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How Beacons Can Help Enhance Restaurant Dining Experience

According to a recent survey, around five billion people are using mobile phones, customers’ wants to network and connect with their favorite restaurants. Beacon technology has entered the restaurant market. And, beacons in restaurants  is about to transform the entire industry. For a few years from now, the term “beacon” is circulated among tech enthusiasts. Earlier, very limited entrepreneurs were actively using beacon. However, a lot of other industries, including restaurants, have started exploring beacon. For those who are not aware about beacon technology for restaurant, here is some brief about it.

Andrew Levi, Blue Calypso has provided this explanation in a concise and easily understandable manner:

Beacons can be placed anywhere in a restaurant or nearby location and rely on a smart phone’s Bluetooth connection to transmit information directly to a mobile app that’s listening for their signal. These devices are highly cost effective.  The mobile solutions provider companies who specialize in providing software programs purchase these devices to manage the delivery of messages. The customer must first download an app, either a universal or branded one that will listen for the beacon’s signal. Once the beacon is initially connected and the customer opts-in to receive information, the beacon will automatically begin pinging the smart phone. Messages are delivered each time a connected smartphone passes by a beacon, regardless if the app is open or not” (Andrew Levi, 2016).

Beacons will help restaurant to enhance interaction with customers with the use of beacon. Moreover, places like malls, airlines and stadiums are using beacon to ease their operations. And now, restaurants have also joined the bandwagon. 

Beacon-based Proximity Restaurant Marketing 

What exactly is proximity marketing for restaurants?

Proximity marketing refers to communicating with customers at the right place, the right time and with  appropriate and personalised messages, on their smartphones. Be it greeting at the entry points, special offers in the store aisles, or getting feedback on a new product. This all is pretty simple with beacons in restaurants.

How does proximity marketing work (using beacons)?

We will look into an example of a restaurant to see how marketing works using beacons.

  • Beacons are deployed at the restaurant front with ongoing offers.
  • These BLE beacons transmit signals in its range. BLE signals are a combination of numbers and characters.
  • Any Bluetooth-enabled smartphone, in the transmitting range, detect the signals.
  • Then, the smartphone sends the ID number attached to the signal to the cloud server.
  • Accordingly, the server checks the action assigned to that ID number and responds. It could be a notification about a discount, or offers, a feedback form or just a greeting!
  • These notifications will then drive customers to a relevant form, a web page or a markdown card (a Beaconstac card creative which works as a substitute for a website).

Further, we will discuss in detail about how beacons can help restaurants to enhance dining experience with customer:

How Restaurants Can Use Beacon for Convenience of Customers

Beacons in restaurants

Beacons will allow customers to make mobile payment:

Most people have got a mobile phone these days; many consumers are becoming aware of handy mobile payment options. With change in technology and changing consumer behavior, consumers expect the same features from their favorite restaurants.

In fact, according to a recent study by Latitude,” an international research consultancy, 61% of people agrees that they have a better opinion of brands that offer a good mobile experience”.

With the help of beacon, customers will choose your restaurant instead of competitors.

Lessen wait time for customers

Beacons will make sure that customers get a quick service. You can begin by letting your customers order ahead. However, a number of mobile commerce apps such as Q app have successfully integrated order-ahead capabilities into their apps. This, in turn, helps restaurants to increase their average order value by cutting down on waiting time. Because, the moment a customer walks down the restaurant, beacons help notify managers, without the guest doing anything. 

According to a recent study by Technomic, a research firm in the food service industry, casual dining restaurants, a segment that generally generates around $160 billion every year, saw a mere rise of just 2% last year.

Rewards for customer 

Beacon will help to drive meetings and engagements by easily interlacing your customers wants and preferences by offering rewards. Since the past few years,  the popularity of loyalty programs for the customers staying loyal to the brand is continuously rising.

For example:- Mook, a German restaurant group, recently integrated iBeacon technology within their existing mobile app. It will reward their customers for spending time at the restaurant.

Enhance dining and clubbing experience   

Nowadays, surplus of offers and deals strafe the customers. Beacons are, for sure, the next trend for restaurant industry. Beacons in restaurants deliver hyper contextualized content to users based on their location. Hence, they provide an extremely personalized experience to consumers and enhance their engagement with the brand. Further, gamification acts as an important business strategy to drive customer engagements. In the case of events, beacons help restaurants to strengthen connections with their customers by giving them offers and rewards for doing specific actions.

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Recently, iBeacon technology was used to enhance conventional downtown pub crawl night out. The venues in lower New York, installed beacons to allow party crawlers to use the Beacon Crawl app. The Beacon Crwal app detect beacons, answer the challenges, and gain special rewards like  drinks, foods and similar such advantages.

Push notifications regarding offers 

The main use of beacons in restaurants is to provide important push notifications to customers. Also, they have to keep in mind  to not bury customers with notifications, as this would result in or uninstalling an app. The important aspect here is to have a proper understanding of the value offered to customers. And, also convey them in best possible way.

Better insights into restaurant traffic

With the  help of Beacons in restaurants, one can collect huge amounts of data. Such data include customer dwell time at beacons within a specified time and date range. These can be the most busiest hours throughout the whole week, the amount of customers served etc., and  make enhancement on better allocation of staff and services

Deliver custom menus and pricing to valued customers

One innovative way to personalize customers dining experience is to station beacons in such a way which will provide menus according to customer’s previous order and history. Top of it, restaurants can offer coupons who visits frequently. Also, restaurants can offer discounts for the first-time customers to encourage them to come back often.

Conclusion :

With the help of Beacons,  restaurants have the ability to engage customers in a better way through a real-world experience. At the same time, they are also able to understand, analyse, and take necessary actions with regards to consumers needs and interests.

How To Increase ROI Through Food Ordering And Delivering Apps?

A customer’s perception on choosing a food and ordering online varies depending upon their preferences. But, in the perspective of a restaurant, you have to satisfy all those customer needs. And, also generate a profitable ROI by providing customers with a unique restaurant mobile app solution.  Restaurant app development must be inclusive of features that meet your customer expectations as well as meet your restaurant ROI generating mission goals. Looking for ways on how to generate higher profitable ROI through your food ordering and delivering apps? You have come to the right  place. This article discusses on different approaches on how you can increase your ROI through food ordering mobile app development. 

Game-changing Ways To Increase ROI For Your Online Food Ordering And Delivering App

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Following are some of the approaches that your food business can channelize the efforts. These efforts will increase sales, increase customer satisfaction, increase customer base and, in turn, increase ROI. 

Offering deals never goes out of style 

You can offer various kinds  of deals to your customer through your food ordering and delivering app to increase the ROI.  Below are some of the efficient deals and offers that satisfy customers and also increase customer loyalty. 

Deal based on geo-location 

Each place has a customer segment of its own with different food preferences. In every place, there will be a majority segment of food that is mostly preferred by customers. This varies from place to place. For example, one particular customer community might prefer more of sugary foods. Another customer community may prefer more of spicy foods, while as a different customer community may prefer spicy foods mixed with a pinch of sugary combo and so on. Being in the food  business, first you have to understand the food preferences of each place and then customize foods according to the location to meet the majority customer group expectations. 

For each of these location-based food preferences, you can give discount offers accordingly. You can even promote people to try different food preferences by giving discounts to expose customers towards new taste or while trying to figure out if a particular food will sell best at the current location. 

Deals through geo-fencing

Have you got notified by a restaurant regarding its food offers based on the location when you are travelling or just walking past a restaurant?  This is possible through geo-fencing technology. You can use the beacon technology to detect customers location through their mobile UPS. This helps You to provide them with relevant push notifications such as offers, promotions and discounts. 

Build strategic customer loyalty programs  

Without customer loyalty, generating ROI becomes almost impossible. If customers don’t find a unique reason to come back and use your food services, then the chances of losing your food business becomes higher. But, if you increase customer loyalty, even the chances of expanding your food business throughout the country becomes a piece of cake. 

Increase customer loyalty by providing convenient payment options to customers. Also, provide interesting combo offers or a free merchandise for every purchase and order. You can also provide double offers of special occasions such as friendship day, Valentine’s  day, Christmas, New Year, ThanksGiving, etc. These special offers can be customized even further by providing offers once a week on special food items that don’t sell much to decrease the shelf life of all food products. 

You have to understand that Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) is a constant demand. And,  if you find any food product that is not moving, then either you change the menu, remove the particular food product or sell it through offers. You can also increase customer loyalty by allowing customers to decide their own ingredients and combo packs like in the case of Subway. 

Allow customers to make reservations 

Sometimes customers may want to book tables at your restaurant rather than ordering them online. Make the process of reserving tables easier and quicker. Through your food ordering and delivering app, customers must be able to quickly connect with your executives through a call or a chat to make reservations at their preferred day, date and location. For special reservations such as birthdays, anniversaries, event hosting or product launches, you can host their celebrations in such a that it is memorable to everyone who attends it. 

This is also a way to increase customer loyalty. Thus, make the process of making reservations pleasant for your customers. 

Integrate social media features with your food ordering and delivering app 

Don’t forget the importance of social media. They have the ability and capability to directly, indirectly increase and reduce your food business value. It all depends on your quality of service. Integrate social media features that allow customers to post photos. Customers can give reviews about your food business in platforms such as Facebooks, Instagram, Uber Eats, etc. 

One customer post one photo,  ten customers may see it and hundred customers may talk about it. This leads to at least fifty customers try your food ordering services. If one photo has that kind of reach, imagine how much customers a lakh of photos would bring to try your food services. The same is possible with reviews. Always respond to customer reviews as quickly as possible. Delayed response and failure to responding customer queries will only reduce your food business value. Also, the chances of your brand image to get hurt is high. So, never underestimate the power of customers connecting with each other through social media. Use the technology to your advantage. 

Provide order online-takeout services 

There are customers who prefer to pick-up their food themselves because they believe that self-pick up means better food quality and the chances of food not getting destroyed by delivery professionals are also high. Delivery professional have one too many customers to deliver foods at doorstep before maximum delivery time. So, in the rush to quickly deliver, they may tend to drive rash or faster which may destroy the food quality. Hence, self-pick up ensures customer satisfaction too. 

Allow customers to order food online and pick up the order themselves at their own scheduled timings. You can also increase your Point of Sales (PoS) by using PoS systems. PoS systems increase the volume of order, efficiently channelize investments into all food operations such as resource procurement, manufacturing and logistic support. 

In a nutshell: Implement efficiently and increase your ROI positively 

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Using technology at the right time and right place can create wonders for your online food ordering business. Using technology at the wrong time and place can accomplish the exact opposite of profits. Such situation you would not want to happen or even dream of. For example, using ondemand call buttons in your food app can connect customers with your restaurant instantly. Implementing this in a place where majority customers use mobile internet will be successful. However, if you implement the same in a place where customers using mobile internet are fewer, it may cause a heavy loss. 

So, count your unique ideas, establish a unique selling proposition,  create a wonder of ordering food without hurting the comfort zone of your customers. Accomplish this and your ROI of food ordering and delivering app would increase at a rocket speed. Let us know what are the other way do you think, ordering food online businesses can increase their revenue. 

What Is The Perfect Time For Your On-Demand Food Delivery Venture

The tremendous growth of food market, and especially on-demand food delivery, in last few years is persuading every business venture to make their online presence more solid. Do you know Global market has crossed almost 83 billion Euros for food delivery merely? All the food ventures are trying hard to eliminate the hassle of bringing food home for the people with busy schedules. Thus, facilitating them with grocery delivery, ready to make things delivery and even mid-night delivery.

If your competitors are doing so much for on-demand food delivery, why don’t you step out of your comfort zone and facilitate your customers well!

Food Delivery Apps

Top factors to rely on while determining the right time to launch your on-demand food delivery venture

We all know people prefer things at their comfort and according to their clock at the same time, due to which the on-demand food delivering is evolving at a great pace. To fill the voids between a professional and his food, the development of food delivery app is vital. It is easy to start your own on-demand food delivery venture. However, it is necessary to adhere to the business ethics of the food industry, which seems a difficult task sometimes.

food ondemand

Moreover, you can take the example of top-rated food ventures that comes with the have their restaurant app development done and is working really beneficially for them. Likewise- The very renowned names like Uber and GrubHub, these two ride-sharing businesses must have estimated the benefits that food industry is getting in duration. So, getting inspired and taking your ideas to some extra heights is a good idea for sure. Therefore, getting on demand food delivery app development beforehand will be really convenient for your startup.

So, you ought to follow the forth-given ways to make your startup utmost successful and bring an ease to your customers’ life that other topnotch startups like – Zomato, Uber-eats and Swiggy are giving to their clients-

Read More -: A Study on Customers’ Perception Towards Food Delivery App Development

Step 1: Follow an appropriate flow of model

Begin your business model with the listing down of the integral partners which you need to collaborate with you. You need to contact and keep in touch with investors, food joints, renowned restaurants and hotels, tech partners, legal advisors and payment processors. These all people will begin and facilitate your startup. Then make a list of the activities that need to be done with all the partners connected.

Step 2: Build user friendly website and app

What if user finds a task full of annoyance to just sign up to your app? So, don’t forget to put in the main ingredient while the food ordering android app development. It will take a few seconds to leave the registration process of your app if its complex. There must be various options available to facilitate the user with sign up, like most people find it easy to simply enter his social media details to register. So, always put an extra eye on this feature this is the beginning of your food delivery app and if it is not appealing it will affect your conversions.

Step 3: Choose the efficient channels for promotions

Promotions are great ways to go ahead with any business. To let people propel with your business well, you need to have a great way out for the advertisement after getting your online food ordering app development. The ways other than application are the social media; you can use any medium to promote your venture such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and many more. You can also seek the shelter of online campaigns and paid promotions.

Besides that you can also give various discounts and offers, such as one on one 10 percent discount today and many others. In this technological era, people love receiving technical giveaways, you can use any of the promotional products for your brand. All you need to do is to check your investment resources and make a budget and get your business nice promotional items with your brand name imprinted on them.

Step 4: Right way tackle the ordering and tracking

Once you are all set with the menu and activities, you must move to the next segment where you have to set order and tracking for your on-demand food delivery venture. Tell your restaurant app development company to add the sections where users can add or omit their desired dishes to the cart easily. The speed of the app loading should be good enough to provide the user of any age group instant response to order. Moreover, proper GPS tracking must be enabled to keep the users in the loop of ETA. Thus, there must be hassle-free delivery with proper tracking system to facilitate the customer with ease at their own comfort.

Step 5: Payments ought to be secured

Another important point that causes major difference is the effective and safe payment methods. Restaurant finder app development should be done by keeping in mind the safe payments by offering various payment methods. Just like Uber eats comes with easy and safe payments, you can look forward for suggestions. Besides, every payment must be accompanied by a message and instant notifications to assure the customers that you have received the payments.

Over to you! Now launch your on-demand food delivery venture

So, basically you need to give good user experience to your customer by every means and make your customer reach satisfactory level. If your customers will be happy they will definitely recommend your app to others which will enhance your conversions and the customer base. Besides, your help lines must be easily accessible and your team must be approachable in case of any issue with client. So, simply follow all the points suggested above in this article to reach the maximum heights of your online on-demand food delivery startup just like Zomato and Uber-eats. Good Luck!

Food Delivery App Development – A Study on Customers’ Perception

What is the secret sauce to rule the market and win customers with popular food delivery apps like the Deliveroo, GrubHub or Postmates? In order to go for online food ordering app development that results in maximum customer satisfaction, you must delve deeper into the details about what the customers need from your app. The winning factor of a mobile application lies in the research. A company can use the findings to establish its brand in today’s competitive market.

So, if you are thinking of developing a food ordering app, knowing your customers is very crucial. What are the expectations of customers? Why do they choose food apps?

Need for Food Ordering App Development

As per Statista, the on-demand food delivery market will show an annual growth rate of 17.7% resulting in the market volume of a whopping $234,206 million in 2022.

Also, if we have to talk about the largest segment of food delivery, it is ‘Online Takeaway’ with a market sizeof $110,044 million in 2018.

The food delivery market has an immense potential for robust growth. Besides, there are never-ending opportunities if startups and entrepreneurs are planning to invest in food delivery apps. But, let us know what customers need from such apps.

What Customers Expect From Your Food Delivery App?

The face of any business comprises of how you meet the expectations of the customers in an efficient way. The right on-demand food ordering app solution is what customers need the most. So, any food app development company must have the right food delivery app so that consumers can connect with restaurants and food outlets at any time.

Further, below are the expectations of users from an online food delivery app which also impacts  the success of any online food ordering app development company.

A simple user interface

An easy to use and simple user interface for users to browse through everything is what they want. Customers wish to see what you have in the restaurant, make online payments and place online orders that drive their appetite.

A simple user profile with the ability to login and maintain an account is a mandatory part of an app. Users should also be able to access the list restaurant of restaurants. Moreover, every user will like to save their favorite restaurants or dishes for easier access.

In fact, even chatbots with a user-friendly UI can make it easier for customers to place orders or clear any doubts. These are computer programs which behave just like human beings. Customers can have conversations with chatbots to get a solution to basic queries like giving answers for FAQs. They can actually make the lives of customers easier by answering basic questions instead of being an answering machine.

Today, any restaurant app development company has access to APIs, plugins, and other features that can improve the approach-ability of their app. For instance, iOS developers can make use of Siri to allow users to control the app with their voice. Even Android developers can use inbuilt features like GPS and Bluetooth to place their orders or locate the restaurants. Customers can share the reviews of the food even via messages in an animated and stylish way that can appeal the recipients. Besides, the emoji feature can make communication more personal and vibrant.

Easy placement of orders

Easy order placement is one of the basic features that every customer expects from a food delivery app. Apps must be able to get rid of the various issues that arise while placing orders via a phone call. A full updated version of a digital menu card will also let the customers know what types of cuisine a restaurant is offering. This will help them place orders in a faster manner. Customers don’t need to waste time asking the restaurants about what they are offering.

Reservation – advance table booking

Customers always want a table reservation option for their favourite restaurants. Whether it is high-end eatery or a small restaurant, they must not find it difficult to get a table at walk-in. Not getting a table at the right time can make users feel frustrated and embarrassed.  Thus, the long waits to get a table must never be there. In fact, advanced reservation booking gives them an opportunity to plan their evening well. Moreover, it’s also beneficial for potential diners to consider the wait time and get themselves on the list.

Geo-location map facility

A geo-location map feature is the most important part of a food delivery app. When customers want to identify their favourite restaurants to order food, this technology can help to notify app users when they are near the restaurant. Also, it can help in persuading them with in-app messages about various special offers and discounts.

Apart from this, location-based services like beacons and geo-fencing have benefitted top restaurant brands like anything. Brands like the McDonalds have benefitted a lot by including beacons in their restaurants. Also, restaurants can attract customers through apps like Bookatable. They are now able to engage with potential customers, even before customers step into the restaurants.

Loyalty referral programs

One might argue that the food and the ambience of a restaurant are the only driving forces for getting customers for a lifetime. But, what is that forces a customer to return? Of course, loyalty referral and reward programs. They are the keys to a loyalist customer base. Also, customers want everything to be convenient. So, your food ordering app must store every detail of the customer. This includes their order history, food preferences and favourite lists of restaurants.

Moreover, the loyalty programs should be able to give the frequent customers some added value. The rewards can be anything from a  free meal to cheap movie tickets. Meal deals and vouchers can also serve the purpose as consumers can redeem mobile vouchers at restaurants. Thus, loyalty reward programs suitable for your brand image will be very beneficial for your company.

Easy options for payment

Which is the part of the food ordering process that customers dread the most? The payment option.

According to a survey conducted by Statista, 42% of the online shoppers worldwide say that they prefer to pay via credit card. Also, 39% of the online payment users prefer electronic payment mode and 28% opt for debit cards.

 

Thus, a food delivery app development company must keep in mind that most of the customers prefer easy methods of payment. This includes net banking, credit cards, debit cards, cash on delivery, mobile wallets etc. Though 39% of the online payment mode lovers prefer electronic payment methods, they only want Paypal. It is clear that customers are afraid of hackers that may hamper the transaction process. So, proper security measures are necessary to safeguard all transactions. Cash on delivery is also an easy payment option that must be convenient for the users.

Online tracking and fast delivery

The whole process of food delivery doesn’t end after receiving, packing and dispatching an order. The most vital part is when customers must have the information about where the food has reached. When a food delivery app development company offers real-time tracking options, customers appreciate. In fact,  those who place their food orders while travelling find this feature very useful. Moreover, it can save time as customers can guide the delivery agents about the best routes too.

Customization and personalization

If you are choosing on-demand food delivery app development, two features are very crucial. These are personalization and customization. Everyone will like their apps to look more familiar to them. And that is why personalization is a key feature. Most of the customers appreciate it too. This is because you save them from the trouble of searching for their favourite cuisines. With least efforts, customers can get what they need. Moreover, it helps restaurants in building better relationships with their customers.

Also, a good food ordering mobile app must let customers customize their orders as per their choice. . Be it, the toppings on a pizza or the amount of spice in your dish, customization makes customers’ lives easier and tongues tastier. Giving them what they are searching for is what a food delivery app must do. Customization makes customers feel special. It also helps them in relishing various dishes the way they wish to. In fact, the order history and suggestions of customers help a lot too. They make things easier for the app development companies.

Signing off…

To sum up, one must know that customers are the backbone for any business to flourish. No doubt, the on-demand food delivery app development companies have a promising future. But, it is futile unless your app is actually fulfilling all the needs of the consumers. So, what are you thinking? Would you consider the above features while developing your own food ordering app? What will be your approach for online food ordering add development?