Top 5 Features of an Online Ordering Platform for Restaurants

Rapid progress in technology has transformed the expectations of customers, which in turn has led to a change in the way businesses operate. According to the 2017 Restaurant Technology Report, 77% of millennials say restaurant technology improves their dining experience. The biggest impact of technology and changing customer behavior has been witnessed in the online delivery space, which has grown 300% since 2014.

Seeing such unprecedented demand for online ordering, restaurants are keen on launching their own online ordering service. What’s challenging for them is to find a technology partner that can provide seamless integration.

To help you out, here’s an exhaustive analysis of the top five features you should be on the lookout for when choosing an online ordering platform.

Ease of ordering

It was the millennials’ changing food habits that largely drove restaurants to adopt technology in order to fulfill the demand for quick, efficient and convenient services. In fact, most businesses, even outside of the restaurant industry, are now rushing to be millennial-friendly or risk being left behind.

Some of the key characteristics of this generation are that they are time-strapped, they seek convenience, they are tech-savvy, they believe in high-quality and sustainability and they are difficult to please.

Taking these factors into consideration, ease of ordering must be a top priority when you select an online ordering platform because millennials are set to become the biggest spenders on food and beverages in the coming years, with much of their expenditure on food delivery.

Ease of ordering, basically means that when a customer orders food from a restaurant, the entire process should be streamlined and seamless. This can be done in many ways — by allowing customers to order on numerous channels including websites, mobile apps, and social media, offering flexibility to change orders, having a seamless interface, providing multiple payment options and allowing them to order without having to sign up.

If your online ordering system takes care of all these needs, you can ensure a minimum bounce rate and potential to increase return customers.

Real-time analytics and inbuilt marketing tools

When narrowing down on an online ordering platform, make sure that the service provider offers real-time analytics features. This may sound too complex and you may feel like it’s not something your business needs, especially if you’re a small restaurant. But if you’re not using real-time data to gain insights on your customers, you’re losing out on a big opportunity to improve your sales and increase your restaurant’s profile.

By leveraging the power of restaurant analytics, you are getting to know your customers better than ever before. This is extremely important in today’s world as more and more customers are demanding personalized experiences from brands.

Data-driven solutions also help you increase efficiency in day-to-day operations, forecast trends and implement sustainable strategies for the future.

However, you are poised to receive the most benefit when your online ordering platform offers both real-time analytics and inbuilt marketing tools. The insights acquired help business owners plan future promotional strategies, including but not limited to loyalty programs, coupons, etc.

Customisable Features

Another important question to ask online ordering service providers is, how extensive is their customization feature? Customization should not be compromised upon and your online ordering platform should allow this on multiple levels.

Firstly, Focus on building a unique identity or you will end up looking like a ‘me too’ that lacks any originality. With powerful online portal services, you should be able to customize the website to match your brand’s ethos. The overall feel and look of the website should be consistent with your physical store. Consistent branding is critical for building loyalty and trust in any brand.

Secondly, you should have the leeway to work around your menu at all times. This means you should be able to perform tasks like adding daily specials, designing combos, spotlighting bestsellers, adding and removing dishes, etc. For this, choosing an online ordering platform that offers effective menu management is important.

Thirdly, customization can also mean being able to modify orders, delivery, inventory, etc. An organized order management system can help you with this. Besides such a system also helps track sales, cash flow, and profitability, which is valuable to monitor any business.

Dedicated customer support

Instead of just browsing their website, it will be good to actually speak to various online ordering service providers during your research phase and read reviews on sites like Capterra. This will help you closely understand how effectively they support their existing customers.

Your online ordering service should be available 24x7 to answer any query that you may have, whether big or small because no matter how advanced technology gets, it is never fail-safe and snags temporary or otherwise crop up from time to time.

If you’re unable to reach out to your online ordering platform team in order to fix the snag, you risk losing business. Not only should you be able to speak to customer service at all times, but they should also offer quick solutions. In addition, having services like multilingual customer support is always beneficial.

Affordability and no hidden cost

When picking an online ordering platform, several restaurant owners show concern overpricing and rightly so. Some online ordering service providers can blindside you with striking features only to charge you unreasonable hidden costs once you sign up with them.

The reason why restaurants embrace technological solutions is to increase their own sales and it makes no sense to have to lose money instead by paying extra fees for something you were totally unaware of in the first place. It is also important to ensure your online ordering platform offers flexible payment options and free trial periods.

While a number of features are comparable among varied online ordering system providers, the pricing for each is very different. You have to decide which features and pricing best suits your restaurants’ needs before making a final decision.

Restolabs is one of the best platforms offering all of these features that have enabled numerous small and large businesses to achieve faster growth.

Before you know it, a big chunk of your revenue will be coming from your online ordering website or app, giving you a clear edge over your competitors. Read the case studies here.