What is a Restaurant Kiosk ?
A restaurant kiosk can be anything from a small touchscreen display to an entire ordering station. The kiosk is increasingly becoming the go-to for fast casual restaurants. This article discusses the benefits of restaurant kiosks, including lower wait times, increased efficiency, and shorter lines for customers.
5 Advantages Restaurant Kiosks Offer Restaurants
What is a Restaurant Kiosk?
Kiosks are small structures that are found in quick service or fast casual restaurants. The purpose of a kiosk is twofold. It can either facilitate a transaction or convey information.
Self-order kiosks are integrated with a point sale system. Customers can look through the menu on a small screen, choose an item, and pay for it with a credit card or cash. Owners typically place restaurant kiosks in high-traffic areas to attract more people. This shortens customer wait times and streamlines kitchen staff duties.
Many diners now employ kiosks to replace or supplement the traditional, in-person ordering process. Kiosks are a cost-effective way to maintain a restaurant because they require less space and staff. They are also a great way to showcase a brand and convey company-related information. Restaurants use a self serve kiosk to display a digital menu and enhance the quality of customer service.
Kiosks offer a variety of food options, so customers are bound to find something they love. Restaurant owners may consider implementing ordering kiosks to increase profits and attract more customers. There are so many benefits to these nifty little devices. Read ahead to find out more.
What are Restaurant Kiosk Benefits?
Most people have used a kiosk at one time or another. Whether it be in the mall, a bank, or the airport, kiosk hardware is everywhere. In recent years, restaurant ordering kiosks have been popping up more and more. Some restaurants have been getting rid of their host stand and only use the service kiosks.
There are several reasons for this. A self-ordering kiosk has a host of benefits. It's fast, easy to use, and displays a variety of options. Here are the top 5 advantages of kiosk implementation.
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1. Labor Cost
Restaurant profit margins have always been on the low side. High overhead costs and a competitive landscape make it challenging to be a successful restaurant owner. After the pandemic, it grew even more difficult for a quick-service restaurant to make it.
To remain profitable, owners had to cut back dramatically on labor costs and revamp many of their processes. The good news is that a kiosk system can help do just that. It's no wonder why 37% of restaurant operators plan to reduce labor expenses with a cloud-based kiosk solution!
Self-ordering kiosks require less labor because customers can do much of the work themselves. They can order menu items and find out information without having to ask an employee. There are also fewer errors when orders are inputted on a computerized system. This minimizes the number of re-dos and cuts back on food waste. In a time where restaurants must stick within a budget as much as possible, an optimized ordering system is a must.
2. Order Time
Everyone knows that customers hate waiting in line at quick-service restaurants. One of the biggest challenges that restaurant management has is cutting back on long wait times. Hungry patrons make for impatient patrons. It's a recipe for disaster when there are too few employees and too many irritable customers.
A restaurant kiosk with a POS platform facilitates a much quicker ordering experience. Customers can input their orders automatically and then wait for them to be fulfilled near the counter. People who prefer to order in person can still wait in line, but the line is much shorter than usual. Every kiosk order is on a kitchen display in the order they are received. This ensures customers receive their orders at the proper time, which prevents any confrontations or bottlenecks.
3. Targeted Additions
One of the best features of order kiosks is the capacity to customize and personalize restaurant information. Owners can design kiosk layouts to highlight profitable and popular items. They can incorporate pictures, which tends to spike interest in certain products and increase orders. They can also add detailed information about every menu item so customers know exactly what they are ordering. This makes for happier patrons and higher profit margins.
Furthermore, kiosk functionality is wide scope, depending on the type of vendor an owner chooses. Owners can replace the content with ease, add in various features, and delete outdated information. Most kiosk software changes can be performed off-site, which allows for quick and seamless updates. This improves a restaurant's brand, ensures order accuracy, and provides real-time menu board data to loyal patrons.
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4. Order Accurancy
Order accuracy is critical in a fast-paced, fast-food restaurant. When there are 20 people in line, 1 error will set everyone back. This makes hungry customers pretty unhappy, especially when a restaurant labels itself fast food.
Human error always increases when there are more people and fewer computers. Computers don't have bad days at work, they aren't distracted, and they don't get tired. They display a digital menu, receive customer data, process it, and fulfill transactions. The kitchen staff views a display system of all inputted orders and knows exactly what to make (and when). This optimizes the customer experience for both a fine dining establishment and food truck restaurant. It also streamlines kitchen processes and enhances a restaurant's brand.
5. Customer Satisfaction
The restaurant industry's primary goal is to make the customer happy so they stay far away from the competition. Fast service, talented employees, and unique and high-quality menu items make that possible. But those aren't always enough. In this day and age, restaurants need to go above and beyond. That's where kiosks come in.
Self-service kiosks are one of those special features that can make a brand shine. They are customer facing, interactive, fun, and full of interesting information. Restaurants can pick and choose how they want to use them and where to place them. They can incorporate interesting tidbits about the company's history or show off tantalizing pictures to increase sales. All of this improves a restaurant's outreach to customers. With lower wait times and higher-order accuracy, processes are more streamlined and customers satisfaction increases.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is a restaurant kiosk?
A restaurant kiosk is a small, self-standing food station. The kiosk is usually located near the entrance of the restaurant. This way, potential customers can easily see the kiosks and decide whether or not they want to enter the restaurant. A kiosk is also sometimes referred to as a "food station."
Why do restaurants use kiosks?
In the last year, the use of kiosks in restaurants has skyrocketed. Marrying the convenience of a fast-food restaurant with the experience of going to a restaurant, many chain restaurants have been installing kiosks in their lobbies, near the hostess stand, in the front of the restaurant, and in some cases, in place of a cashier altogether. They do this because kiosks lower wait times, increase sales, and improve order accuracy. This increases profit margins and enhances a restaurant's brand.
What are the advantages of restaurant kiosks?
Ever seen a kiosk at a fast food restaurant? Some people might think it's weird. But kiosks are actually pretty common these days. So, what's the point of these machines? What's the point, indeed. Well, there are actually quite a few advantages to kiosks. They're efficient, they're automated, and they're relatively cheap to install and maintain. They allow customers to place orders themselves. They cut back on wait times. They streamline kitchen processes. And they provide a great way for restaurants to display interesting company information.