Restaurants Embrace New Technology Solutions to Meet Consumer Demand

With staff shortages impacting restaurants across the country, business owners are turning to technology solutions including tableside tablets, self-ordering kiosks and even robots to meet the increased consumer demand.

Embracing Technology Solutions

Pre-pandemic, several QSR’s and fast casual restaurants including Chick-fil-A, Wendy’s, Subway and Chili’s were embracing tablets and kiosks for convenient ordering, payment and even entertainment options while waiting.

Robots are the latest technology innovation sweeping the restaurant industry. Domino’s recently announced autonomous delivery, and small businesses like Mala HotPot in central Ohio are embracing robots for tableside food delivery as well. College campuses are also benefiting from this change, with Grubhub announcing plans to roll out food-delivering robots across college campuses this fall.

Business Benefits

Restaurants are quickly learning there are several business benefits when embracing technology solutions including reduced wait time, upsell and cross-sell opportunities, increased order accuracy, saving money on labor and keeping customers and staff safe during this transition back to normalcy.

Several early adopters are already seeing the results. McDonalds reported that restaurants that introduced kiosks experienced an average of 5% to 6% lift in sales, and Chili’s saw a 20% increase in dessert sales. Panera claims 60% of lunchtime transactions at some locations are placed through their Fast Lane Kiosks.

Consumer behavior data supports this transition as well. In a 2019 study by Tillster, found that 65% of customers would be more willing to visit a restaurant if self-service kiosks are offered, and 30% of customers prefer to order from a kiosk versus a cashier if lines were of equal length.

Customer Experience Matters

How can restaurants ensure using consumer friendly technology and creating a more efficient dining experience does not impact customer experience? Partnering with an expert like IntelliShop to understand CX through mystery shopping, reputation management and brand compliance solutions, will enable your business to get objective and actionable intelligence to make the right technology decisions.