Is your restaurant ready to accommodate for the next generation of guests? The 2022 consumer demands more from their restaurants, regardless of the size of the food establishment. There are three trends shaping the restaurants of the future: convenience, digital experience and safety. These trends are not only on the rise but have been rapidly accelerated by the recent global pandemic.
The restaurant industry, a once slow-moving giant, was shaken and brought to its knees in 2020 by a global pandemic and left questioning things that it once took for granted. What does a restaurant look like in 2022? What does “eating out” mean nowadays? How does the business model change? Is there still money to be made in this industry? Will things ever go back to normal? What do I need to do to make money in 2022?
So, where does the restaurant industry go from here? Restaurants are forced to quickly adapt or die a slow death. Let’s delve into these trends in more detail:
Convenience. Consumers have always demanded convenience, however, in this new era, this means having a drive-through, an efficient takeout operation or various delivery options. Can customers prepay and just pick their food up? Are you willing to send their food in an uber with prepayment? Do you accept various, non-conventional, payment methods? Expectations are high and we must meet them to survive. Because let’s be clear, dining inside a restaurant will never be the same, no matter how much we want it to be.
Seamless digital experiences. The consumer today is tech-savvy, and he/she demands a digital engagement from restaurants and want cutting-edge restaurant technology options, options that recognize them and know their preferences. The consumer wants photo opportunities on and off premises. They want a way to promote you organically. Have you considered building this as part of your marketing plan? Is your restaurant even digital? Customers prefer to use a digital app or the web to order food off-premises. In fact, did you know most consumers prefer to order directly from a restaurant’s own branded app or website? If they order directly from you, how are you rewarding your most loyal customers? Because other restaurants are already doing so, they are focusing on your customers and making their experiences personalized and memorable. Take back the control of your delivery operation. Use the delivery apps as much as possible for marketing purposes, but create that connection with your customers, engage with them and incentivize them to buy directly from you.
Heightened safety. It is no surprise that in the wake of COVID-19 safety became the most important issue for most consumers. Remote work models and crowd avoidance are among the trends reshaping people’s dining habits. Are you using extreme precautions with safety and cleanliness surrounding food preparation and transport? Market that, it's important for everyone to know. And no, unfortunately not every restaurant is taking the same precautions. Your customers want to know about it. It's your way of saying we care about you.
Ok great, the ingredients for the restaurant of the future are in place we now have the key to succeed in 2022. If only it were so easy to survive this never-ending storm. Covid-19 has made it very obvious the number of food concepts that shouldn’t have been operating to begin with and this has nothing to do with their quality of food or their overall concept but really everything to do with their lack of control and management systems. Yes, I’m talking about financial management, staff management, information management. If you’re not sure what I mean, then that could be part of the problem. I’m talking about making dynamic, data-driven decisions about your restaurant on a monthly basis. You don’t agree? As restaurant owners we are now forced to accept the areas we may have failed on and work on a strategy moving forward, if we expect to thrive in this new era of restaurant ownership.
To explore this in more detail and learn how to devise an action plan, reach out to one of our experienced consultants and schedule a free consultation. We’ve been there and we’re here to help. If you’re not ready to make that important step in your business but would like to continue to educate yourself, go to www.sldnmanagement.com/takebackcontrol and join our community. We have blogs, podcasts, webinars and a YouTube channel dealing with a lot of the challenges and opportunities you deal with on a daily basis.
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