Jeremy Julian
Jeremy Julian
Today, we are getting back to business basics and covering the SWOT analysis and how it can help any business – old and new.
The SWOT analysis is a strategic planning tool that helps a business identify their own strengths and weaknesses, as well as any opportunities and threats that may exist in a specific business situation. A SWOT analysis is a good tool for general business strategizing and a starting point for team discussions.
When is the last time your business completed a SWOT analysis?
Here is some advice: To get the most complete, objective results, a SWOT analysis is best conducted by a group of people with different perspectives and stakes in your company. Management, sales, customer service, and even customers can all contribute valid insight. Moreover, the SWOT analysis process is an opportunity to bring your team together and encourage their participation in and adherence to your company’s resulting strategy.
Questions to Ask During the Process
Use the list of questions below to start the important conversations that will uncover the nuggets that will improve your business.
Strengths: Think about the attributes of yourself and your business that will help you achieve your objective. Questions to consider:
Weaknesses: Think about the attributes of yourself and your business that could hurt your progress in achieving your objective. Questions to consider:
Opportunities: Think about the external conditions that will help you achieve your objective. Questions to consider:
Threats: Think about the external conditions that could damage your business’s performance. Questions to consider:
We hope this helps! If you were feeling stuck or lacking inspiration for new ideas, a SWOT analysis can definitely spark you and your team’s imagination.
Need to pass the time between our next post? Then check out Custom Business Solutions for all your restaurant technology needs!
Today, we are continuing our theme of talking mobile apps by showcasing some apps and technology that are changing the way restaurants operate and improve customer experience. In case you missed any of our previous articles, you can check them out here:
Rooam – Eliminating the wait to pay
Imagine: you are at a busy bar, standing behind other customers for 15 minutes trying to hail a bartender just to close a check. You get frustrated, you want to leave and you do not want to leave your card or get charged the 15% surcharge……and then your Uber/Lyft/Cab arrives. Sound familiar?
That scenario inspired the creation of Rooam, which allows customers to close and pay a bar tab all from a mobile device.
“We integrate with the existing [pos] systems and from there we send an API signal through our back end to their specific system to open a tab. And the tab is opened just like a normal tab that would be created in person at a location,” says Rooam co-founder and CEO Junaid Shams. “The main benefit comes from how Rooam removes the paper process. From a consumer side, it’s very efficient, but more importantly it’s efficient from the bar side. From the moment a customer asks to close their tab you have to turn around, find their name and credit card, find their name in the POS system, close the receipt, print the receipt, put it in that small holder, and give it away. That’s a several-minute process that we’re completely eliminating, and those are the several minutes per customer that they now could be serving other customers.”
Originally geared towards bars, Rooam, has gained a major following in large restaurant groups. Erik Bergman, director of operations for Neighborhood Restaurant Group, says Rooam’s remote checkout feature and amplified marketing have brought more guests through the door and resulted in a greater return on investment.
Across its user base, Shams says, clients say the biggest benefit is an increase in sales and revenue. “The biggest game changer for us has also been an increase in sales,” Shams says. “[Restaurants] have also seen an increase in tips. … We default at 20 percent. I think there’s so much we can do with the data we’re getting.”
Waitlist Me – Managing tables and expectations
For restaurant waitlist app Waitlist Me, adding a table management aspect was about simplicity.
“When we look at how people used floor plans, they had to look all over to find the information needed. It was organized by space, not necessarily how long someone has been at the table or what table you want to choose,” says Waitlist Me CEO Brian Hutchins. “We think people are getting by with this because the problems with floor plans are not immediately apparent. Maybe things aren’t going as smoothly, or one waitress gets less customers than the other, or they get busier at certain times, so it’s not immediately linkable that all these bad decisions on the floor plan are translating to lower sales.”
The app organizes table sections as lines that can be read from left to right and top to bottom. It also lists how long the tables have been occupied. Open tables for each section stand out in green, and tables that have been occupied the longest show next in the row.
Waitlist Me has also provided benefits to owners and managers through its main waitlist management component, which notifies customers through text messages that their table is available and provides wait estimates.
“We went from using handheld pagers to the Waitlist Me app over a year ago. The pagers were antiquated and costly to replace or repair, so this option made financial sense, in addition to being more operationally efficient with better table management and faster seating,” says Tim Yoder, director of technology at South Bend, Indiana–based Hacienda Mexican Restaurants. “I think by using this technology, the guest has the perception that this technology will result in a quicker seat time for them because they perceive the human element is removed from the equation.”
Northstar POS – The revolution in POS
Evolving with restaurant’s needs to be versatile and technologically agile, Northstar POS, has answered the call and taken the industry by storm.
Northstar POS can take in orders from multiple channels: tableside, tablets, kiosks, web and orders that come in from mobile, which is key in today’s environment. Users love that it was built for restaurants, with their needs in mind and not some recycled retail POS system.
“The NorthStar team is incredibly attentive to my business’s needs. As we’ve grown and added additional units, our needs have evolved and the team at NorthStar has been there every step of the way,” says Kristofer Pola, Co-Owner and Executive Chef of Blue Ribbon Restaurants.
The system scales with your business and has added security to keep yours and your customer’s information safe. Owners have incredible control over customization and changes with a few clicks from any web-enabled device. The responsive design makes editing your menus, adding items and checking reports quicker and more efficient. And speaking of reports, you can access actionable data, in real-time, to help make staffing, ordering and seating decisions on the fly. For security, all systems are EMV-compatible and have built-in secure encryption at the swipe of a card. And all data is housed in a cloud-based content management system.
When your customer is safe, your business is safe.
Technology and in particular, mobile technology, is the future. It has encompassed every aspect of our lives and is further integrating into everything we do. But, as a reader of this blog, you already knew that! So why are we talking about this? Because my friends, the future is here.
Let’s talk about what Amazon is doing. Over the past year or so, Amazon has been opening small grocery stores called Amazon Go. If you are unfamiliar with Amazon Go and their plans for world domination, here is a small excerpt from their site:
What is Amazon Go?
Amazon Go is a new kind of store with no checkout required. We created the world’s most advanced shopping technology so you never have to wait in line. With our Just Walk Out Shopping experience, simply use the Amazon Go app to enter the store, take the products you want, and go! No lines, no checkout. (No, seriously.)
How does Amazon Go work?
Our checkout-free shopping experience is made possible by the same types of technologies used in self-driving cars: computer vision, sensor fusion, and deep learning. Our Just Walk Out Technology automatically detects when products are taken from or returned to the shelves and keeps track of them in a virtual cart. When you’re done shopping, you can just leave the store. Shortly after, we’ll charge your Amazon account and send you a receipt.
In addition to the above description, here is a video:
Pretty amazing, right?
And with the recent purchase of Whole Foods, Amazon will be rolling out this experience in a BIG way.
So how does this relate to you and your restaurant?
Expectations.
The restaurant industry is known to be slow-adopters of new technology, but that does not mean you have to be. Mobile ordering, payment, curbside pick-up or delivery-by-drone are things that are happening NOW. Do not get left behind in the race to keep up with your customers’ expectations. We guarantee that if you won’t do it, someone else will, and that is a competitive advantage battle most independent restaurants cannot afford to lose.
We are not saying go out and invest in every single new piece of technology or new fad. No. The message we are trying to convey is: keep up with your customers. Match the experiences they have everyday in terms of convenience and technology. If you have their interests and an improved experience at the forefront of what you do, your customers will keep coming back and love you forever. And that means a strong and consistent ROI.
Need to pass the time between our next post? Then check out Custom Business Solutions for all your restaurant technology needs!
Have you ever used the Starbucks mobile app? For those who have not, a user can make an order, pay for that order, drive to their designated store, walk in and walk out with everything they wanted without having to interact with anyone. The app is a huge success. So let’s pose this question: why are restaurants not taking note? Well, there are a couple who are and they are revolutionizing the drive-thru experience entirely.
Mobile apps are helping to speed up service in the drive-thru as operators look for more ways technology can improve the customer experience.
“Even if a customer phones in an order, we tell them they can come through the drive-thru for food pickup at the window,” says Brian Landstrom, chief financial officer for the parent company of 17-unit Meatheads Burgers & Fries restaurants, which includes four with drive-thrus. “People are shocked when we tell them that. It’s a great customer service point.”
Meatheads did not begin with drive-thrus in mind, but the convenience was added for customers, and to retain to-go sales during inclement weather, Landstrom says.
“It can help drive revenue in those off periods, when the weather is bad and customers do not want to get out of their car, or you have a mom with kids coming from practice or school and she doesn’t want to drag three kids out of the car to come in to pick up a to-go order,” he says.
Think about this for a minute: your restaurant has the ability to still connect with customers even without them sitting down in the restaurant. They can still enjoy their favorite food, regardless of their personal situation or external factors, such as weather. How many times have you or a family member not wanted to go to a restaurant because of A. the wait and B. the time investment (sitting down, waiting on a server, paying for a check, then driving home)? We have all said it, “Let’s just get something quick.”
Now, your restaurant can be that ‘something quick.’ You can compete with services like UberEats, Food trucks, fast-food and food delivery services. If implemented correctly, customers can use your restaurant constantly, for any occasion.
Future developments for drive-thrus may be beacons, radio frequency identification tags or GPS locators that would allow consumers who have already placed an order and paid for it—online or via a mobile app—to simply drive up to a window, pick up their order and drive off without having to interact with anyone.
“We’ve seen the Amazon Go stores where you walk in, check out items automatically and walk out,” says Darren Tristano, president of Technomic. “There’s no reason to think this will not happen for drive-thru.”
Google is testing a Hands Free app that enables customers to pay for items without handing a clerk a credit card or cash, or even their phone to scan. The app is in test with retailers in Northern California, including McDonald’s and Papa John’s.
The future is here. How will your restaurant change with the times?
Need to pass the time between our next post? Then check out Custom Business Solutions for all your restaurant technology needs!
So, you read our last article about, ‘What are Group Purchasing Organizations?’ and you probably thought, “how many restaurants actually use GPOs?” Well, the answer may surprise you.
Nearly 40,000 independent restaurant operators are now affiliated with Group Purchasing Organizations (GPOs) and that number is only expected to grow. According to Dining Alliance, the use of GPOs is expected to rise because of the cost savings they provide to independent restaurant operators. Especially when you take into account the rising costs of food, supplies and utilities.
For example, Dining Alliance saw a 67 percent increase in its operator membership from 2014-2016, up from 13,000 to 21,000, respectively. This enabled the company to save its members in excess of $19.8 million in 2016 with a total of $4.3 billion in buying power.
“GPOs like ours level the playing field in an industry where large-scale chains often get better pricing. This gives independent operators the ability to run successful businesses in spite of today’s highly competitive market,” says John Davie, founder and CEO, Dining Alliance.
GPOs serve three groups: operator members, contracted manufacturers and distributors. The GPO’s role is to keep all parties happy and in good terms while advocating fairly for all, but most for the operator member. Manufacturers want access to members (to supply products at GPO prices) and distributors need profitable relationships with both.
“GPOs function in a complicated, messy supply chain where data is king, but not of royal pedigree. The lack of UPCs—Universal Product Codes—in foodservice handicaps the entire supply chain by forcing trading partners to create their own systems,” says Barry Friends, GPO and food service distribution expert, and partner with food consulting firm, Pentallect. “That’s a modest problem for giants like Tyson or Sysco, but individual operators at the end of the chain are ill-prepared to manage the vagaries.”
That is why GPOs have developed systems to unscramble the messy data and enable participants to benefit from each other’s contributions. They help members save money and show manufacturers where they can sell their products.
“That often creates friction with distributors since what’s good for one might not seem equally as positive for another. As advocates for independent operators, GPOs confront trading partner friction every day. And while everyone wants the best possible slice of the economic pie, the operator who buys the remaining portion needs to be able to stay in business,” Davie says. “If supermarkets operated like food service distributors, consumers would write to Congress for relief.”
So what you do you think? Would joining a GPO benefit your restaurant? As with anything, it is important to do your research and ask important questions. This is your business and your future.
Need to pass the time between our next post? Then check out Custom Business Solutions for all your restaurant technology needs!
Have you ever wondered how small, independent restaurants are able to buy state-of-the-art technology? Or, able to afford high-quality ingredients and materials? Ever thought they are all working together?
Well, they are.
And their partnership is called a group purchasing organization (GPO). A GPO is an organization that pools the buying power of its individual members to help get the best possible prices and quality on products and services.
Some people might be familiar with the idea of group purchasing from the practices of insurance companies and wholesale retail operations like Costco. Both industries use group purchasing to get the highest quality goods and services while keeping costs as low as possible.
The large national restaurant chains act as their own GPOs to help them with all of their purchasing, from food items to cleaning chemicals to toilet paper. The combined clout of all of their individual franchisees allow them to bargain hard with suppliers — gaining favorable pricing and first-in-line delivery when supplies are short, among other benefits.
Meanwhile, most independent restaurants pay significantly higher prices for the exact same items.
It’s a two-way street. The benefits of GPOs are hardly limited to the restaurants who are members. Vendors who partner with a group purchasing organization gain hundreds, if not thousands, of new clients and are able to lock in large contracts with less selling time.
Make sure you have local representation. Working relationships with local vendors and on-the-ground representatives are crucial to ensure the best quality product and prices. Aside from quality and savings, the sense of community that comes from working locally is invaluable.
Make sure that your organization relies on the collective thinking and advice of active local restaurant members to make the right decisions to contract with the best local vendors based on price, service, and most importantly, quality. Anyone can buy a low-grade product cheaply. The best GPOs leverage buying power to improve quality while still lowering prices.
Check to see whether your GPO works on a pay-for-performance basis. This model helps ensure that you’re getting the best deals and quality with no out-of-pocket costs to you.
Does your GPO offer you a combination of savings opportunities such as rebates, deviations, cost-plus programs, and high-low contracts? If the answer is yes, you’re most likely dealing with an organization that is keeping ahead of the game.
Need to pass the time between our next post? Then check out Custom Business Solutions for all your restaurant technology needs!
