What technology do customers expect to find in a restaurant

The key is to focus a restaurant’s technology towards commitment: invest in what customers want, get to know them and not so much implement any new gadgets hit the market.

Restaurant managers, owners, and operators are bombarded with new technology launches, each promising outright turnaround, but consumers don’t always perceive it that way.

Deloitte did not want to be left with the doubt, and carried out an interesting survey of restaurant customers to find out what technological innovations they value and want more, and how these characteristics would affect the frequency, sales and loyalty with the restaurants that use it.

I can tell you that many things do not change despite technological advances: Andrew Feinberg, director of Deloitte, says that regardless of any advancement or innovation, the menu, the price and the location remain the main factors of success in a restaurant.

Here is the summary of said study so that you can make better decisions when investing in technology is concerned.

1. You run away from “infoxication” (excess information)

Contrary to what we may think, or what a certain guru says about the importance of the information that is offered to customers, it is not actually entirely true. Deloitte found that 40% of customers want to eat at a restaurant once a month, and of that number, only one person in a hundred seeks interaction or information with the restaurant, whether in a forum, on a blog or on social media .

However, seven out of ten people want restaurant applications to be much more personal: to be able to understand their consumer trends and offer promotions or offers related to that history.

2. They want to be able to order and pay online

Online ordering is growing tremendously, and consumers love this more and more, Feinberg says.

40% of customers prefer to order their food online, and agree to spend more than planned if there are online promotions.

25 out of 100 fast food customers spend more than initially expected when buying online.

3. Technology to have new payment methods

More than half of customers expect maximum payment flexibility. For example: they want the bill to be divided among the diners and each one to pay their corresponding share.

In terms of percentages, 46% of customers want to pay with their mobile, while 50% are satisfied with a traditional POS, but that can be paid with any method (card, cash, mobile, PayPal, etc.)

4. Home delivery

More than half of customers, including those who want to go but don’t, feel that it is much easier for restaurants to deliver their food than it was years ago. Thanks to companies that are dedicated to it and that does not imply huge expenses for businesses.

This increases to almost 7 out of 10 in people living in large cities, and decreases in small towns.

Deloitte says: the customer is hungry and no longer wants to bother moving, and loyalty to their favorite restaurant is diluted if there is another that brings their food home, even if they do not know it.

5. It is very difficult for a customer to install your restaurant app

The competition from apps is extremely high, and customers have access to an immense number of gastronomic options on their phone, from any country. In fact, Deloitte found that each customer, on average, has fewer than 3 restaurant apps on their mobile phone and they don’t last more than a month with them installed.

To eliminate this enormous barrier to entry, small and medium-sized restaurants take refuge in third-party applications with enormous penetration and positioning in the gastronomic market, and when they are already positioned, they launch their own application.