5 Ways to deliver a frictionless guest experience

Today’s consumers increasingly expect frictionless experiences when dining out. Whether guests choose to visit a fast-casual or full-service restaurant in person or have their favorite meal delivered, making their interactions with a brand seamless from start to finish should be high on restaurant operators’ priority list. Here are five of the top ways to remove potential speedbumps and deliver the best possible frictionless guest experience.

NFC loyalty ID represents the intersection of convenient payment and guest engagement.  Through innovative technology, retailers can provide frictionless guest experiences while at the same time capturing data and offering easy program enrollment. Many guests already have their phones in their hands while waiting in line, so a simple tap at an NFC-enabled payment terminal lets them make purchases without having to dig through their purses or wallets for a means of payment. Enrolled guests earn and redeem rewards with that same tap, while those not currently enrolled will be prompted to join, making NFC loyalty ID an easy way to acquire more members while keeping existing ones engaged.

Guests at a full-service restaurant wait an average of 12 minutes between the time they request their check and when their transaction is complete. This time spent waiting often leaves a negative last impression for guests who might have otherwise enjoyed the meal. With mobile payment options, guests can load their bill onto the restaurant’s mobile app and pay as soon as they are ready. By eliminating the waiting period, the guests have better experiences, the restaurant can turn the table over more quickly during peak times and servers can even receive higher tips. 

For guests on the go, the ability to place an order online and pick it up without having to wait provides the convenience they seek. In order to deliver the best possible experience for guests, onsite pickup needs to be as quick and easy as the ordering process. If guests have placed an order online to avoid a wait, restaurants shouldn’t make them stand in line to pick up their meal. Having a clearly marked designated area for picking up online orders eliminates this chance for friction and ends the guest experience on a high note.

For many consumers, the most convenient option when dining out is actually not going out at all,  instead having their meals brought to them. Since delivery is predicted to account for 40% of restaurant sales by 2020, many restaurants view it as a necessity. By making delivery available through the restaurant’s mobile app and coordinating it with a loyalty program, operators stand to gain rich data for their marketing strategies and learn which promotions are likely to be the most effective.

Like NFC loyalty IDs, stored value presents another way that guests can pay for purchases without having to put down their phone. By loading money onto a restaurant’s mobile app, guests are making a commitment to that brand and ensuring that they will return for future visits. When their balances are running low, they can be prompted to load more money onto their accounts or encouraged to sign up for auto-reload. These options provide guests with the peace of mind that they will always be able to cover their next purchase. 

Based in Newton, Massachusetts, Paytronix is a provider of SaaS customer experience management (CXM) solutions for restaurants and convenience stores. Through its innovative software design and integrations with more than 30 widely used point-of-sale systems, Paytronix empowers more than 350 brands across 26,500 locations, giving them the flexibility to deliver unique, revenue-enhancing guest experiences. Through one-to-one engagement with more than 285 million loyal guests via mobile, social, and today’s most innovative digital marketing tools, Paytronix generates Big Data consumer insights that motivate increased visits and spend. For more information, visitwww.paytronix.com.