Jeremy Julian
Jeremy Julian
Custom Business Solutions to partner with Tekmark® Global Solutions, LLC and Aerohive Networks to deliver a bundled wireless ordering solution. (more…)
If you haven’t read Part 1 yet, go here.
Picking up where we left off on our 5 tips for getting the most out of social media.
Hopefully you have now identified your primary customer profiles and the social media outlets they use.
Next, you…
This is something that needs to be done whether you opt for social media or not, but it takes on a whole new meaning when it comes to the world of social media. Social media channels allow your brand to have more ‘personality’, as if it were a living, breathing thing. You can be funny or serious, or cater to a certain demographic or interest group. For example, Taco Bell has adopted a loose, shoot-from-the-hip way of doing social media. Compare that to Olive Garden, which is undeniably classic with its “when you’re here, you’re family” picture. Find a social media voice that fits with how people perceive your brand.
You wouldn’t try to build a treehouse without a hammer, would you? Make sure you have the proper tools to do your social media job correctly. Invest in a service like HootSuite, Buffer, or Social Bakers to get you on the right track. By investing in a social media toolkit, you are doing yourself several favors. For one, you can schedule your social media posts. This means when you’re slammed with the 7:30 pm dinner rush, you don’t have to worry about remembering to post tomorrow’s daily specials before your customers unplug for the night. Be sure these social media tools include reporting so you can see what is working and what isn’t. It’s all about guess and check, so why not guess a little smarter?
People are busy. They check into their social media outlets at different times of the day or night. When they are there, you want to make sure you’re there too. Make yourself visible by listing your business on popular apps like Urbanspoon, Yelp, and Google Maps. Time your posts on social media to coincide when people are most active on the site. You can also post at meal times. What better way to get someone in for $2 Margarita Night than by hitting their Facebook feed at 4 pm?
At the end of the day, it’s about building relationships. You want to become a part of your customers’ lives. You want them to be able to scroll through their Twitter feed and laugh at your tweet, or Pin the recipe just posted for killer dumplings, or drool over a picture of one of your famous chocolate sundaes.
Don’t overdo it, though. Don’t post constantly, and don’t post stuff that’s irrelevant or out of the ‘tone’ of your brand. Avoid hot button topics. If you have something to say, say it wisely. Show gratitude when people kindly refer to your brand. If someone has something negative to say, don’t delete the post and don’t retaliate; address the issue with humility and seize the opportunity to improve!
Social media is your friend. Yes, it takes work – and if you’re “old school,” it will surely feel outside your comfort zone. But it also allows you to connect with your customers on a personal level in a day and age when that’s hard to do face to face. Social media gives your brand a fighting chance to rise to the top and be heard amongst all the noise and clatter that surrounds our lives.
Image courtesy of “stockimages”; freedigitalphotos.net
Families are much less “traditional” than they used to be, right? Think back to your favorite episode of Leave it to Beaver.
Inevitably Wally and the Beav walk home from school (such cheerful, polite children, aren’t they?) and open the door to find Mrs. Cleaver happily vacuuming the curtains in her favorite dress and high heels. The kids dutifully finish their homework and run outside to play catch with the baseball while June gets to work in the kitchen. Eventually, Walt comes home in his three-piece suit and is greeted at the door with a tasteful smooch from the Mrs. and the family sits down to a quiet home-cooked supper complete with meat, potatoes, and a tall glass of milk, ready to listen to father’s words of wisdom for the day.
My, have times changed!
Nowadays, families run the gamut. Two-parent homes, single parent homes. Single people, married people, roommates, partners. No children, only children, 5+ children. Two working parents, a stay-at-home-mom, a stay-at-home-dad, or a single parent who works two jobs just to make ends meet. Older parents, younger parents. And the kids are busier than the parents: multiple sports, music lessons, SAT prep classes – you name it. Families are lucky to get a couple of sit-down meals together a week.
Life is a whirlwind these days. People are active, busy, and trying to stay ahead of the game. Community is much more difficult to achieve than in years past. (How many times have you borrowed a cup of sugar from your neighbor?)
As a restaurateur, you have to be willing to adapt to an ever-changing culture and meet your customers where they are in order to stay relevant and succeed. The “olden days” of yellow page ads are gone. Your restaurant is likely facing more competition today than it ever has, so an online presence and interaction on social media venues such as Yelp, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter, will help get your restaurant in front of your customers and hopefully be top of mind when the hunger pangs set in.
If you see more Velcro-strapped shoes in your restaurant dining room than anything else, your social media strategy may be an uphill battle. For everyone else, take a good hard look at the demographics of your restaurant. Are they college kids, or families gathering for Sunday brunch? Do you offer a “kids eat free” night? Perhaps your place is a “happy hour” type of place where young professionals come to wind down after work. Once you get an idea of who actually patronizes your restaurant, meet them on their most widely-used social media platforms.
We’re going to stop here and give you some time to mull this over. Determine who your customers are and perform a little research to determine the best social media venues on which to target and engage them.
When you’re ready, check out Part 2!
Image courtesy of “stockimages”; freedigitalphotos.net
Nope, that’s not a scene from the 1980 classic film Inferno. It’s much more real than that. It’s a scenario that happens daily in restaurant kitchens across the country.
It’s no wonder, then, that the survivability of touchscreen technology in restaurant kitchens is such a hotly debated topic (no pun intended). The kitchen is an incredibly harsh environment overrun by moisture, heat, grease, open flames, and many greasy, grimy hands.
However, as restaurant menus evolve, technology is making the ordering process much more streamlined and efficient. As they invade nearly every aspect of American life, touchscreens are also making their way into restaurants nationwide. The restaurant owner is faced with a question: How do I install this costly technology into a harsh environment such as a kitchen? How much technology to purchase and how to properly place it requires some careful planning and forethought.
It is important to select the proper touch technology. While there are several options to choose from, most manufacturers of the low-cost options do not recommend putting the hardware in the kitchen due to the extreme conditions.
The most important thing to consider when choosing a piece of kitchen hardware is to make sure the touch screen is sealed. If the screen isn’t sealed, you’re going to be replacing that unit very soon.
It’s also important to consider screen functionality. Because kitchen staff depends heavily on utensils and tools, it’s best to choose a system that will respond when something other than a hand is used to navigate the screen.
Finally, consider the casing around the hardware. Plastic gets weak under consistent heat and steam, so something with metal will likely last longer.
One of the most common oversights to mounting touch technology into your kitchen is getting the correct type of mount. There are generally two types of mount patterns on the back of most POS terminals: the VESA 75mm and the VESA 100mm. Be sure to get the mount that matches your POS systems pattern.
Next, think about where you want to mount it and if that location will require the screen to move at all. If you want it high and out of the way, you may need an articulating arm to accommodate different heights.
There are a number of different mounts to choose from, including the articulating arm, pole mounts, ceiling mounts, wall mounts, and more. If you can dream it, there’s likely a manufacturer who has made it. Finally, consider that each of these terminals will need power. Be sure to scout a location to mount or hide the power supply in the kitchen.
No matter where you go in a restaurant kitchen, heat is always a factor. Range hoods, heat lamps, ovens, and grill tops are all major sources of heat to take into consideration before mounting any hardware in the kitchen. Make sure you understand how your cooks operate and find a placement that will allow them to easily read and interact with the touch screen – but far enough away from any heat sources so it won’t melt.
There are also a number of high-heat terminals out there, so check the manufacturer’s specs for the maximum operating temperature. One critical component that we always recommend to protect your investment: install a stainless steel heat guard that will protect the unit from the high temperatures but still allow airflow to the terminal.
Like heat, moisture is pretty much a permanent fixture in any restaurant kitchen. Steam tables, hot plates, and standard cooking techniques all create a nightmare environment for electronics.
As with any electronic device, power and water don’t mix. Do not mount any electronic device near a steam table or any area that may be prone to routine spills. If you do get some water or steam on your device, don’t panic – it will likely live. Just be aware that prolonged exposure to such moisture will significantly reduce its usable life.
There are many pieces of software that will enhance your kitchen staff’s productivity and efficiency. Products such as QSR Automations, Northstar Recipe Viewer, and Logic Control are all pieces of software that can provide your business with more metrics and provide your staff with the information they need to do their jobs. Products like Recipe Viewer provide a digital copy of the recipe into the staff’s work space to create consistency of product across the enterprise.
Touchscreen technology will not only make your restaurant even more prepared for the future, it will help it run more efficiently and, in turn, make it more profitable. Touchscreen technology in the kitchen is something that many restaurants have introduced to help reduce error, waste, and inconsistencies.
With touchscreen technology surfacing in nearly every aspect of our lives, your employees will come to expect it in the workplace. A touchscreen kitchen system will reduce training time, increase accuracy, and boost customer satisfaction.
Check out our friends Bo’s Steakhouse CEO Tom Sacco as he discusses the use of technology including the innovative iPad point of sale NorthStar Order Entry omnichannel ordering experience.
With built-in loyalty and other premium features, MyCheck enables a “wow” customer experience
New York, NY — July 31, 2014 — MyCheck, the leading checkout technology for restaurants and other businesses across four major markets worldwide, announced a complete integration into POSitouch point-of-sale software for quick service and full service restaurants.
The MyCheck install onto POSitouch systems is done remotely and simply involves the implementation of a button straight onto the payment screen. When a customer indicates to the server or the cashier that they want to pay with MyCheck, the order is entered as it normally would, along with a random four-digit code that is generated on the user’s smartphone upon check-in to the location. At that point, the user will receive an automated receipt in quick service environments. In full-service environments, the user will be able to view their bill in real-time, split the bill with other app users as well as with people that want to pay with credit cards or cash. Users will also be able to make a payment and get a receipt. Special offers, loyalty incentives and discounts are sent from the app to the POS and are reflected on the user side immediately.
Peter Lipman, Chief Technology Officer of POSitouch comments, “These days mobile apps and the Internet are about ‘user experience’. MyCheck has perfected that. Users and owners love MyCheck.”
“The core of our company is to create a memorable payment experience via integration – whether to different point of sale systems, loyalty platforms or third-party apps that want to reach the hospitality sector. Our specialty is doing it such a way that streamlines the operations on the merchant side and provides a ‘wow’ experience for the user,” says Tal Zvi Nathanel, US CEO and co-founder of MyCheck.
To date, MyCheck’s mobile checkout technology is used by over 3,000 merchants worldwide and has been implemented into apps developed by payment giants like PayPal. These apps have a significant user base and with the partnership with POSitouch, the technology will enhance major restaurant chains in the US and the UK. Current POSitouch customers include Aroma Espresso Bar – a quick service coffee chain that has implemented its own app using MyCheck technology – and a variety of full-service independent merchants like the venerable Tony’s DiNapoli in New York.
ABOUT MYCHECK:
MyCheck is a checkout technology that allows users to view, split, pay their bill straight from their mobile device, in addition to redeeming an offer and accruing loyalty card stamps. The technology comes in 3 forms – a standalone consumer app; a white label platform that has been adopted by many restaurant chains and as a “MyCheck Inside” capability that powers other consumer apps. MyCheck technology has been adopted by industry leaders such as Isracard (Mastercard’s licensee in Israel) and others. This wide reach is made possible due to the platform’s integration with 27 restaurant point-of- sale systems, including POSitouch, to provide an enhanced experience for both the merchant and the guest. More information is available at www.mycheckapp.com
Media Contact:
Michael Paffmann
646-430-5162
