A restaurant pre-order system streamlines the process of accepting and managing customer orders before arrival, revolutionizing the dining experience.
Understanding how pre-orders work, and their benefits, is essential for restaurants aiming to boost efficiency and add new restaurant revenue streams.
In this article, we will explain how a restaurant preorder system works and how implementing pre-order sales can benefit a restaurant business.
Key Takeaways
- Preorder system benefits: A restaurant preorder system and pre-order app allow customers to place orders in advance, reducing wait times and improving the dining experience.
- Streamlined operations: Implementing a preorder system enhances efficiency for both customers and staff.
- Revenue boost: Accepting preorders helps restaurants manage inventory, reduce waste, and increase upselling opportunities, leading to higher restaurant revenue.
- Customer satisfaction: Preordering enables diners to plan their experience, ensuring prompt meal service and increased satisfaction.
- Resource management: Preorders help restaurants predict peak hours and allocate resources effectively, ensuring smoother restaurant operations.
- Competitive advantage: Adopting a preorder system demonstrates a commitment to restaurant technology, innovation, and customer service, giving restaurants a competitive edge.
What is a pre-order system?
A preorder system allows your guests to place orders in advance.
Instead of waiting for their meals at your restaurant, they can preorder them and arrive when their meals are ready.
Not only is this convenient for your clients, but it also has many great benefits for restaurants.
- Enhanced efficiency: Preorders allow kitchen staff to prepare orders more efficiently, and increase table turnover rates.
- Increased revenue: Restaurants can better manage their inventory and staffing. It helps to reduce food waste and increases restaurant profitability.
- Opportunity for upselling: Preorder systems allow for customization and suggestive selling. Thanks to that, restaurants increase sales by recommending additional items or upgrades.
- Better time management: With preorders, restaurants can better predict peak hours and allocate resources accordingly, resulting in smoother operations and happier staff.
When customers place their food orders in advance, it increases revenue, helps you organize your work, and reduces no-shows in your restaurant.
According to Statista, the restaurant food delivery market is expected to surge in users, projected to reach 1.5 billion by 2028.
This suggests a substantial user penetration rate of 16.4% in 2024, with forecasts indicating a rise to 18.9% by 2028.
Looking at these statistics, getting a food ordering app with a pre-ordering feature is key to getting in on the action.
Guests love restaurants that let them place pre-orders in advance and dine in. That’s why UpMenu has implemented the restaurant pre-ordering feature “order ahead and dine in” in its online food ordering system.
Preordering benefits your team by relieving them from taking orders from preordered clients.
It also prevents guests from waiting at the table during busy hours, allowing your employees to serve more clients efficiently.
What is a preorder food app and website?
An online food pre-order website for a restaurant or a mobile app for a restaurant allows your guests to place a pre-order for a particular time and day.
Customers who order food online for take-out or delivery can specify when the order is to be prepared.
Restaurant preordering, on the other hand, is when guests order food in advance and dine in.
With UpMenu, they can preorder their meals online and choose when they’d like them ready without waiting at the table.
How to implement a preorder system in your restaurant
You need a restaurant management system with pre-order features to start taking pre-orders.
You can check this list of restaurant management software to choose the best restaurant online ordering system with pre-order capabilities.
With UpMenu, the food preordering feature is available on both the restaurant website and mobile app.
Enabling this feature in your Dashboard allows customers to choose a date and time for a pick-up, dine-in, or delivery.
Once you enable pre-ordering in your restaurant, remember to send a restaurant newsletter about this option to have your customers informed about it and allow them to make food reservations.
You can also post this information on your social media pages or inform clients in person at your business.
Getting the word out about your preorder system is essential to get your clients interested in ordering food ahead of time.
Ensure they’re familiar with this feature so they don’t have to wait for food.
What are the benefits of a food preorder system for my clients?
When it comes to food ordering, your clients will enjoy the convenience of ordering online without the need to call your restaurant.
All your customers need to do is create their order and choose the time and day they’d like to have it ready.
Let’s see the main benefits for customers of the food preorder feature.
1. Shorter waiting time for customers
Pre-ordering food to eat on the spot or for delivery and takeout lets clients skip the wait at the table. This is super convenient, especially when you’re busy.
Clients pre-order, their food is prepared, and they arrive once it’s ready—it’s that simple.
2. Order details in one spot
Customers visit your website or app, check your menu, choose their pickup, or dine-in time and date, and are done.
Once you receive the order, you can accept it, update and confirm the order status, and notify your client once it’s ready.
All the information about the order is available on the app.
Once the client arrives, they simply need to make payments (if they haven’t paid them online yet) and either dine-in or take their meals to go.
3. Improved customer experience
Restaurants that implement a preordering system tend to have improved customer loyalty. But how? When clients order their meals ahead of time, they skip having to wait for the prep time.
As a result, they arrive once their meals are ready and can enjoy them as soon as they’re on the spot.
Additionally, the more food reservations you get, the more time your staff has for other tasks and services.
They can provide better restaurant customer service since they’re not overwhelmed with taking orders left and right. This also helps to increase restaurant revenue and encourages clients to spend more at your restaurant.
4. Increased order accuracy and efficiency
Allowing customers to input their orders directly into the system greatly reduces the likelihood of errors or misunderstandings.
This leads to increased order accuracy and faster processing times, as restaurant staff can focus on preparing orders rather than manually taking them.
As a result, customers receive their meals promptly and accurately, contributing to an overall positive dining experience.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What is preorder system?
In restaurants, a preorder system enables customers to select and pay for their meals in advance, specifying pickup, dine-in, or delivery times. This system streamlines the ordering process, reduces wait times, and improves customer and restaurant staff efficiency.
How does preordering work?
Preordering is a sales strategy that allows customers to reserve and pay for products or services in advance, even before they are officially available. It ensures customers secure their desired items with guaranteed availability upon release or at a specified pickup or delivery date. Customers can complete their orders through online payments, contributing to improved business cash flow.
By taking preorders, restaurants can enhance table turnover rates and cater to the preferences of their restaurant target audience, providing early access to desired items. This efficient system boosts business performance and ensures timely delivery or pickup for customers.
