QR codes have taken over as the primary way for dine-in customers at restaurants and bars to view menus. Here’s why giving customers the ability to not just view the menu, but also order and pay from a QR code is probably a good idea for your venue!

 

 

The Emergence of QR Codes

If you own or manage a restaurant or bar, chances are that you have become extremely familiar with QR codes as a way to offer your customers a “contactless” digital menu. As Covid compliance swept the industry in 2020, technology played a key role in helping restaurants provide customers with a safe and easy way to view menus. As the industry looks ahead for 2021 with the hope of mass in-venue reopenings, it is likely that QR codes will be used for more than just digital menus. In fact, many restaurants have begun looking at ways for customers to order and pay for their in-venue service through QR codes. But does this technology make sense for your venue?

How can a QR code order and pay platform benefit your business?

Much like QR code digital menus, QR code order and pay platforms offer several benefits to business owners in a Covid compliant manner. Specifically, the 3 main benefits are:

• Customer and Staff Safety

• Increase Revenue

• Decrease Labor Cost

Customer and Staff Safety

Limiting interaction between customers and staff is the best way to create the safest possible dine in experience at your venue. Allowing a customer to order and pay directly from a QR code reduces the amount of time your servers need to spend at the customer’s table, and completely eliminates customers exchanging credit cards and pens with staff members.

Increase Revenue

With customers in complete control of their ordering experience, they are never left waiting to put in another round with a server. That means more orders, more frequently. Additionally, the amount of information that can be presented to a customer through their phone is far more than any paper menu or description from a staff member. For example, let your customers see pictures of your awesome food instead of just making them read about it on a menu. Humans are visual creatures, and more often than not, our eyes are bigger than our stomachs. How many times has one of your customers ask their server to choose between one of two appetizers? Maybe if they could see how delicious both appetizers are, they would order both!

 

 

Decrease Labor Cost

With limited seating capacities and restrictions on inside vs. outside seating, most restaurants have had to drastically reduce the number of servers per shift. The results can be lost revenue from potential sales as there are fewer servers able to take customers’ orders and frustrated customers. Additionally, it has been difficult for venues to staff appropriately per shift with the constantly changing regulations and guidelines.

With customers placing their orders without the need of a server, you can drastically reduce the number of servers needed per shift. Additionally, the servers that are working spend less time at the point of sale system since there is nothing for them to punch in, giving them more time to spend with the customers on the floor.

Will QR code ordering work at your business?

There are a lot of question marks surrounding in-venue mobile ordering. This is understandable considering the service industry has been doing things the same way for literally thousands of years – a server or bartender asks the customer what they want, the customer answers, the order is brought to the customer, and when the customer is ready to leave, the server or bartender gives them their bill. QR code ordering reduces the number of steps it takes the customer to order and pay, but a constant uncertainty amongst venue owners is that mobile ordering will eliminate servers interacting with guests, which will negatively effect the customer experience.

IQ Menu continually adjusts and improves the venue on-boarding and customer success experience to meet the growing demand for contactless order and payment solutions. If you’d like to learn more, you can schedule a demo here!