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Online Ordering Archives - What Chefs Want!

Succeeding In This New World: Online Ordering Platforms

By | Chef's Feed, What Chefs Want

Restaurants are about to face a new world.  We do not know exactly what the world will be however we have some idea what to expect. There will be social distancing requirements, group limits, capacity limits as well as an unknown percentage of the population that is afraid to eat out.

 

To succeed in this new world, strategic changes to your business model will be necessary.   One change you may consider is participating in the world of to-go.  This could include take-out, delivery and curbside.

 

At first glance, this may seem easy. You simply sign up with third part delivery services such as GrubHub, Uber Eats, Door Dash etc.  However, this will not work.  These companies take 20%-30% off the top.   After factoring food and labor costs plus overheads, these services take what is left.  To make matter worse, they capture the customer data.  This may work in the old world where this was a small percentage of your business.  However, in the new world, you need to make profit on your to-go business and these services are not a viable solution.

 

To make a profit in the to-go market, you must take control of it.  To do this successfully you need a quality online to-go ordering system that allows your customers to order direct, from you, rather than from third parties that steal your profits and data.  This puts the profit in your pocket and provides you data that can be used to drive even more sales.

 

What Chefs Want quickly understood how important it was for our customers to be develop a profitable to-go business to get through these tough times.  We knew the third-party delivery model would drive you out of business. We set out on a mission to partner with a single online ordering platform to bring you the best of the best for a remarkably discounted price.

 

During the process, we realized that many of the platforms have different strengths and weaknesses and there was not a one size fits all best of the best.  This caused a change of plan.

 

Rather than offer you one choice, we decided to present what we thought were the potentially important criteria and let you pick from a few companies that we deemed worthy of consideration.  Once we decided on the companies, we negotiated discounts and VIP treatment for the What Chefs Want community.  Had we selected one company, the discounts may have been better but the end result would not be.

 

The companies we are referring are Biteheist, Imenu360 and Togo Technologies.  We decided to do much of the leg work for you but leave the last lap for you.

 

Please understand that when evaluating a to-go platform you should not only consider how it looks online; you must understand how it will work in your business.  They all look good, but will your business be able to process the order efficiently using their systems? This is what is most important and too often overlooked.

 

The following is a discussion of criteria that you should consider when choosing a to-go online ordering company.

 

POS Integration

Ideally, your online to-go ordering system does not create a separate “work around” that you must adopt in order to process a to-go order.  However, unless it seamlessly integrates directly with your POS system you will need a separate process.

 

Many POS systems already have an online ordering module or are scrambling to develop one.  We highly recommend that you contact your POS provider to find out if they have an option that would fit your needs and budget.  If so, this is likely your best option.

 

If your POS provider does not have an online platform you will need to use a third-party platform.  There are a good number of them to choose from.  Some already integrate with a number of POS systems, some will custom develop an integration to your POS, for a fee, and others don’t want to deal with the hassle associated with the challenges of integrating two separate systems.

 

Within our preferred solutions, ToGo Technologies and Imenu360 both have integrated with a number of POS systems.  If one or both have the ability to integrate with your POS, then you are in luck.  If not and you want to integrate, ToGo technologies will work with you to develop an integration if your POS provides an ability to interface.

 

Process Flow in a non-integrated platform

This section assumes that your to-go online ordering platform cannot be integrated with your POS system.

 

If it is not integrated, then you need to think about how an online order will promptly flow through your process.  In other words, from the time the customer places the order, how quickly the order is recognized and sent to the kitchen.

 

In a non-integrated solution, an app that accepts the order will be running on a device such as an iPad.  The order will appear in that app.  The question becomes how is your staff alerted the order has been placed?   Are they constantly visually checking the device? Does it chime? Does it ring? Does it do a song and dance to make sure your staff immediately knows there is a to-go order?  A delay between the time the order is placed and the time the order is sent to the kitchen is a potential to cause an unexpected delay for you customer.

 

Consider that for a while you will need to tighten costs.  Will you have someone that has time to constantly check this device? The answer is likely no.  Will the person responsible get busy and forget to check it?  This answer is likely, yes.

 

Surprisingly, some providers of online to-go platforms do not put a priority on this issue and have not provided a solution.  Without a solution, orders will be likely to fall through the cracks. There must be an alert system or an alternate way to get the order to the kitchen immediately.

 

Bitehiest is focused on an alert system.  Not only does their app play a tune when an order is received, it can be set up such that if you do not acknowledge the order, in a pre-set time frame, you get an automated phone call.  One could argue that an effective alert system is the simplest and most effective solution.

 

Togo Technologies has a unique solution which is their Kitchen Display System (KDS).  This system will automatically send the order to a screen in the kitchen. This makes the kitchen aware of the order immediately. This system also has an expo component that allows the kitchen to notify expo when it is complete.  The KDS system is an extra $20-$30 per month.

 

Imenu360 has an interesting feature.  If you have a windows device in your establishment, you can set up an app that will interface with your kitchen printer and all online orders will immediately print on your standard kitchen printer that is linked to your POS.   The windows device can be any old laptop with Windows 8 or above.

 

Both the KDS and the Imenu360 solutions have a potential pitfall that you would need to consider and prevent.  These orders will be manually entered into your POS system. Typically, after an order is entered into your POS system it prints in the kitchen.  However, with these particular solutions the order has already been sent to the kitchen via the online system.  Yikes, will it get made twice?  Murphy’s Law dictates this will happen if not well thought out.  If you use a solution where the order is sent to the kitchen via the online application, you need to think about this problem.

 

All of the systems on our preferred list have a printer option. The printer is a separate cost and it varies by company.  This option allows a ticket to print on a printer dedicated to the online app.  If located properly, this is a nice visual alert that a to-go order has been placed.  The Biteheist printer also uses sound as an added alert.

 

It is critical to understand that if your to-go online system is not integrated with your POS you must have a good way to make sure there is not a delay in processing these orders.

 

Use of the data

A key benefit to having your own to-go online ordering system is that customer data is captured and owned by you, not a third party.  This includes data such as email addresses, customer order history, last order date etc.  You should use this data to drive more repeat business.

 

All of the platforms that we are referring allow you to download your data into a spreadsheet that can be uploaded into a third party product such as Constant Contact.

 

Biteheist has an additional option.  Their system is integrated with technology developed by a restaurant marketing company, Spillover.  This integrated system allows you to create ad hoc email campaigns based on your data using a choice of templates.  For example, if you want to regularly send a “we miss you” $5 off email to anyone that has not ordered in two months, it’s easy.

 

In addition, Spillover will offer additional marketing services such as reputation management and social media management that are fairly affordable.  If a to-go offering is new for your restaurant, you will have to get the word out.  If you do not have the ability to do this well, Spillover could help.  We have worked out a separate discount arrangement for their services that includes discounts plus a few free months however there is a set-up fee which will also be discounted for What Chefs Want customers.

 

Ease of use/ Aesthics

All of the solutions we are recommending are user friendly and provide a simple, pleasant experience for your customer. They all allow you to add pictures to your menu items. However, they each have a little different look and feel, and you should determine the system that fits your image

 

Text Communication of order status

Your order will be ready in 5 minutes.  Your order is now ready.  Do you want to be able to send this type of text communication to your customer?  You should.

 

Biteheist currently has this built in.   ToGo Technologies has this built into their add-on KDS system. Imenu360 does not currently have this ability but it is on their development plan.

 

Credit Card Processing

You can choose to allow an option for your customer to pay online when they place their order.  This gives your customer the option to pay online or pay in store.

 

For online payments, all of the companies on our preferred list allow you to choose your own credit card processor.  They provide a gateway. There is typically a separate fee for the gateway which is around $15.00/month plus a dime or two per transaction.

 

Imenu360 has an option to directly process cards for you. The rate is 2.99% and 30 cents per transaction. If you chose this option, there are no gateway fees.

 

Biteheist has an added option that allows you to send a text so your customer can pay via phone.

 

 

Referral List (In Alphabetical order)

 

Biteheist:

Website. www.biteheist.com

Restaurants on platform: 250+

Est.: 2015

Location: Austin, Texas

 

Key benefits:  Audible Alert systems to let you staff know an order is in.

Small and nimble

Ability to text order status to your customer

Software is relatively new which translates to more modern technology

Integrated with a platform that will allow you to easily build email marketing campaigns

Did we mention, audible Alert systems to let you staff know an order is in?

 

Additional comments:

Biteheist has a relationship with a restaurant marketing company Spillover who specializes in technology that simplifies restaurant marketing.  Their tools assist with using the data you capture to launch useful email campaigns to drive more business.  They can also manage your reputation management and social media marketing.  Their website is www.spillover.com

 

Fees:

Standard setup fee:

Standard Monthly Fee: $39.

Transaction Fee: 95 cents per order, paid by your customer. (There is an option for it to be billed)

Printer: $299

Website Design

 

What Chefs Want special rates

Set-up Fee: Free

Month Fee $19

Printer: $250

This rates applies only if you sign up by May 31.

 

In addition, Spill over is offering What Chefs Want discounts of approximately 25% for website development/maintenance, email marketing set up as well as social media management.  Contact them for pricing.

 

Imenu360:

Website: www.imenu360.com

Restaurants on platform: 3000+

In business since 2005

Location: Chicago, Illinois

 

Key benefits:  Experience in the industry

Ability to integrate with some POS systems

Very flexible platform that allows you create the look that you want.

Can print on your standard kitchen printer to get orders to your kitchens immediately.

If your POS is Clover or Adelo Express, you can download a fully integrated app.

 

 

Fees:

Standard set-up fee: $49 for a non-integrate solution

$199 POS integrated solution.

Standard Monthly fee: $149 monthly plan, $119 annual contract and $199 Integrated with your POS

Printer $100

Taps tablet w/software $100

 

What Chefs Want Special Rates:

Monthly Fee $125 Monthly plan  $100 Annual Contract

 

 

 

 

ToGo Technologies:

website: https://home.togotechnologies.com

Restaurants on platform 1000+

Established: 2009

Location: Nashville, Tennessee

 

Key Benefits:  Potential for POS integration

Kitchen Display System (KDS)

– Instantly displays take-out order on the display in the kitchen

– Ability to communicate order status to customer via text

Local to Nashville area

Fee structure

 

Standard set-up fee: $350

Standard Monthly Fee: $99

 

What Chefs Want Special Rates

Set-up fee $250

Monthly Fee $79

 

 

Other companies worth a mention.

There are a couple of options not on our preferred list that are viable options.

 

Upserve: Upserve is a P/O system that has an online platform.  They are offering the online platform free for a year to non-Upserve customers.  Its biggest value is the fact that it is free.  If you are only thinking about participating in the to-go world until things go back to normal this may be a viable option.   They were left off our list because they cannot commit to what happens after the free year.  Also, their motivation for offering this free solution is to get a foot in the door to sell you their POS system.  If you are in the market for a new POS system this would be a good way to try them out free for a year.

 

ChowNow:  Chow Now is one of the bigger players in the online ordering platform market.  It’s a fine platform.  They were left off the list for a few reasons.  It was often hard to get through to them and when we did, they never followed through with return calls.  In addition, they send emails to your customers from them, not from you.  Considering they serve over 14,000 restaurants, they can be a conduit between your customers and your competitors.  However, this could also have flip side benefit for your business.  The solution is viable, and the price is in the ballpark however the relationship between you and them is in their favor.   We put value in an equitable partnership.