Most families agree, “If Mama’s not happy, nobody’s happy.”

It turns out this also applies to online ordering.  Last month we mentioned a study by Cornell University about online ordering.  The sample group was split almost evenly by gender - women making up 51.3% of respondents, similar to the percentage of women in the U.S.  However, the similarities stopped there.  There were several areas where women’s attitudes towards online marketing were substantially different than men - and in interesting ways.

Here are the revelations:

--Women were more likely to cite having control of their order as a benefit of online ordering.

--Women were more likely to cite the convenience factor of online ordering as an important benefit.

--Women were more likely to recommend the online ordering experience to others.

What does this mean?  Well – it certainly tells us not to discount women as valuable online customers.  In fact, the majority of online orders for most restaurants are from women.  The marketing efforts put into telling customers about online ordering - specifically when engaging customers inside your restaurant - need to be directed towards women as much (if not more) than men. 

It may be the ‘man-of-the-house’ picking up the order, but the woman probably made the final decision where the family was going to get their food that night – and chances are – she placed the order too.

Customers resort to online searches, especially through their smartphones, to find restaurant information more and more these days.  Bad online information, however, can hurt you.  A recent industry study revealed that 68% of people are not likely to visit a restaurant, café, or bar after encountering incorrect online information about the business.

Here are a few tips about managing your restaurant’s online presence:

Know Where You Are Listed - The numerous online outlets—Yelp, Foursquare and others—enable customers to identify, rate, and comment on the restaurants they patronize.  Be sure to regularly search for your restaurant online.  If you find a place where you are not listed, check into what it takes to get listed.  More importantly, if you see incorrect information, have it fixed ASAP.

Know What Counts - The aforementioned study also said that 60% of consumers say the menu is the most important factor in selecting a restaurant online.  For all of your online listings, you can link customers to your custom NetWaiter menu.  It will be available to consumers online and via mobile.  Photos are good, too – a few pictures of your restaurant (inside and out) are helpful selling tools.

Keep Online Information Updated - Remember, nobody likes a restaurant with bad or outdated online information.  Check and update your information regularly.  And most importantly:

Make sure your restaurant’s online ordering capabilities via NetWaiter are prominent - The quicker you can get customers to your online ordering site and placing their order, the better your bottom line will be.