The restaurant industry is looking to shake things up in 2018 in a big way. And while the culinary forecast is boasting everything from contemporary regional Mexican and Chinese cuisine, , Korean condiments, vegan desserts, and of course colorful food – restaurant technology is also looking to make a big splash.
Here are the 2018 restaurant technology trends to watch out for:
Completely Self-Service
It isn’t the case anymore that self-service kiosks are just supplemental to a restaurant’s ecosystem, now there are restaurants that solely utilize self-service kiosks for ordering. In an effort to make fast food faster, cut down on operational costs, and improve order accuracy – restaurants are prioritizing the self-service kiosk.
Huge chains like McDonalds, Wendy’s, Panera Bread, and others have rolled out self-service kiosks, but a handful of restaurants have taken it a step further. Eatsa, Honeydew, and Moxie’s are among a new breed of “automat-style restaurants,” restaurants that are completely self-service. This trend demands incredibly user-friendly and reliable yet advanced self-service technology.
Delivery Route Optimization
This year, quick-service restaurants are poised to optimize their delivery strategy. With advanced delivery management technologies, restaurateurs can designate deliveries and drivers based on customers’ location. Orders will queue according to time and location, allowing drivers to deliver multiple orders based on geographic location – orders are grouped according to building address and zip code. This ensures that customers’ get their correct order quickly and still hot, and the restaurant can have peace of mind they are driving down their costs through heightened delivery efficiency.
Some take it to a whole new level. Pizza startup, Zume has machines cooking all their pizza in the trucks during the delivery process!
Mobile Delivery Ordering
Delivery has been important for a long time – and arguably a deal breaker for those in the limited and quick service industry. But what’s going to become clear in 2018, is the importance of digital and mobile delivery ordering.. In the last five years, and the most recent data reveals mobile ordering has grown to represents 53 percent of all delivery orders, up from 33 percent in 2013. Most notably, McDonalds just added mobile delivering as an option for customers.
Mobile Payments
The trend for mobile doesn’t just stop at delivery. Mobile is increasingly becoming the way to pay for diners. Industry analysts estimated the volume of mobile payments in the restaurant industry grew 75 percent this year. For example, Papa Johns found that digital channels averaged around 60% of their sales, 70% from mobile.
Feedback Technology
2018 will be all about the diners’ experience. And a crucial component to improve the diner’s experience is to first solicit and analyze your customer feedback. Restaurateurs will be looking to technology to solicit feedback and create an open and honest dialogue with their customers. Using everything from kiosks to advanced social media listening tools to collect feedback – restaurateurs are giving their diners a big voice in 2018.
Be ahead of the trend with a powerful Restaurant POS Systems!
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