Are you unsure, whether you should develop a mobile application for your restaurant and will it be a prudent investment for your business? Are you thinking of diving into the online food ordering a delivery business? Take a look at these stat s to understand exactly what you’re missing out on:- Online and in-app ordering have helped restaurants, big and small, increase their basket size by 25%.
- 69% of customers prefer to order food online via their mobile phones.
- If they can’t read your menu on their mobile device, you’re losing 62% of your potential customers.
The math is simple.
Whether you’re a 10 table restaurant, family-run restaurant or a multi-branched restaurant chain, if you don’t have a dedicated mobile application, chances are you’re missing out on at least a 60% increase in sales.
A consumer using your mobile application is not the only way to improve your sales. You can invest in a holistic mobile solution that lets you improve not just your sales but your restaurant side management of waiters, ordering system, payroll, table reservation, ingredient purchases and much more.
Essential features required for restaurant app
Now that you have rightfully decided to invest in the development of mobile app for your restaurant, the next thing to decide on is what features to put in it? We’ve compiled a list of 5 of the most important features every restaurant app needs that are really loved and used by consumers. Sure, you can add more features into it, but you shouldn’t compromise on the following features:
Push notifications
Push notification is a double-edged sword; it can make or break your app. Your app will only be successful if you use it in a sophisticated and subtle manner. However, if you overuse your notifications factor then it can annoy your users resulting in a subsequent loss.
Push notifications must always be managed smartly and carefully. Sending an alert to your consumers in the middle of the night is never a good idea.
One more thing which you must ensure is that your notifications adds some value to your users and are not plain advertisement or gimmicks therefore, manage Push Notifications in and it will help in growing your app substantially.
In-app, ordering and making payments
Online and in-app ordering lets your customers always avoid the lines or the wait for the order to be taken and processed. The ability to pay for their food orders beforehand takes customer convenience one step ahead.
Other than that, customers who order online tend to visit the restaurant 67% more often than those who don’t. While, 26% customers state they use a restaurant’s app for the ease of making the payment for their orders beforehand.
Loyalty, rewards and discounts programs
The most important is the fact that the cost of attracting a new customer is 5 times higher than the cost of keeping one i.e. earning brand loyalty is cheaper than creating brand attractiveness and awareness.
This is exactly why some of the big names in the industry pay close attention to their loyalty programs first. For instance, Starbucks has successfully increased their sales by 80% when they introduced loyalty and discount programs.
Location based services
The prevalence of location based services have given brands the ability to engage with their potential customers, even before they step into the brick and mortar location.
Consider it as the modern day equivalent of handing out flyers to passer-bys, promoting the restaurants deals, menu improvements, discounts and other news.
Multiple platforms (app store & google play)
It is obvious after developing an app you want everyone to notice it. And this would be only possible if your app is accessible on different platforms like (App Store & Play Store).
Multiple avenues for your app makes it visible to all the users of all different platform which in turn results in them downloading and subsequently increasing your users.
Ensure that you maintain the quality of your Apps in each platform.
Social media integration
Social media integration has become a permanent feature for every app out there in the market. For the restaurant industry even more, what with the customer’s need to review their experience with the restaurant, take pictures of themselves and food and upload them to their social media accounts like Instagram, FaceBook, SnapChat etc.
Not only this you can leverage the social media and tie it with your loyalty/discount programs to entice existing customers to earn points and rewards for inviting new customers/friends.
Personalization
Personalization has become a significant feature in On-Demand Applications in the recent times. In this feature the app tracks and analyses the user’s activities & behavior and suggests relevant products & services. Thus it helps in engaging and building a very promising relationship with the customer.
Chatbots
A chatbot is a relatively new technology into trend nowadays, and restaurant app owners are embracing it with both hands. Chatbots are computer programs or AI (latest versions) which mimics conversations with users to provide them a solution for their basic queries like answering FAQs.
With the use of AI, chatbots they can take personalization to another level. Including this feature in your app can give make your app stand out from the rest.
Customer feedback portal
Customer Feedback is the simplest and most effective way of getting insights about your web app and thus to improve. It is imperative to continuously review your app and make necessary changes in it to keep yourself shoulder to shoulder up with the competitors.
Conclusion :
Whether you’re a restaurant owner looking to improve sales, customer loyalty and retention or you’re an entrepreneur investing in your next venture of online food ordering and/or delivery service – the above features are a must to include into your app. We @75way will help you do this very efficiently.
For more information and assistance please visit www.75way.com
