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The restaurant industry is undergoing a significant shift as Gen Z diners reshape dining expectations. This generation prioritizes social responsibility over traditional brand loyalty and gravitates toward integrity, sustainability, and values-driven experiences. By actively investing in the community through events such as LOOK!
“This enduring customer loyalty drives the restaurant industry forward, creating clear opportunities for restaurants to enhance the dining experience through strategic limited time offers, efficient delivery and exceptional in-person service," said Samir Zabaneh, CEO of TouchBistro.
Rising restaurant prices and increased cost-of-living expenses are significantly altering dining out habits in both the US and UK, according to a new survey from Attest. Reduced Disposable Income : Consumers have less money for dining out, leading to fewer overall visits. Fast food and casual dining are currently seeing higher traffic.
Steady Online Ordering Brings Food Waste, Donations to the Forefront of Priorities Ordering food online increases restaurant sales, but it also can potentially increase wasted food if proactive measures aren’t taken – for both the business and consumers at home.
Advances in AI and customer relationship management (CRM) tools allow businesses to analyze customer behavior, predict preferences, and craft hyper-personalized dining and drinking experiences. For instance, smart inventory systems can help reduce waste, while energy-efficient appliances cut operational costs and carbon footprints.
Among the findings: Eight in 10 (82 percent) plan to increase investments in AI technologies over the next fiscal year, with enhanced customer experience (60 percent), improved restaurant operations (36 percent), and loyaltyprograms (31 percent) cited as the top desired outcomes. Customer experience is the most common use case.
Customers expect seamless online ordering, loyaltyprograms, and delivery options, and franchise systems need to invest in tech to stay competitive. Customers expect seamless online ordering, loyaltyprograms, and delivery options, and franchise systems need to invest in tech to stay competitive.
Restaurants must now navigate a razor-thin margin between maintaining customer loyalty and managing escalating costs. Restaurants must now navigate a razor-thin margin between maintaining customer loyalty and managing escalating costs. Customers who dine in are by far the most satisfied (despite the score slipping 1 percent to 83).
First, AI can help personalize the customer experience by analyzing data to send tailored marketing messages, recommend menu items, and create dynamic loyaltyprograms that keep customers coming back. What are common mistakes you see restaurant operators making in their marketing efforts and how can they rebound?
Over the last two decades, I’ve worked alongside operators in just about every hospitality setting—independent cafés, high-end dining rooms, food halls, and regional chains. We saw widespread adoption of mobile payments, digital ordering, and contactless dining almost overnight. Operators had to shift—fast.
Music and dining are all about expectations. However, when going out to dine, it is all about being social, having great conversations and enjoying each other’s company. If the music is too loud or inappropriate, the guest’s night is ruined and their money wasted, no matter how good the food or service.
Every online order, email sign up, and reward program interaction generates valuable insightsbut if that data just sits there, youre missing a major opportunity. When used strategically, customer data can help you personalize marketing, streamline operations, and create a better dining experience for your guests.
Many restaurants use POS systems that can differentiate between new and existing customers based on payment methods or loyaltyprogram sign-ups. Instead of casting a wide net with generic ads, use targeted marketing to reach the people most likely to dine at your restaurant. During that same period, you gained 100 new customers.
Do you lose money due to food waste? If customer retention is a priority consider a digital loyaltyprogram or automated marketing tools. We then recommend the best companies in each sector so you find the right solutions for your business. But first, lets look at how to choose the right technology for your restaurant.
Mobile ordering has become the preferred method for customers, with 71% saying they would rather use a restaurants branded mobile app over third-party platforms because its more affordable, easy to use, and personalized due to loyaltyprograms. Here is an example of a restaurants branded app.
Local SEO strategies, like targeting location-specific searches, will help your site show up when people look for nearby dining options on search engines. Local SEO strategies, like targeting location-specific searches, will help your site show up when people look for nearby dining options on search engines.
Without a well-defined target market, restaurants risk wasting resources on strategies that dont connect and menu offerings that dont selltrying to appeal to everyone, but standing out to no one. Key customer factors that influence dining preferences, from demographics to behavior. What Is a Restaurant Target Market?
Many operators worry about wasting money on the wrong strategies or not seeing a return on investment, making it tempting to avoid marketing altogether. Drive repeat business through loyaltyprograms, email campaigns, and promotions. Building a restaurant marketing budget can feel overwhelming.
By the time you finish this article, youll know how to approach restaurant marketing the right way and not waste time doing guesswork, crossing your fingers, and then hoping you see new customers walking through the door. This guide will teach you everything you need to know about getting started with restaurant marketing.
Every day, youre juggling staff, food quality, inventory, customer service, purchasing, and moreall while trying to cultivate a dining experience that wows your customers enough to keep them coming back. Its tough, and cant be done passively.
This includes your social media ads, loyaltyprograms , printed flyers, local event sponsorships, discounts, and PR. The real question isnt if you should marketits whether youre spending those dollars in ways that actually bring people in and build long-term loyalty. Are you overstaffed on slow days?
Standardized Training Programs: Newbies get uniform training with digital training tools across multiple locations. By Jose Chavez, Contributor Managing multiple locations is tough in the restaurant business. Communication is hard when multiple locations can get teams and office spaces out of sync.
The truth is that the average restaurant profit margin is razor-thin, leaving almost no room for error. A spike in food costs, a drop in sales volume, or one slow season can wipe out months of hard work. If your restaurant profit margins arent healthy, it doesnt matter how busy you areyoull always be playing catch-up. added up to $60,000.
Other examples include: Software subscriptions with usage-based tiers Maintenance or repair work Overtime pay for hourly workers Semi-variable restaurant costs can sneak up on you if youre not watching closely, but theyre also an area where a little strategy can go a long way toward minimizing waste.
Opening a new dining space in 2025 calls for more than just a good recipe list or architectural sense. Evaluating Consumer Trends That Are Redefining the Dining Experience Consumer expectations have changed drastically; staying ahead implies creating your concept with those developments in mind.
Enhancing Customer Loyalty with Data-Driven Personalization In todays competitive dining landscape, personalized service is key to building customer loyalty. Enhancing Customer Loyalty with Data-Driven Personalization In todays competitive dining landscape, personalized service is key to building customer loyalty.
Photo: Shutterstock Made-to-order food, value offerings, loyaltyprograms. Increasingly, however, they are becoming the hallmarks of convenience-store foodservice programs. By Heather Lalley on Jun. 17, 2025 Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Convenience-store pizza edged out chain pizza in a survey of consumer taste preferences.
Integrations : Connect with loyaltyprograms, delivery platforms, and inventory systems for seamless personalization. Example : OMaddys in Florida uses its POS data to refine menus based on feedback, boosting customer loyalty and satisfaction. Learn more in our latest post: How POS Systems Enable Menu Personalization.
Restaurant Business Online reports top managers cut waste by 15% with tight trackingon a $50,000 food budget, thats $7,500 saved annually. Elevate Service with Personal Touches Service builds loyalty. Build Loyalty with Smart ProgramsLoyalty comes from strategy. It revealed more than any resume could.
How POS data improves customer loyalty isnt just a trending topic its a strategic advantage for modern restaurants. By capturing real-time insights into customer behavior, preferences, and spending habits, POS systems empower restaurants to deliver personalized experiences, reward loyalty, and increase repeat visits.
By closely monitoring and optimizing this percentage, restaurants can better manage their inventory, minimize waste, and lower their overall expenses, ultimately maximizing cost reduction. Yield Percentage: Calculate the yield percentage to account for any waste or shrinkage during cooking. Food cost control is crucial.
Reduces Food Waste: Tracks inventory in real-time, minimizing overstocking and shortages, saving up to 10% of annual revenue. Increases Sales: Mobile POS devices speed up table turnover by 20%, while loyaltyprograms increase ticket sizes by 46%. On top of that, processing speed can make or break a dining experience.
Optimizing the Bar Program with Digital Tools Beverages, especially alcoholic ones, offer some of the highest profit margins in the restaurant industry. Optimizing the Bar Program with Digital Tools Beverages, especially alcoholic ones, offer some of the highest profit margins in the restaurant industry.
In today’s fast-paced dining environment, quick-service restaurants are under pressure to serve more customers in less time—without sacrificing quality. As customer expectations rise, reducing wait times has become more than a convenience; it’s a competitive advantage. This cut labor costs to 23.7%
If your Cost of Goods Sold is too high, your profit margins sufferno matter how packed your dining room is. Monitoring your COGS helps you spot food waste, theft, over-ordering, or supplier price hikes before they eat into your gross profit margin. Balancing labor cost percentage and staffing levels is a daily dance.
As we approach 2025, its crucial to understand the trends and predictions that will shape the future of dining. In comparison, prices for food at home have risen by only 0.9%, prompting consumers to be more selective about dining out. According to Black Box Intelligence, same-store traffic is expected to decline between 2.4%
Lightspeed : Excellent for complex menus and inventory management, ideal for fine dining or multi-location setups. From quick-service spots to fine dining restaurants, it offers tools to meet a variety of operational needs. Thanks to its flexibility, Square works well for quick-service spots, fine dining, and everything in between.
Dual pricing lets restaurants set different rates for in-house dining and delivery orders while keeping inventory in sync. It also uses FIFO (first-in, first-out) tracking to help restaurants cut down on waste and manage food costs effectively. Restaurant & Bar Inventory in 3 Easy Steps 1. sbb-itb-b95d74b 3.
Whether its managing inventory, handling online orders, or running loyaltyprograms, the right integrations can turn your POS system into a powerful tool for efficiency. Inventory Tracking : Monitor stock levels, reduce waste, and automate reordering. Want to run your restaurant more smoothly and save time?
By leveraging POS data, restaurants can adjust inventory, staffing, and marketing strategies to maximize profits during busy periods and minimize waste during slow seasons. These numbers show how profitable certain times are and highlight dining habits over different periods – like daily, weekly, or yearly.
And we’re not talking about sausage and mushrooms. In an industry that thrives on competition and customer expectations, success when starting a pizza shop is built on a foundation of core principles. At IndoorMedia, we love pizza and are privileged to support pizza restaurants nationwide. Only exceptional pizza has that power.
From AI-driven ordering systems to smart inventory tools and contactless dining experiences, today’s innovations are reshaping how restaurants operate, serve customers, and stay competitive. VR onboarding spares the restaurant from wasting food or spending excessive time on training sessions.
Integration-Friendly: Easily connects with delivery platforms, accounting tools, and loyaltyprograms. Consider a matcha café that uses an integrated loyaltyprogram through its POS system. Enhanced Security: Built-in safeguards for customer and business data. With the global cloud POS market projected to grow 18.2%
You need to know what your competitors are charging and gauge the boundaries of what guests will pay for the dining experience. For fine dining establishments, or other restaurant concepts with inherently high food costs, lowering food costs might not be an option. Menu pricing is a delicate dance.
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