A handful of restaurant operators are thinking beyond the menu, coupling with mobile apps outside the food industry to capitalize on the services they offer and provide a next-level experience.
Sweetgreen’s health-conscious customers who have iPhones can now load calorie counts of meals they’ve purchased via the restaurant’s app straight into Apple’s Health app.
DD Perks members who have both apps installed now have a seamless way to order from the nearest Dunkin’ location before beginning their trip. After opening Waze, users can press a button to launch Dunkin’s on-the-go ordering within the app.
The pizza chain joined forces with the IFTTT app—which lets users program and automate functions for their internet-connected devices—to allow customers with smart homes to set up automated tasks such as turning on the porch lights once their mobile order is out for delivery.
The Bottom Line: The restaurant industry, eager for sales and traffic in a difficult year, issued more new products than they ever have. Yet it hasn’t worked to get customers in the door.
