Blink’s Online ordering systems for restaurants Is a Game Changer in 2021

If restaurant marketing stats are more than enough to whet your appetite, go ahead and enter ‘Free Online ordering systems for restaurants ’ in Google.

Let us sum the results for you.

People have been using free Online ordering systems for restaurants  in droves through dedicated mobile apps, web searches, and other means. Almost 2% of the global food consumer base uses the term to order food online.

The trend depicts increased traction among users who use the same ‘Online ordering systems for restaurants ’ for placing orders through web searches and restaurant name-brand mobile apps. There’s also a probability for any sample size that 26% of the group will prefer ordering food through online system, instead of going for the regular walk-in experience.

If we were to further elaborate on the recent transition of people switching to the Online ordering systems for restaurants, as opposed to conventional dine-in experience, here’s how we’d highlight the effect.

• Millennials Have Short Attention Span:

Overall, an average restaurant customer from the millennial generation prefers fast servicing and a quick online ordering system. Top it off with the current generation’s tenacity to have a shorter attention span as compared to Baby Boomers, Generation X and Y, you can see that companies no longer create lengthy food ads.

Those commercials are short, to the point, and always highlight the best and the fastest way to Online ordering systems for restaurants through some kind of clickable button.

• Why Wait in Queues When Food Can be Ordered Online?

An average working-class customer doesn’t have too long to spend in restaurant wait queues when it comes to an exquisite dine-in experience. If that said restaurant is a popular one, reservations have to be made several weeks in advance – and that too without any guarantees whether you will get the seat at your favorite table, or not.

That’s one reason for people to stick to the Free ‘Online ordering systems for restaurants ’, rather than driving all the way to their local F&B establishment(s).

Before We Forget – Here’s One of The Main Reasons for Using Smart Online Ordering Systems for Restaurants

Lest we fail to mention these key points later, it’s better to note them down right now. The most important aspect of online ordering systems for restaurants is:

Restaurant Menu Engineering Matrix:

Ever thought about why a select number of food menu items aren’t selling high, as compared to those menu choices that are relatively expensive?

As it turns out, there’s a bit of science that goes into creating a restaurant menu system. Technically, it is called ‘Restaurant Menu Engineering.’ Your entire online food order menu is divided into four main categories:

Stars

These are the obvious high popularity food items in your restaurant online ordering system. Even if you increase the price by a modest percentage, the items will continue to sell high because of their popularity, tastefulness, and overall hype. Expect to make a decent profit from these options.

Horse(s)

Horses are your popular food menu items, but they do not sell too high through online ordering apps for restaurants. The best way of selling “horses” is by combining them as combo deals with the star category food menu.

You may have seen it at KFC and other burger joints already. They often propose combo deals. Why is that so? Of course, it helps the name-brand to make a profit, but there is a possibility that a portion of the food menu relates to the horse category, and it doesn’t do well when it’s sold alone.

Puzzle:

Puzzle items are those food menu items that are a total mystery. Sometimes people buy them, sometimes they are ignored.

To best figure out a way to sell puzzle food category items through online ordering systems for restaurants, execute promo deal campaigns directly from the convenience of online ordering apps for restaurants’ dashboard.

You can also market puzzle items through your restaurant’s social media page.

Measure the results carefully, and see if these items sell through combo deals, or within a specific seasonal time period. This way, you will have a better idea about monetizing such food items before removing them entirely from the food order menu.

Dog:

In the end, we’ve got the (Under)Dog food item in your restaurant menu. It’s a low profit: low popularity menu option that can be safely removed to be replaced with something more enticing.

Overall, restaurant menu engineering involves a lot of logical thinking and patience. This is why it is an important component of online ordering systems. We recommend doing thorough research on how to set up your restaurant menu through a free scheduled demo call with Blink Co. reps.

Find out more details at Blink for Restaurants Page to get started immediately.

• COVID-19 Caused a Stir in the Food Ordering Pattern:

According to eMarketer’s June 2019 – 2020 survey, the number of restaurant customers to use Online ordering systems for restaurants  was at 21.9%. The sample size of the respondents was a staggering 36.4 million in June 2019.

Moving on to the year 2020 results, eMarketer experts reported not only an increase in sample size, reaching 45.6 million food consumers but also an increase in the percentage by a whopping 4%. This surge in the Online ordering systems for restaurants trend is attributed to the COVID-19 and the respective healthcare policies going into full effect.

While restaurants, like many other business establishments, were restricted from opening their local branches, customers also took extra precautions to keep physical interaction with fellow human beings at bay.

As a result, the online food ordering system gained traction in 2020 where more and more people were looking for sources concerning Online ordering systems for restaurants for their favorite name-brand restaurants.

Interestingly, the trend exhibits a downward spike in 2021 for food ordering platforms on the internet. But experts suggest that it’s just a temporal shift. By 2021, the percentage will go back to its “usual” as people have become used to the new normal that came into effect after COVID-19 restrictions were held into place.

Besides, ordering food online is a lot easier as opposed to going to your local restaurant. You don’t have to drive; you don’t need to wait in queue or bother your waiter over and over again for re-heating the food – if that seems to be part of your regular inquiries.

In a nutshell, as a restaurant business owner looking to operate in 2021 and beyond, you can draw many conclusions from the aforementioned statistics.

The important thing, however, is that the digital restaurant marketplace has quadrupled in 2020. It’s a known and indisputable fact that the growth in the food industry is expected to scale in the future due to the upshift in the systems for restaurants effect from all over the world.

How to Get Maximum Benefit from ‘Online ordering systems for restaurants ’ for New Restaurants?

Elaborating on different platforms for food ordering systems is a lengthy endeavor. For this very reason, consider this post as a prequel to rather detailed insights on the subject matter through another dedicated write-up.

For now, the majority of the ‘ordering systems for restaurants ’ focus will be on the online mobile apps. By and large, they have proven their worth not only as a convenient ordering solution for millions of customers from all over the world but also restaurant owners who wish to engage in increased customer outreach through an online portal.

Mobile App(s) to Help Your Restaurant Outrank Competition in a Big Way:

From March 2019 to March 2020, eMarketer, online marketing, and survey platform revealed a lot of interesting information related to the use of mobile apps for food ordering and the overall ordering systems for restaurants owners.

Interestingly, the survey suggested a steady decline in people who prefer dining in over the course of one year during the survey duration. While you could argue that the eMarketer.com survey was only focused on one geographical location – i.e. the U.S, we can look at other country’s state to see how online marketing mobile food apps have been faring to date.

For instance, if we were to look at the same trend from a global consumer perspective, ‘Citi Research’ respondents suggest that approx. 46% of restaurant-goers are “more likely” to order food online instead of going for the dine-in experience.

This reason is attributed to COVID’s impact on the industry, and as well as causing people to adapt to the new normal – so much so that a person’s in today’s day and time prefers ordering food over the internet because it seems more convenient now.

Likewise, those restaurants in the food industry that were quick to follow the trend by either creating their own mobile food apps or partnering up with a mitigator for an Online ordering systems for restaurants generated increased revenue over a short duration.

In that order, the U.S. food industry reflected an increase in billion dollars worth of revenue by 123.8% in the year 2020 alone. The majority of this chunk came in from people who placed food and dietary item orders online, instead of going to their local restaurants.

But enough of the mouth-watering stats here’s how having a mobile food ordering app can benefit your restaurant business tenfold.

1. Cashless Experience is Better for Customers:

Food ordering apps and online ordering systems free for restaurants thrive on multiple payment options.

While online food customers have the option to pay upfront via their Debit or Credit Card, the majority of the fellas prefer going the ‘Cash on Delivery’ route. Besides, it’s safe and always guarantees a lossless transaction at both ends where customers know that they will only pay when their food order arrives at the doorstep.

In other words, a cashless food ordering experience bespeaks increased growth in restaurant revenue by providing customers peace of mind.

The question is, why do these customers prefer Cash on Delivery instead of paying in advance for their food through an online payment system.

Although it’s not uncommon for transactions to reverse and/or never show up in restaurants’ online accounts, there’s always a chance that it could happen. Many people don’t prefer paying first for their online food orders because they’ve had such a harrowing experience in the past, or perhaps, one of their friends did.

Alternatively, a restaurant could be happily accepting your payment, but failing to fulfill your order due to any number of reasons. Call it a high order volume on a given day, or maybe the crew’s inability to accommodate customers’ requests on time, it can always happen.

That’s all the more reason for introducing a cashless mobile experience in food ordering apps. And that’s why people love to order their favorite food through such online ordering systems free.

• An Overall Delightful Consumer Experience:

These days, food ordering apps are laced with all kinds of perks to offer a wholesome customer experience to everyone on the internet.

From time-gated discount deals to rewards programs, restaurant online food ordering apps have it all. That’s one more reason for mobile phone apps making up for a major chunk of any restaurant’s revenue in 2021, and beyond, because a virtual experience offers a decluttered approach to getting things done fast.

Customers no longer have to rummage through old receipts in their wallets, and handbags to use discount codes. Since everything is maintained in people’s online accounts, they can redeem food coupons within a matter of seconds.

All the more, there’s the free rating and review option that always helps fellow customers to gain insight on any food vendor before placing an order. This feature, alone, has doubled the revenue stream for many top-state restaurants that have been rendering their services online ever since the pandemic situation broke out.

• Lesser Mistakes Lead to Lesser Problems for Restaurants:

All thanks to the advancement in technology, a traditional online ordering systems for restaurants is topped up with the state of the art security for customers, a fast ordering process, and a properly maintained database.

In other words, going paperless has reaped far more benefits for both sides – i.e. the customer and the restaurant business owners as compared to conventional mediums.

In that order, if you are a brand-new restaurant business owner, this is the perfect time for you to get your restaurant’s dedicated mobile ordering app off the ground. Any high-quality online food application costs around $10,000 to $35,000 easily. You could negotiate the package with your app developer, but most likely, it will be happening at a high price.

If you happen to be operating on a shoestring budget, then there’s nothing to worry about.

You can, however, sign up with a restaurant services provider who operates solely on the internet with the added benefit of showcasing name-brand-centric food apps without any extra charges.

How does it work?

In simple words, you sign up with a business partner that equips your restaurant with a white-labeled servicing system that works like any other popular food ordering app. Depending on the service provider, your restaurant could become part of several other name brands cramped up within a single mobile app that eliminates the need to worry about running marketing campaigns and other stuff for that matter.

Take, Blink Co, as a fine example of a restaurant services provider. Any existing restaurant owner, or food startup, can easily sign up on a month to month basis for a fully-fledged virtual account that offers the following benefits:

• A white-labeled back and front end with tools specific to your restaurant’s operational agenda.
• Customized menu system to help create multiple menus within 5 – 10 minutes.
• Flexible payment options for your online restaurant customers.
• Marketing campaigns, discount deals, and other perks to kick your name-brand presence in no time.
• Customizable menu items.
• The dedicated mobile experience for your restaurant customers and food delivery agents.
• Exclusive insight on powerful marketing data, customer analytics, buying trends, and user reports for laser-sharp target-oriented results.

… and about a bazillion more perks that food businesses are known for reportedly enjoying with Blink Co. More details are available on the ‘Blink for Restaurants’ webpage.

To sum it up, any restaurant, regardless of whichever business partner it chooses to sign up with, can benefit from such online servicing portals through the following ways.

1. Restaurants can handle online orders coming in with focused precision and accuracy.
2. There’s a well-maintained transactional record system so that numbers can match up by the end of each quarter easily.
3. Ability to offer customers loyalty reward points and other incentives through a digitized online ordering system for restaurants.
4. Improved efficiency at the cost of reduced expenses on infrastructure maintenance, local marketing tactics, and vice versa.
5. Everything is kept secure via cloud-based backups and up-to-date security patches – hence resulting in peace of mind for both the customer and the said food business owner.

What about Customer-Centric Benefits of Using a Mobile Ordering System Free for Restaurants?

Setting aside the business owners, as we mentioned earlier, there are plenty of benefits for any customer to use a mobile food ordering app.

Here’s what top-rated mobile food applications are best sought out for:

• Customers don’t have to wait in queues for tables to become available.
• Food is always delivered hot and in a freshly cooked state.
• Multiple payment options make it easier for people to use such online food ordering apps.
• A plethora of discount deals to avail for restaurant regulars.
• Order food from any place at any time. What else could a person ask for?

Online Ordering Systems for Restaurants to Promote Contactless Delivery

Technology in the food industry was quick to adapt to health-related policies in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic situation.

We already had the contactless payment option, where online food ordering customers could use flexible payment modes to pay for their orders. These new payment modes encouraged the easy integration of contactless delivery options in the food ordering app. Customers could easily pay for their orders in advance and mention a drop-off point where delivery agents could simply leave the package for collection afterward.

Due to the pandemic situation, the way consumers place food orders and their restaurant experience has changed forever. The new normal is all about digitally interacting with customers as an addendum to the traditional marketing model. Online sales have increased restaurants’ order volume anywhere from 30% – 50% in a given week.

Technology to Affect Restaurants ‘Internet of Behavior’ Science

‘IoB’ or the Internet of Behavior is about capturing, analyzing, and understanding the physical and digital representations of customers’ behavior. Later on, these patterns are monetized through technology to prepare in advance for any predictions that are more likely to happen in near future.

For instance, first-party transactions can be combined with player stats, weather conditions, and inventory to make predictions about the customers’ behavior on game day. As a result, the technology can point out areas of the venue that will be most crowded, least crowded, or not crowded at all.

Likewise, if this technology is fully embraced by the food and beverage industry, it will have a positive impact on the amount of business volume that mobile food trucks can get. Knowing in advance about an upcoming venue’s population is a key element for food truck business operators to prepare accordingly, market on social media pages, and much more.

A Must-Have for Modern Restaurants Looking to Operate In 2021:

An overwhelming number of restaurant and food industry businesses report positive results after making the transition to an online food ordering system for their respective customers.

Such portals take the ‘tried and true business practices to the next level, by helping restaurants to expand their outreach and the ability to procure steady revenue through multiple income streams. If you are considering starting your own restaurant business, you should definitely have a plan in place to introduce an Online ordering systems for restaurants down the road.

After all, it’s efficient, robust, and comes with an arsenal of ready-to-use marketing tools that would have otherwise been inaccessible in many alternate business scenarios.