QSR May 2022

DIGI TAL TRENDS

AC T I ON TAK E AWAY S : 3 / 4 S A I D T H E Y WE R E W I L L I NG TO S HAR E THE I R MOB I L E LOCAT I ON F OR B E T T E R S E RV I C E • 69 % S A I D T H E Y ’ D DO S O I F I T ME AN T T H E I R ORD E R WA S R E ADY U PON A R R I VA L • 47 % WE R E ON BOA R D I F I T R E S U LT E D I N A HOT ME A L • 39 % O F MANAG E R S I N T H E R E P OR T NOT E D P ROV I D I NG T H E R I GH T ORD E R I NG AND 38 % S AY PAYMENT OP T I ONS WOU L D B E “ V E RY ” IMPOR TANT TO T H E I R I NNOVAT I ON S T R AT EG I E S GO I NG FORWA R D

the experience better for the guest” isn’t just a whiteboard tactic that f lows from the top down, Rosenberg says. Exceeding customer expecta tions is something hourly employees see right there on their paychecks. Close to half (46 percent ) of Bluedot respon dents said they do not tip for mobi le and web orders. Of those who don’t, 27 percent admitted to thinking about it, but ultimately deciding not to. Thirty-seven percent also feel pressured at the counter to tip. Requesting for a tip on a tablet made one in three consumers uncom fortable, and of those who don’t feel pressured, 70 percent were happy to tip. Overall, while inconsistent, 74 percent of consumers said they tip at restaurants. Thirty three percent tip equally regardless of whether they’re ordering via app, web, or in-person, while 30 percent tip more in person, and 11 percent said they do so online. A majority (58 percent ) said they tip appro priately when placing orders with third-party apps; 13 percent extra; 9 percent less; and 20 percent not at all. The higher checks restaurants, mainly in quick service, continue to report from mobile orders and digital channels, appear a ref lec tion of larger party sizes and patience in menu selection as much as anything else. But in all, there’s little debate restaurant customers learned from the pandemic, just as restaurants did. They turned to digital out of necessity, yet have become full-circle guests with higher

demands. According to Paytronix’s 2022 Restaurant Friction Index, released inMarch, 41 percent of an average restaurant’s sales now f low through digital channels, including mobile apps, aggre gators, and websites. It’s far more than the 32 percent generated via brick-and-mortar loca tion and 26 percent from phone calls. Restaurants were receiving orders through an average of 2.7 different purchasing channels at any given time (mobile app, aggregator, desk top website, on-site visits, or over the phone ). “Today’s most successful restaurants look at the customer experience holistically, not as sepa rate channels,” says Andrew Robbins, CEO of Paytronix Systems, Inc. Unsurprisingly, 41 percent of managers noted in the report they consider it “very important” today to provide customers with a consistent, integrated cross-channel order ing experience. On top of that, providing the right ordering (39 percent ) and payment options (38 percent) would be “very” important to their innovation strategies going forward. Loyalty features and pickup options were equally common consid erations, at 38 percent, respectively. “In this environment loyalty, payments, and digital ordering all work in concert so that whether a guest orders from their couch or from the table in a restaurant, the expe rience is one that keeps them coming back,” Robbins adds. q DannyKlein is FoodNewsMedia’s editorial director. Contact himat danny@ QSRmagazine.com .

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