Is Your Restaurant Online Ordering Skyrocketing or Slumping?

Posted by Tim on September 19, 2014

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Restaurant Online Ordering, Advertising, Branded Online Ordering, On-hold Messages, Online Menu, Online Ordering for Restaurants, Increasing Sales, Increased Revenue

NetWaiter is often asked, “How can my restaurant’s online ordering sales skyrocket immediately?”

First and foremost, every restaurant is different. We know - that line is never fun to hear, but it’s true. If people don’t like your restaurant’s food, they aren’t going to like it any better because of the way they ordered it. Thankfully, restaurant owners using NetWaiter are smart, sell great food, and their customers love ordering online.

There are many traits that successful restaurants have in common. After speaking with a lot of owners and managers, we’ve compiled a list of the most important factors needed to launch your online ordering sales into orbit and some tips to assist:

Embrace Online Ordering and “Take Ownership” of It. Get everyone at your restaurant to embrace one of the most powerful sales tools you have. “Take ownership” of your online business. Few parts in any business are autonomous and require little to no strategy or thought. Give it some attention and thought and it will reward you significantly.

Get The Word Out. Like anything, people need to know you offer something if you expect them to take advantage of it.
-   STEP 1: Make sure you have at least one ‘Order Online’ button on your homepage. DO NOT make people search or scroll to find your online ordering menu. You should also have links to place orders on other pages of your website for easy access.
-   STEP 2: DO NOT link your ‘Order Online’ buttons to another page, forcing customers to, yet again, click another button. Send customers directly to your online ordering menu. They love online ordering because it’s convenient. Forcing them to click around your site or search for your online ordering menu will only irritate them.
-   STEP 3: Get employees to help spread the word to all of your customers.

Simple Advertising. Some of the following tactics are very simple to implement and will help you advertise your online takeout and delivery business.
-   1) Attach ‘flyers’ to all phone-in orders that mention your website and online ordering. (TIP: Order some inexpensive or free business cards from a place like vistaprint.com). This is also a great tactic if you are trying to convert expensive portal customers to order directly from you. A small promotional discount for ordering directly from you will go a long way.
-   2) Display signage inside your restaurant. The next time a customer is in the mood for takeout, they’ll visit you online first.
-   3) Mention your online ordering system and website address to all phone-in customers. The truth is – they don’t want to be calling you anyway. They would rather place their order online and you do too – average order sizes are much larger online.
-   4) If someone calls your restaurant during a rush, there is a good chance you’ll put them on hold. Make sure your on-hold message mentions your website and the ability for them to order online.

Your goal is to have skyrocketing online sales, but don’t get discouraged by a slow start. With additional NetWaiter features, like our Facebook integration, email marketing, and promotional system, you’ll be able to kick things into high gear. It’s all about building momentum. The nice thing about it – once you have it, it’s hard to slow down.

Convert a Busy Signal to Advertising

Posted by Tim on March 20, 2012

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Marketing, On-hold Messages, Online Ordering for Restaurants

Phone In a recent conversation with the manager of a specialty hamburger restaurant in Seattle, we heard a new and interesting idea.

The restaurant manager told us they use the restaurant's answering machine to help spread the news about their online ordering system. Takeout customers at this restaurant typically include employees from nearby offices, such as Adobe, Google, Getty Images, and many smaller software companies.

"At lunch, especially during the weekdays, we are inundated," he says. "It's quite common for a caller to be put on hold or get sent to the message machine. But while the customer is waiting, they listen to a description of how easy it is to access us on the internet, place their order, and pay for it. We often get six and seven people coming in from a nearby company and they have all ordered and paid for their lunch online. They walk in, pick-up their bags, and they're gone."

There are a number of restaurants that advertise their online ordering capabilities through in-store signage, messages on receipts, Facebook, Twitter, email, and others. Capturing the attention of a would-be takeout customer while on hold is perfect. We've also heard of some restaurants getting even more innovative, putting their NetWaiter QR code on employee T-shirts, or printing their URL or QR code on their tablecloths for dine-in customers to easily view.

Do you have a unique way of promoting your online ordering site? Email us and let us know. We'd love to hear about it!