How is your restaurant tech? Chances are, you might need an update. The National Restaurant Association reports that up to 30% of restaurants are in serious need of a tech upgrade, but have held off doing so. The main reason? Cost of course. But consider the benefits of keeping updated tech. When your tech is updated, your labor costs go down. With labor being the largest - by far - cost for most restaurants, anything you can do to improve efficiency will also improve your bottom line - long term at least. With that in mind, here are the areas that can certainly be helped by top of the line technology:
Supply Chain - this is especially important if you have multiple locations. The Darden Restaurant Family is currently rolling out updated Supply Chain Software across all of their locations. How can this help your bottom line? By standardizing the experience at all of your restaurants, making smarter decisions when ordering product, and increasing efficiency for your Operations Manager. Overall, investing in good Supply Chain software will improve the flow of your restaurant in vital, physical areas.
Restaurant Point of Sale - your front of the house will thank you - over and over again - for an updated, customized POS System. Not only will they benefit from something which is easy to use and intuitive, but your customers will appreciate the faster service and higher attentiveness they receive when your servers aren't wrestling with outdated equipment vs. taking their dinner orders. Your cooks and line chefs will also benefit from clear, easy to read tickets which will cut down on errors and ensure, overall, happier customers!
Email Marketing - a strong email system will go far towards retaining existing customers as well as increasing your marketing reach with them! Your own email marketing will allow you to capture addresses from your core customer base and market to them directly with specials, particularly for the holidays and special occasions. Choosing the right hosting software is very crucial - you'll want something which allows you to upload customer's email addresses easily and also design attractive email templates. Shop around and choose one that you know will be efficient so that you don't waste time working maintenance of it when you could be doing - well - everything else that needs to be done every day in a busy restaurant!
