Technology

Choosing new technology? Prioritize fast results over flash

Adobe

At this year’s restaurant trade shows, there was a lot of buzz about the latest technologies, such as robot servers, AI voice technology, autonomous delivery vehicles and more.

While it's easy to get dazzled by what’s cool and new, decisions about whether it’s right for a specific brand’s needs are much harder. One area of the restaurant tech stack that doesn’t get a lot of attention is at the point where off-premises orders are handed off to customers and delivery drivers.

Choose technology that focuses on what matters

Some restaurant technology is so complex and expensive that it’s hard for operators to predict if it’s going to help them with their pressing real-world problems, including optimizing labor, improving speed of service and cutting costs from outside services such as third-party delivery.

Most operators don’t have months or years to wait for results. Recent Black Box Intelligence data shows that although customers are choosing off-premise dining more often, they aren’t very happy with it. In Q2 2022, limited-service restaurants received a -33% net sentiment score, showing an urgent need to improve the off-premises customer experience.

That’s where OrderHQ Smart Food Lockers from Apex come in.

Targeted tech for improving off-premises order fulfillment

The third-generation OrderHQ Smart Food Lockers bring efficient automation to the traditional order pickup shelf. They provide security and organization for this otherwise messy process of getting the right order to the right customer at the right time. Their seamless workflows bring immediate improvements in labor efficiency, increase order throughput, and reduce wait times so there’s less crowding in the lobby. More importantly, they reduce friction in the customer’s order pickup experience.

In its latest study, Bluedot found that 40% of customers are frustrated when their takeout order is shown to be ready, but they still have to wait for an employee to help them. With OrderHQ lockers, customers don’t have to wait for someone to hand them their order. They don’t have to check all the shelves and bags. They simply come in, scan their code, and take their order in less than 10 seconds.

With such a quick and reliable experience, customers may choose to order directly from the restaurant’s app instead of opting for third-party delivery. That means brands can own the full customer journey and start to reduce the fees they pay to third-party delivery services.

OrderHQ lockers can process a high volume of digital orders and capture data on pickup and loading times. With an average order dwell time of six minutes (based on all Apex customer locations,) a seven-compartment OrderHQ locker can manage up to 70 orders per hour, and more lockers can be connected as needed.

Real-time order pickup data for customers and delivery services

Reducing employee and customer friction is just the beginning. The lockers’ ApexIQ software also provides real-time data that completes the digital chain of custody for every order, providing opportunities for optimizing every step of the off-premises order journey. In fact, leading QSR brands have already uncovered data insights about delivery service performance, gaining new clarity and bargaining power for use in negotiating contracts and fees.

Adding OrderHQ Smart Food Lockers to the restaurant tech stack brings precision, efficiency and security to off-premise orders, making this segment of the business more efficient and profitable. They deliver big improvements in speed of service, convenience and order fidelity.

Talk to Apex Order Pickup Solutions to discover how OrderHQ Smart Food Lockers can make immediate improvements in the off-premises experience and profitability.

This post is sponsored by Apex Order Pickup Solutions

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