2018 Digital Restaurant Trends — Keep a Close Eye on These Consumer Driven Impacts
The vast majority of current digital consumer trends that significantly effect the restaurant landscape are not groundbreaking new concepts. A prime example of this is Mobile Ordering, a tool that restaurants have utilized for years. However, combining tech and AI with Mobile Ordering is quite new. There are always the Starbucks and Chick-fil-As of the world, that have been combining mobile ordering with tech for some time now. Other restaurant brands have been much slower to react and gain any traction on that front, which can be attributed to anything from being old-fashioned, stubborn and unwilling to change to simply not believing in the value of innovation and tech that favors convenience to your valued customers.
Digital consumer trends are becoming more significant than ever before, in terms of keeping your business healthy well into the future and remaining profitable year in and year out. Pizza restaurant brands have been focusing on delivery since their creation, and today they are seeing half of their sales coming through digital channel ordering for delivery and/or pickup. Pizza chains that have perfected this approach are Domino’s and Pizza Hut, and they are not stopping there. They are in the constant pursuit of growth and convenience to the customer, especially after recent research showed that people spend an average of 18% more per order when utilizing Mobile Ordering. Below you will find the top two digital consumer trends that are changing the landscape of the restaurant industry:
Mobile Ordering
When the year 2030 rolls around, it is expected that the share of population using the internet will be 76%. On a global scale, the share of population using a Mobile Internet connection is expected to increase by an average of 4.3% year after year until 2030. The comparison here is a current penetration of 58%, rising to a penetration rate of 100% by 2030.
Smartphones have vaulted themselves into the single most instrumental tool for brand engagement and digital commerce. Today, 45% of the global population uses the internet. It is imperative that restaurant brands capitalize on this to drive sales and brand engagement, as a large part of overall restaurant industry sales arrive via mobile ordering. That number is only growing as countless studies have shown.
As previously mentioned, receiving orders through mobile devices is not a brand new concept. However, more and more restaurant brands are finally realizing the value of utilizing technology within mobile ordering. 2018 will by a wide margin be the year that sees the highest uptick in restaurant brands utilizing tech. By the year 2020, smartphone orders will account for more than 10% of all QSR sales, with mobile ordering ballooning into an industry of $38 Billion. Below are some statistics showing how much the average consumer spends on Mobile Ordering, as well as a chart showing the past and future impacts of Mobile Ordering on the QSR industry.
Simplifying Customer Payments
Recent technology gains have made consumer engagement with restaurant brands a diverse game with options. Conversely, the consumer now has every right to have equally high expectations from the brand they are engaging with. New mobile ordering technologies like that of Say2eat are meeting these high consumer expectations. For example, Say2eat offers a Facebook Messenger Ordering product where consumers can place an order just as easily as they would message a friend, while also having the option of viewing the entire menu embedded within the Facebook Message. There is also a “One-Click Payment” and “One-Click Reorder” feature within Say2eat’s product that allows for quick payments and lighting fast ordering. These types of advancements and technologies are appreciated by consumers, as it erases the need to ever have to wait in line ever again, let alone download or register. This caters perfectly to them, as 20% of all consumers already make purchases through smartphones on a weekly basis, with that number steadily increasing.
Say2eat’s white label solution enables chains and restaurants to create personalized consumer engagements that lead to desired business outcomes.
To see Say2eat’s technology in action, click HERE (link to schedule a demo).
We are a one-stop-shop for empowering your digital strategy, by providing a seamless solution across all voice and message applications (e.g. Facebook Messenger, SMS, iMessage, Amazon Echo, Google Home, etc.). By implementing core technologies and transforming business operations to scale global loyalty, our omni-channel commerce creates a smart, brand customized and conversational user experience. This leaves brands with an everlasting impression of convenience, efficiency and ease of use that promotes consumer loyalty and retention.
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