Find out how you can increase takeout revenue by as much as 20%, or more. See a 30-minute live demonstration of NetWaiter. The live demo will highlight the front-end and back-end aspects of the NetWaiter System. We'll show you how we can automate your takeout business, provide customers mobile access to your restaurant, and leverage the latest technology to maximize sales. Go to www.netwaiter.com and click "Join a Live Demo."

Check out the May issue of Washington Restaurant Magazine for an article from NetWaiter on what to look for when considering an online ordering service for your restaurant. 

WRA Industry Tools - Online Ordering.pdf (830.35 kb)

You can download a copy of a study on electronic food ordering from Cornell University, by Sheryl E. Kimes Ph.D., at no charge.  Among other tidbits of info: "The chief reason for electronic ordering given by those have ordered (users) is that they gain convenience and control. The major factor that inhibits those who have not ordered via an electronic channel (non-users) is a desire for interaction (although technology anxiety is also a factor).  Check it out at http://ow.ly/4WE3K 

NetWaiter, a premier provider of online ordering and marketing capabilities for restaurants, offers another industry first--integrating QR codes into restaurant marketing. NetWaiter has configured a unique QR Code for every restaurant on the NetWaiter Network. When customers scan a restaurant’s QR code, they are immediately directed to the restaurant’s mobile NetWaiter site and menu.

QR Codes for Restaurants.pdf (137.08 kb)

How can NetWaiter help your restaurant grow?  View it as a consistent marketing tool.

Established restaurants invariably develop a loyal clientele. This clientele is important. You'll often find that up to 80% of a restaurant’s receipts come from this core group of customers.

The key to growth - to continue building this core group of customers - is getting new faces in the door. The best way to do this is through word of mouth. However - in order to get people to spread the word, you have to give them something to talk about.

This is where NetWaiter comes in. NetWaiter offers a unique package of services that can get people talking. The ability to order online is an attention-getter - but NetWaiter also offers other services. Facebook ordering, the ability to order from a Smartphone, and an instant link to your restaurant using your unique QR code are some great examples.

As you and your employees interact with customers, use these NetWaiter features to start a conversation. Impress them with your custom QR code. Get them to save your mobile NetWaiter site on their Smartphone. You might even run a special - a gift card or discount for every customer who shares your restaurant on Facebook or Twitter (they can email you proof).

Without a doubt, you have probably noticed a new phenomenon in print – those funky squares that look like scrambled crossword puzzles. They are QR Codes (Quick Response Codes).

QR codes are popular with today's mobile culture. They read like bar codes when scanned and return information to the user based on how the QR code is setup. Their use in the U.S. catapulted 1,200% during the last six months of 2010. In Japan, where QR codes were developed, it is estimated that 86% of consumers scan at least four QR codes a month.

The best reason to embrace mobile technology, such as QR codes, is to make it more convenient for customers to do business with you. Many restaurant customers have Smartphones. You probably see them "checking-in" to your restaurant using location-based services such as Foursquare or Facebook. As customers continue to embrace Smartphones, mobile marketing will become increasingly important.

To help restaurants promote their mobile site, NetWaiter has configured a unique QR code for every restaurant on the NetWaiter Network. They can be easily accessed from a restaurant’s NetWaiter Management Console. When customers scan a restaurant’s QR code, they are immediately directed to their mobile NetWaiter site and menu.

TIP: Print some NetWaiter QR codes and post them around your restaurant to promote your mobile site and menu to customers. If your restaurant does not have a NetWaiter account, you can activate your account today, at NO CHARGE, and get immediate access to your restaurant's NetWaiter site and unique QR code.

One of the big topics of conversation buzzing around the industry lately is increasing prices. The facts: commodity prices and fuel costs are rising. This comes in conjunction with the last two years of economic recession, when it was hard, if not impossible, for restaurants to raise prices.

Here are some tips on how to strategically raise prices:

1. Don't wait too long to begin raising prices. Once you get behind, it's difficult to catch up and get your prices in line to where they need to be to earn an adequate profit.

2. Don't raise prices across the board. Start by surgically raising prices on a few menu items at a time to avoid "sticker shock". You'll just need to evaluate your prices more often, possibly once a quarter.

3. Use a menu format that can be changed quickly and inexpensively.

If you decide to raise prices, remember to check your online menu. This is where NetWaiter becomes advantageous, because making menu changes online with NetWaiter is a very simple.

There are likely customers within a certain geographical area of your restaurant that are prime targets for your restaurant's online ordering capabilities.

This topic surfaced again during a conversation with the General Manager of a NetWaiter client based in the Seattle, WA area.

"We are right next door to the new Amazon.com offices," said the Manager. "That's huge for business. Those are the kind of customers (office based technology employees) that really use online ordering most."

Okay, so maybe you aren't right next to offices like Amazon.com. Only a few restaurants can be that lucky. But, the fact still remains - you can successfully capitalize on almost any nearby business that has employees “trapped” at their computers and hungry during lunch. Locate the office parks, high-rise buildings, hospitals, and universities in your area. These are target-rich environments, full of employees and students that spend major amounts of time in front of a computer screen each day.

Inexpensive flyers or business cards can be distributed office-by-office, or left on car windshields. You can even include a QR-Code (Quick Response Code) on the flyer for customers to scan with their smartphones. The QR-Code can direct customers to your mobile NetWaiter site for them to view your online menu and easily place orders. Feel free to contact NetWaiter with any questions about targeting ideal customers or setting up a Quick Response Code for your restaurant.

Is online ordering an operational tool or a marketing tool? It is true - NetWaiter is certainly a better way to handle the takeout and delivery orders that come into a restaurant. However, as most restaurant owners discover, NetWaiter is actually a marketing tool.

For example - if you were to ask every guest how they first learned of your restaurant, you would quickly find that about four out of five people learned by referral - word of mouth. Social media - Facebook and Twitter - take word of mouth and put it online where it can grow exponentially. This type of new-age word of mouth advertising is built into every NetWaiter site. When a customer uses their Facebook account to place an order, a link to your site with your logo can be posted on the customer’s Facebook page for all their friends to see. The average Facebook user has over 130 friends. Imagine the impact!

Another significant marketing benefit is the ability to track customers. Of all the means you use to advertise and promote your restaurant, NetWaiter is one you can track. You can immediately see the payoff and have the ability to monitor customers.

Some restaurants spend a lot of money on expensive newspaper and magazine advertisements. They are virtually impossible to track. The only way to measure their impact is to provide some sort of redeemable coupon or discount. As a marketing vehicle, this is usually a losing venture.

So, not only is NetWaiter a marketing tool, it can actually be one of your best marketing assets, along with your website and other online media (email marketing, Facebook, Twitter, etc.).

Bottom Line: Investing in the long-term success of your restaurant is a lot better than wasting money on one-time advertisements that cannot be measured. Online customers are the most loyal and profitable type of customer. So, rather than an expensive newspaper ad, you can more effectively leverage your marketing budget by promoting your own online ordering system. Not only will you be making good customers better ones, you will also be making them more profitable.

How important is it for your restaurant to offer online ordering through a mobile site? According to a 2010 study by Morgan Stanley, access to the Internet using mobile devices will overtake desktop/laptop Internet access by 2013.

Smartphone owners tend to use their handheld devices to help with everyday tasks. If given an option, will they call your restaurant from their cell phone to place an order? Probably not. The last time they called, they were put on hold and rushed to complete their order. With their smartphone, your menu is in front of them, they don’t have to wait on hold, and it’s accurate, fast, and paid for.

Online ordering is all about using technology for greater customer convenience. We at NetWaiter want to extend convenience to your customers any way possible. Mobile ordering is a great step to providing the ultimate convenience to your customers and is only getting bigger. If your customers are going mobile, your restaurant needs to go mobile.