Even before COVID-19, delivery services was on the rise. Now, many customers are reluctant to go to restaurants, but still want to enjoy their favorite meals. So, your restaurant may be opening up, but social distancing is limiting the number of customers that you can at any one time. That’s why it’s essential to add delivery services to your restaurant.
- Upgrade your technology.
To successfully expand your business, you will want an updated POS (Point of Sales) system that will handle online orders, delivery options, and customer details. The upfront costs can be high but will be worth it in the long run. The most beneficial aspect is having information about your customer data, which will allow you to market to your customers better. Plus,make sure your website reflects the new updates to your restaurant.
Many restaurants partner end up partnering with a third-party service, such as Grubhub or UberEats. However, there are significant pros and cons you will have to weigh before you go that route. Often, you end up dealing with increasing costs as many of these services take a large cut in the sales you make and control your menu and prices.
- Prepare your kitchen and menu.
Before you start accepting online deliveries, it’s essential to prepare your kitchen and even your menu, for this service. It’s essential your staff is trained to keep the workflow streamlined and efficient.
Also, you will want a specific area of the kitchen for drivers to pick up orders. If you include a pick-up service as well, you will also want to be sure that the delivery area. It will keep things organized and keep everyone at a safe, social distance.
You may also want to consider creating a take-out and delivery only menu. Some items may be harder to deliver than others, so keep that in mind as you prepare your menu. There are creative packaging solutions if you are open to the added costs.
- Decide who will deliver.
When deciding to hire a delivery person, you may want to consider hiring someone who can exclusively do deliveries or a couple of part-time people who can share the responsibility. However you decide to hire someone, transportation is your most significant consideration. Many restaurants will have the worker use their own car. However, if you do that, you will have no control over the employee’s vehicle maintenance. They may not even have enough room in their car to take the orders. That is why having a company vehicle with your restaurant’s brand is a huge perk. You not only have the chance to promote your restaurant through branding the car, but you can also maintain the vehicle as well.
There are many other considerations to consider when adding a delivery option to your restaurant, but we hope these tips get you started. With COVID-19 still on the rise, more restaurants are having to face alternative options to reach their customers. Reach out to Emerald Coast for our consulting services if you are in need of help in growing your restaurant business.