How to Improve Restaurant Performance Using Innovative Technology

To improve restaurant performance, you need to focus on optimizing operations, enhancing staff performance, optimizing your menu, and improving the customer experience. How? By implementing effective technology and finding new and creative ways to attract customers.

Below, we teach you how to improve restaurant performance using the latest tools and technologies at your disposal.

A POS system is essential if you want your restaurant to run like a well-oiled machine. It can help you:

• Serve more customers faster by helping your front-of-house employees work faster with quick RFID key card login and color-coded menu categories;
• Accept multiple payment methods;
• Reduce order errors by sending orders directly to designated kitchen stations;
• Streamline communication between front-of-house and back-of-house staff;
• Spark growth with valuable data analytics;
• Optimize your menu by finding out what your best and worst-selling dishes are so you can generate more sales;
• Reduce food waste by keeping track of your inventory;
• and more.

When looking for the right POS that will help you learn how to improve restaurant performance, keep in mind these must-have features:

• Fast payment processing for credit and debit cards and digital wallets;
• Simple printer management (you can assign different printers to different kitchen stations to fulfill orders faster);
• One dashboard where you can make changes to your online and POS menu;
• Restaurant staff training and management features with ability to grant permissions based on employee roles;
• Offline mode so you can open checks and accept payments even when the internet is down;
• Free online ordering integration. No need to manually input online orders into your POS;
• In-store and online analytics that you can use to improve restaurant performance.

To learn how to improve restaurant performance, you need to pair your POS system with an efficient QR code menu that enables customers to place orders and pay directly on their smartphones. With this feature, you can:

• Reduce wait times;
• Serve more tables daily;
• Boost sales;
• Increase staff efficiency;
• Improve the guest experience.

You can set the orders to be automatically accepted through the POS and sent to the kitchen, or you can choose to accept them manually using the free order taking app.

Curious to see how QR code ordering works with GloriaFood? Scan the code below to experience ordering through the eyes of your customers:

The best part of all? You can enable this service for free by signing up for GloriaFood.

Follow the steps in this video tutorial to learn how to improve restaurant performance with on premise dining:

Another way to streamline your menu and improve operational efficiency at your restaurant is to focus on a smaller number of dishes that are the most popular and profitable.

A long menu can not only hinder your staff’s productivity, but it can also signal to your customers that you’re trying to do too much, which could mean less attention is spent on preparing high-quality dishes.

A smaller menu will help you increase profits, reduce waste, and simplify food preparation, which will also lead to faster service.

Upselling is a great way to improve restaurant performance and increase the average check value. Encourage your staff to upsell and cross-sell by rewarding them with incentives like prizes and bonuses.

You can also upsell directly through your digital menu with GloriaFood. How? By adding different choices, add-ons, and customization options to every dish.

That way, when customers order a burger, for example, you can ask them if they would also like fries with that. Or you can suggest a particular dessert that would go well with the main dish they selected.

You can learn more about customizing your online menu with choices and add-ons in this simple video tutorial:

While a POS system and QR code menu can help you improve the customer experience at the restaurant, you also need technology that will attract clients online, starting with an in-house online ordering system.

As opposed to asking your customers to order on third-party apps, ordering directly on your website or social media will ensure you:

• Keep all the profits you make;
• Offer lower fees for customers;
• Control the entire ordering experience, from start to finish;
• Collect valuable customer data;
• Build loyalty and protect your brand.

Find out more about the GloriaFood POS system with online ordering here.

The GloriaFood online ordering system comes with a slew of useful features that will show you how to improve restaurant performance, such as:

• Direct integration with the GloriaFood POS;
• Simple menu editor for both online and in-store orders;
• Pickup, delivery, table reservations & scheduled orders;
• Online payment options;
• Legacy website and Facebook ordering;
• QR code menu ordering;
• Branded mobile app;
• Sales and SEO-optimized website (you can generate one from us in seconds);
• Promotion templates crafted to attract new and returning customers (more info on this below);
• Email marketing automation;
• Reports dashboard with recommendations on how to generate more orders and increase conversions;

Standard operating procedures are step-by-step instructions that guide employees through specific processes.

To ensure your restaurant runs like a well-oiled machine, you need to develop clear processes that will help you automate workflows.

Here are some examples of restaurant standard operating procedures:

Food Safety and Sanitation:

• All staff must wash their hands thoroughly before handling food, after handling raw ingredients, and at regular intervals during food preparation.
• Implement a color-coded cutting board system to prevent cross-contamination.
• Sanitize all food contact surfaces after each use and at regular intervals throughout service.
• Store food at the correct temperatures to prevent bacterial growth
• Use the FIFO (First In, First Out) principle for food storage.

Customer Service:

• Greet customers within 30 seconds of their arrival.
• Take orders promptly, ensuring all dietary restrictions are noted and communicated to the kitchen staff.
• Check in with customers after their meals are served.
• In case of customer complaints, apologize, offer a solution, and inform the manager if further action is needed.

Table Setup and Clearing:

• Set tables with clean utensils, napkins, and condiments.
• After customers leave, clear tables promptly, removing all dishes, glasses, and trash.
• Wipe down tables and chairs with sanitizing solution after each party.
• Ensure all used dishes and utensils are properly sorted and loaded into the dishwasher.

Do you want to make it even easier for customers to order your food online? Generate a branded mobile app that they can download on their phones for when they crave food on the move.

You can generate your own app in just a few simple steps. Other GloriaFood customers have already learned how to improve restaurant performance with a branded app:

You can enable online payments in 3 easy steps with GloriaFood:

A simple way to increase restaurant traffic, a table reservation system enables customers to book a table in advance and even pre-order and pay for their food upon booking.

This allows you to:

• Speed up service;
• Increase table turnover;
• Attract a larger variety of customers;
• Increase efficiency;
• Boost daily sales.

Enabling customers to book a table online can help you increase table turnover, boost daily sales, and free up your staff from having to answer the phone for reservations.

But how do you prevent last-minute cancellations and protect your revenue at the same time? By setting up reservation deposits.

With GloriaFood, you can enable reservation deposits in minutes. Here are some of the key benefits of this brand-new feature:

• Secure revenue even when you have no-shows.
• Create your own refund policy (full, partial, or no refund).
• Charge refunds per guest or per reservation.
• Manage reservations, deposits & refunds directly from your order-taking app.
• Enable customers to opt in for an SMS notification reminder.

Follow this step-by-step guide to enable reservation deposits at your restaurant:

Are you just branching out into online ordering and want to learn how to improve restaurant performance? Then your first online clients should be those who visit your restaurant regularly.

With the Kickstarter module from GloriaFood, you can import your existing contacts into our system. Then, send them an irresistible email or SMS featuring a discount for the first order placed online.

You can also add a first-order promo at the top of your menu, so all new customers will spot it immediately.

Do you want to learn more about attracting customers using our Kickstarter module? Check out this video tutorial:

One of the best ways to attract new customers and persuade them to return to your restaurant again and again is to offer discounts, deals, and special offers that are too good to pass up.

To ensure you cover all bases, you should aim to have at least two promotions running at the same time:

• One for new customers: Free delivery on the first order, 15% off the first order, etc.
• One for returning customers: $20 off your fifth order, 5% off when paying with a credit card, etc.

If you use GloriaFood’s ecosystem, including the QR code menu, you can choose if the promotions will apply to online ordering, dine-in, or both.

To find out how you can create your own custom promotions that will help you increase profits, watch the tutorial below:

When you have to deal with countless restaurant systems and procedures every day, it’s easy to let marketing slip through the cracks. But that would be a mistake.

If you’re wondering how to promote your restaurant, marketing is the answer. Marketing can help you attract new business and motivate those who have already dined with you to become repeat clients.

The solution: Let your email marketing campaigns run on Autopilot.

The GloriaFood email marketing campaigns can help you improve restaurant performance by:

• Encouraging second orders with a second-order discount;
• Re-engaging customers who haven’t ordered in a while with a special offer;
• Preventing users from abandoning their cart with a small discount.

All you have to do is set up the campaign (it takes minutes), and it will run in the background, attracting return customers to your restaurant.

To track the success of your menu, business strategies, and marketing ventures, you need access to detailed analytics that can help you improve operations day in and day out.

First, you need to track in-store analytics using your POS reports. Make sure the POS you purchase allows you to run crucial reports such as:

• Menu item sales;
• Property financial report;
• Employee financial report;
• Check journal report;
• Tax summary report;
• and more.

Then, you need access to a restaurant analytics dashboard that can help you track your success online. For example:

• Sales summary and trends;
• Menu analytics;
• Client report;
• Website funnel;
• Online ranking;
• Order density areas;
• etc.

A well-trained staff can make all the difference at your restaurant. Your front-of-house staff will be interacting with customers on a daily basis, so you need to ensure they positively represent your restaurant.

Comprehensive training in customer service is essential, from greeting customers to making recommendations and answering questions.

So you can serve customers faster and more efficiently, your FOH staff should also be experts at using your POS, ordering tablet, or any other tool you might be using.

GloriaFood’s POS comes equipped with a Training Mode that you can enable through onboarding to ensure your employees learn the ropes without impacting your financials.

Why should you use technology in your restaurant? Let’s take a look at the advantages you will benefit from:

1. Increase efficiency: From streamlining order-taking and payments to quickly making changes to the menu, technology will help you increase restaurant efficiency by taking some of the burden off you and your employees.
2. Improve service: Technology not only makes your life easier, but that of your customers, too. It teaches you how to improve restaurant service so that every visit is a 5-star experience.
3. Reduce costs: The more organized and efficient your restaurant is, the less you will spend on ordering ingredients that you have to throw away or scheduling more employees than needed when business is slow.
4. Boost profits: Any action plan to increase sales in a restaurant should include technology. Your servers will move faster, serving more people daily, with reduced errors and increased customer satisfaction.
5. Improve employee management: Restaurant management tools can help you access your staff information, update and change privileges, train new hires, and be in the loop regarding everyone’s financial transactions.

If you’ve been wondering how to improve restaurant performance, our takeaway is that technology is the key.

Look for free or affordable restaurant technology to improve all aspects of your operation and ensure you build a long-standing brand that will last the test of time.

With our free restaurant POS starter kit, you only spend money on the monthly subscription and nothing on the hardware starter kit. So you can focus on running your restaurant and not stress about the budget.

Want to learn more about improving your restaurant? Check out these additional resources: