8 Reasons to Launch Phone Apps for Restaurants
These days you will hardly meet a person who doesn’t have a mobile phone. Half of your own life is probably tied into it: contacts, reminders, payments, ticket reservations, shopping, TV streaming, even heart rate tracking. We want to do everything on the go and anyone hoping to run a successful business must adapt. Your restaurant is no exception. Launching phone apps offers tremendous benefits for your dining outlet that can take your marketing to a whole new level. Here are some for you to consider.
Reason 1. Increased Customer Reach
The number of people using PCs is drastically waning while mobile usage is growing by the day. That means having a website for your restaurant isn’t enough anymore to keep up with the target audience. Using a mobile app for viewing the menu, making orders, booking tables and learning about interesting offers is fast and convenient. It can be done from any place, at any time. Why not use that to your advantage? You can stuff your application with a host of compelling features, integrate it with other services and engage customers through powerful visuals, all to cover their mobile-specific needs and offer a better experience with your venue.
Reason 2. Personalized Service
We all like to be treated personally. If you know exactly what your customers want, you are more likely to leave them satisfied with your service and encourage return visits. A mobile app will make a great assistant in collecting valuable information on your clientele. When making orders or reservations on a mobile device, users can save their dining preferences, favorite dishes and even preferred tables. Aside from sheer convenience, this data can further be used for targeted notifications, emails and ads.
Reason 3. Online Ordering
Introducing online ordering is a sure way to boost in-store efficiency. Ability to select and pay for their meal in advance without waiting at the restaurant will save your visitors’ precious time and reduce lines at the counter. That works particularly well for takeouts and home deliveries. Really, what can be more convenient than ordering food from your mobile gadget to any address, whether you wish to chill on the couch with a pizza or need to quickly whip up a business lunch at the office? It is also a great tool for streamlining the entire process of order acceptance. Spending less time answering the phone and getting accurate instructions on every order will minimize human error and allow your staff to focus on the diners instead.
Reason 4. Table Booking
The worst thing that can happen to you while planning a romantic date or dining out in a strange city is coming to a restaurant only to find out that all places have been taken. Table reservation via phone apps solves that issue. This handy feature will instantly provide users with a clear map of available tables while also giving you an estimate of the expected attendance. Besides, it’s much more convenient for customers to tap a few buttons on their mobile screen than finding the right time to call in and making their point through irritating background noise.
Reason 5. Push Notifications
Your customers may forget to check their mailbox or overlook your promotional email, but it’s hard to ignore a message that pops up right before your eyes. Push notifications will keep the diners informed on upcoming events and attractive offers at your restaurant ensuring a growing inflow of visitors. You can also drum up more walk-ins through location-based messages prompting users to drop by whenever they are in the area. This trick will come in particularly handy during the ‘dead’ hours. Finally, you can boost your ranking by sending out push notifications asking users to leave a review and rate your app on sites that matter most for your business.
Reason 6. Social Media Integration
Linking social platforms like Facebook and Twitter to your phone app can prove to be highly efficient in improving your online visibility and driving even more customer engagement. Since most users check their social media profiles on a daily basis, it’s a great way to stay in their focus and keep them updated on your restaurant’s agenda. That will also spur them to share their dining experience with followers spreading word about your restaurant at the speed of light. And given the fact that people are prone to trusting someone they actually know personally rather than some smug commercials, you can’t wish for better advertising.
Reason 7. Loyalty Program Adoption
Loyalty programs exist to motivate customers toward higher spending. However, people don’t like things that are too complicated and troublesome. Having to go through a long and tricky registration process or squeezing yet another loyalty card into your wallet isn’t exactly stimulating. Combined with mobile payment and online ordering, digital loyalty programs eliminate these inconveniences. Customers can sign up for one right in the app resting assured that all their visits will be recorded and all their points will be collected properly. You can even run several loyalty campaigns at once offering your audience an extra benefit of multiple bonuses.
Reason 8. Brand Awareness
Making your brand stand out among a whole army of competitors is a real marketing challenge. But no matter how well your business strategy is planned out, you won’t be able to achieve strong recognition without repeatedly exposing customers to your brand. One of the easiest ways to do it is – well, what else? – launching a mobile app. That will expose users to your brand at least a few times a day. Although most of them will use your application only occasionally, the app icon will hover within their sight every time they take out their smartphone. Of course, the icon has to be recognizable and eye-catching for that to work.
Under the right approach, phone apps can turn into a formidable tool for boosting your restaurant business, immensely expanding your customer base and sending your profits sky-high. Here are some sites where you can create a mobile app for your restaurant in a couple of clicks:
Restaurant Hill
Offering an impressive set of features with strong customer focus, this service allows you to launch a fully synchronized website and mobile app for your dining outlet within 10 minutes:
- Stylish customizable templates
- Scalable design
- Full integration between mobile app and website
- Online ordering and table reservation
- Advanced content management
Appypie
With this app constructor, you can market your restaurant service much more efficiently by reaching out to a wider audience through a custom-built mobile app.
Appmakr
Create a code-free phone app with a compelling design, real-time analytics and powerful monetizing features to boost your sales.
Mojobistro
This restaurant app builder has all possible tools for effectively interacting with your mobile clientele and increasing customer engagement.
Biznessapps
Set up a unique mobile app experience for your diners offering an easy way to enjoy your meals and stay updated on special offers.