Let’s stick to basics. A potential customer decides to enter a restaurant for one or more of the following reasons ; to satisfy his hunger ; to have a good time alone or with family and friends : to check out the restaurant’s specials which are also his favorites.
Customer Engagement With Digital Signage Menu Boards
There is however a more compelling reason why people like to lunch-out or dine-out. To de-stress. For, people across all socio-economic segments claim that good food and a good restaurant ambiance induces a feel-good factor. This uphoria, even if only for a couple of hours, does wonders to soothe the stressed mind.
The advent of digital menu boards at Point-of-sale locations with it’s synchronized facilities with iphones and social media provided the real impetus into customer engagement. Further, playlists and videos of appetizing cuisines and their riveting advertisements on a digital menu board did (as still does) create a scintillating impact on the targeted audience.
Having explained the need for customer engagement from the customers’ perspective, let us now elucidate on the efforts made by the restaurants at their Point-of-sale locations and chain stores in the recent years.
Customer Engagement Today Is More About Building Relationships
Yes, profitability does play a major role, and it is profitability through relationships that restaurants have learned to thrive. By relationships we mean lucrative food offers, a comfortable ambiance in-store, friendly waiters and staff, good service, loyalty schemes and coupons, all that attracts the customer and entices him to visit the restaurant again and again. Further, a satisfied and happy customer recommends the restaurant to others by which the business gains goodwill over time.
Make The Customers See More Through Digital Signage
It is an established fact that customers buy more of what they see. Studies have revealed that 80% of passerby will enter a restaurant on sighting a bright and bold menu board screen and a good 40% will purchase that which is flashed on the menu board, just in case they had planned in advance the food items to order.
Design And Create Innovate Videos Of Appetizing Food Items
A well-crafted audio-visual video on the restaurant and its offerings go a long way in entertaining, informing and engaging customers. Mc Donalds have put in place AI powered digital screens along the drive-thru’s of their 700 restaurants which has garnered amazing results. Upsells have gone up by 60% on all day-parts.
Business Tie-ups To Woo Customers
Loyal customers keep the restaurant’s business alive in times of recession. Hence, in order to retain them tie-ups with local theaters, shopping malls, amusement parks and such like foster better business opportunities for all . Virtually all customers will cherish discount coupons, exclusive club cards, special offers, free gifts from retailers if they order food items above a certain threshold from the restaurant.
Special Events/Musical Programs
It’s all about pleasing the customers’ mind really. To provide them leisure and pleasure through good food, great music and entertainment wherein the customer can unwind effectively in a salubrious and friendly ambiance. Even some soothing and melodious music playing softly in the background inside the restaurant does volumes in de-stressing the stressed customer after a hard day’s work. And customers don’t mind paying that 15% extra on drinks and entrees.These apart, musical bands and soirees can always be organized for Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day and such occasions.
Smartphone And Social Media Integration
The impassioned adoption of which has truly gained momentum. Today, restaurants communicate with their customers through beacons and apps, informing them of their specials, events, and offers. This helps customers to take informed decisions and can even order food items in advance and pay through their smartphones.
Partner With Delivery Chains
Off late in India there has been a spurt of food delivery chains such as Zomato and Swiggy, which have facilitated restaurant sales like never before. This is concomitant of the stupendous rise in online food orders which is increasing by the day. Likewise, take-away restaurants are also getting a share of the pie with a judicious mix of quality and price.
In recent years digital technology has made rapid strides, which has induced certain paradigm shifts in customer engagement and communications. While restaurants’ adopt digital signage with fervor, it is also used as a powerful tool to be one-up against the competition. Hence,the challenges of business go hand-in-hand with evolving digital technologies. And will continue to do so.
admin says:
It’s all about relationships between the restaurant and the customer. Loyal customers keep the restaurant’s business alive in times of recession. Most customers will cherish discount coupons, exclusive club cards, special offers, free gifts from retailers and the like, if they order food items above a certain threshold from the restaurant. Hence, in order to retain those, restaurants should go that extra mile in business tie-ups with local theaters, shopping malls, amusement parks and such like and pass on the benefits to their customers.
Restaurants must also learn to handle success. When times are good, they need to keep customers updated with consistent communication through all available channels such as social media, food Apps, mobile messages and so on. Customers also like to be kept informed on the restaurant’s developments and updates. They too like attention. For the restaurant therefore, it is ‘as you sow, so shall you reap!’