5 Ways Online Ordering Can Connect You to Customers

For many restaurant owners, online ordering is only a means to an end. You may believe that online ordering is just a way to get customer orders. What you might not realize is that your online ordering portal can be so much more than that for your restaurant.

Online ordering offers a great way to connect with your customers. This can help you connect with both loyal customers that keep coming back and new customers just discovering the delights of your kitchen. Discover five different ways to use online ordering to connect with your customers when using a high-quality system.

Online Food Courts

Being a part of online food courts for your restaurant is a fantastic way to get in front of lots of new, loyal diners. An online food court is a nice option because a hungry person scrolls through this to find a restaurant that will hit the spot for him. That could be your restaurant if you participate.

Some users prefer to check out multiple restaurants on one website rather than going through individual restaurants. Some restaurateurs may skip this option because it seems like you’re too close to the competition. If you market your food right, you’ll bring in new orders and build a loyal base.

Custom Sites

Most people today are rather savvy internet users. They want to see a nice website when they are doing business with a company. A website isn’t just a place to get information about a business for them, but it also helps to clue them into how well a business runs.

A restaurant website that is just bare bones may set off a negative vibe for some users.This is especially true if your website is missing vital information someone needs to fully experience your restaurant. A custom site with online ordering can reflect positively on your restaurant when it provides high-quality visuals of your food, details that encourage your visitors to order and an easy-to-use online ordering setup.

Mobile Ordering

Online ordering is great. However, you must make sure that you optimize your ordering platform for any mobile device. Consider that millions of internet users now explore the web on mobile devices, you’re missing out on huge amounts of clientele when you fail to optimize your website for mobile.

Mobile ordering is a very positive experience for most users. This gives them the same functionality of your entire website at their fingertips when they aren’t on a laptop or desktop. This means that they can order at a friend’s house, on the way home from work or anywhere. People avoid ordering from you if they can only find your website on a laptop or desktop.

Social Networks

Your restaurant’s online ordering can be a very social event for your customers. This system can make your restaurant more noticeable for potential customers. Make it easy for your customers to share their recent online orders with their social network by including a share option. That way, they get to brag about the awesome food delivery they have coming their way while helping to market your restaurant for you. Social networks allow you to create a presence for your company. You can also connect with customers and their linked audience. The best part of social media is that many parts of these networks are free to use.

Marketing

Your online ordering system can tie into your marketing efforts rather easily. Once you implement online ordering for the first time, tout this new system with online advertising and signage in your restaurant. Make your ordering system enticing for someone to want to try out their first online order by offering a coupon.

Continue to market your system when you have specials and other interesting news to share with your customers who utilize online ordering. Your online orders feed your marketing base while your marketing can help connect your customers to feed your online orders.

Conclusion

Viewing online ordering as just a tool for customers means you neglect how powerful this tool can be for your restaurant business. You want to really connect with customers to keep your loyal clients coming back again and again. You also want to introduce your restaurant to new customers. Online ordering can be an excellent linchpin in your strategy to accomplish this task.

Your food is the biggest draw and should be a huge part of your business strategy, but you can use online tools to put your tempting food in front of your audience. People can’t order what they don’t know about when it comes to your delectable bites. A new customer often decides what to order based on how good something looks, while tempting visuals remind a loyal customer why he or she loves your food.

Does your digital game need some help for your restaurant? It doesn’t matter if you need a whole website or just online ordering, Order2.me is here to help. Get in touch with us today about how we can help you connect with your customers.