Benefits of Order and Pay at the Table
Staying aware of ever-shifting customer preferences and tech trends is vital to success in the restaurant industry. As consumer behavior changes, different technologies become mainstream and are quickly adopted as the new norm. One such tech trend is the ability to order and pay at the table.
Today’s consumers have grown to expect the convenience and peace of mind provided by contactless, digital payment solutions. A “Back to Business Study” conducted by Visa revealed that 63% of the 4,500 global consumers surveyed indicated they would switch to a new business that offered contactless payments, and 48% said they would not shop at a store that did not provide contactless options. If your restaurant does not provide order and pay at table options, you could be losing business to someplace that does. This blog will highlight how order and pay at the table systems work and the benefits of implementing them at your restaurant.
How Does Order and Pay at the Table Work?
With this technology, dine-in customers can use their smartphones or mobile devices to scan a QR code that enables them to input their table number, browse the menu, order their food, and pay the bill, all from their device. This means no more sharing publicly-handled print menus, bill folders, cash or cards, pens, and receipts, providing a safer experience. With restaurant solutions from Paradise POS, we create a QR code for your restaurant, which you can display on table tents, menus, stickers, and more.
Reduce Order Entry Errors
There are several key benefits to implementing order and pay at the table solutions. First, your restaurant can reduce order errors. When customers enter their order at the table, you decrease the risk of omitting a side dish, forgetting a substitution, or missing a preference such as how they want their burger cooked. This accuracy is critical when a customer has a specific dietary restriction or allergy and needs to make several customizations to the order. Additionally, this solution puts less pressure on your staff and gives customers peace of mind that their orders will be correct.
Increase Revenue
Improving customer satisfaction with more accurate orders is just one of the ways that order and pay at table restaurant solutions can increase their revenue. Prompts during the ordering process can upsell customers on additional items more reliably than busy servers. For example, Upsells can encourage diners to add drinks, sides, sauces, extra toppings, desserts, meal deal upgrades, and more onscreen. Plus, prompts can also remind customers to leave a tip and calculate suggested amounts for them.
Additionally, when servers take orders, customers often feel they must quickly decide what they want and may not look through the full menu. With order at the table, they can take as much time as they want to browse your offerings. Typically, more time with the menu leads to larger ticket sizes, as customers discover more items they want to try.
Order and pay at the table tech also ensures diners spend less time waiting around for staff to take orders, bring the check, and run the payment. Not only does this expedience improve customer satisfaction, but it also accelerates table turnover, allowing you to serve more people per shift and thereby boost profits.
Free Up Your Staff
Employee turnover in the restaurant industry has always been high, but labor shortages have increased notably in recent years. In August 2021, CNBC reported on the National Restaurant Association’s “State of the Industry” report, revealing that 75% of restaurant operators said recruiting and retaining workers was their top business challenge. In this environment, it is critical to improve staff efficiency (making the most of the workers you have) and give them the tools they need to do their jobs well enough to want to stay.
Restaurant employees spend a great deal of time doing things that order and pay at the table technology eliminates. For example, tasks such as manually taking and submitting orders, delivering the bill, running payments, bringing receipts to be signed, and ensuring those receipts are correctly stored can all be automated with this restaurant technology. In addition, switching to order and pay at the table processes allows you to optimize labor so that employees can focus on customer service.
Boost the Customer Experience
Since order and pay at the table technology frees up your staff, they can spend more time focusing on customer needs. When employees are not running back and forth entering orders and processing payments, they can ensure that each customer enjoys a pleasant dining experience. That focus increases diners’ satisfaction, which can lead to bigger tips and a higher likelihood of repeat business.
Additionally, customers have certain expectations regarding their dining experience, including convenience, speed, and accuracy. Order and pay at the table solutions help to meet those expectations.
Get Started with Order and Pay at the Table
Restaurants implementing order and pay at table restaurant solutions have far more opportunities to succeed than those without them. More customers will want to frequent their business, and the increased efficiency means more diners can be served per shift.
While launching new solutions can often seem like too much of a hassle for busy restaurant owners, it’s easier with a partner like Paradise POS. Learn how we can help you give your customers a seamless experience. Contact us today!