed of online ordering and delivery is what your customers want and, right now, what they need. In this time of crisis, restaurants must do everything they can to keep the business running.
In this blog we have talked about POS systems and different technologies to manage online orders on your website. Do not give up, fight and your restaurant will not only survive, but it can increase its sales right now, in the middle of a pandemic, and that also helps people.