DCRS Solutions
Are Self-Order Kiosks Right For Your Restaurant?
The restaurant industry has come a long way in technologies designed to improve customer experience, from pay-at-the-table to online ordering and delivery straight from their phone.
Find Out How A Cloud-Based POS System Can Streamline Your Restaurant
Another leap in customer service technology is the self-order kiosks. You may have seen these in fast-casual restaurants like Panera Bread, allowing customers to bypass cashier lines and place their own orders.
But are these self-order kiosks right for your restaurant? Here are some benefits a self-order kiosk can bring to your restaurant:
Increased Turnover & Faster Service
The lunch hour in your restaurant can decrease your customer turnover and slow service as demand rises. Self-order kiosks are especially useful during this time, as they offer customers another way to order and pay.
Like pay-at-the-table options like Toast and Mobilebytes, customers pay right there at the kiosk with little to no staff interaction, leaving staff free to devote more time and attention to preparing orders and serving other guests.
Increased Customer Sales
Customers are more likely to order more items at a self-serve kiosk than they are when ordering with a waiter. Some customers simply feel more comfortable ordering more from a kiosk than one-on-one with a waiter. In fact, they tend to order $5 more than they would otherwise.
Self-serve kiosks are also a pressure-free way to offer upsells and additions to orders. If a customer orders a burger with fries and a drink, a popup can offer an upgrade to garlic fries for $1.
Provides More Accurate Orders
Self-order kiosks in your restaurant can also provide more accurate orders. Customers access the kiosk, review the menu, and simply select the item or items they wish to purchase. This helps reduce human error if wait staff accidentally write down the wrong order or input the wrong item into your restaurant’s POS ordering system.
Gather More Customer Data
Another benefit to offering self-serve kiosks in your restaurant? You are able to gather more customer data such as what items they prefer more over others, their most ordered items and add-ons, and other information.
This data is valuable to you in that it will help you understand your customers and your menu better and adjust your offerings and marketing as needed.
Ask Yourself How Much Of Your Business Is In-Store
If most of your orders are takeaway or delivery over the phone or online or your restaurant is a traditional sit-down, then a self-order kiosk may not benefit you. These kiosks are typically best in fast-casual restaurants where guests can get in and out.
Also ask yourself what your budget is and if you can afford a new piece of equipment. Will guests even use it? This would be a good time to utilize your restaurant’s customer cards to get their opinion of self-serve kiosks and how often they may use them.
Remember, self-order kiosks are meant to complement your traditional point of sales, not replace them entirely.