Drive-thru restaurants have been about maximizing restaurant efficiency and increasing overall profits since its humble beginnings in the early 1920s. Think about it: why wouldn’t you want an option that allows you to cut down on serving time while allowing you to fulfill more orders?
If you are a restaurant owner looking to introduce a drive-thru feature for your restaurant, you’ve come to the right place.
For business owners, the idea of introducing drive-thrus at their restaurant often comes up in discussion. Some owners think it’s a bad idea, stating that it will take much needed focus away from dine-in customers Meanwhile, others think it’s a great way to serve more customers without maintaining a separate dining area.
Before adding a drive-thru at your restaurant, however, restaurant owners should take careful consideration and know the pros and cons of operating one.
Drive-thrus can bring in a stream of additional revenue you can use to further enhance dine-in operations, and reward your employees for their hard work. It also allows your restaurant to serve a specific niche of clientele: people who might not have the time to sit and dine at a restaurant.
Here are 7 useful and efficient ways to make your restaurant more drive-thru friendly.
- Parking space is king
The parking lot is an underrated feature of a restaurant, mostly because it is frequently a customer’s first interaction with your restaurant, even before a friendly greeting or a refreshing drink.
When it comes to drive-thrus, parking space is king. People appreciate how convenient it is to pick up their favorite dish without getting out of their car.
How can the customers wait for the food to be served if there is a long queue ahead, or if the food is taking longer than expected? They appreciate a safe, organized parking space where they can wait to collect their orders.
A great parking lot with ample amounts of shade and space contributes to leaving a favorable, long-lasting impression with your guests that will encourage them to visit your restaurant again and again. Combined with your tasty food and professional service, your restaurant’s drive-thru option might just be the most effective way to distinguish yourself from the competition.
- Be prepared with all the extras
The last thing you would want is for customers to drive away without a cup lip to hold their soda in place, or ketchup packets for their fries. It might seem insignificant, but attention to tiny details such as providing adequate tissues, straws, and condiments will communicate to people that you value customer satisfaction even when they are not dining at your restaurant.
Here is where using a good Inventory Management system might come in handy. Using the right technology develops automated procedures that refills food supplies in the right proportions while minimizing waste and maximizing profits for your restaurant.
Every restaurant should have daily inventory tracking reports to make sure that they are sufficiently stocked for a specific number of days before they can place a new purchase order. Record items that sell out fast or items that stay stagnant for a long time. Calculating inventory par levels are also very useful as they give management an estimate of the minimum level of inventory that a restaurant should always have in stock and when they should purchase more.
- Look for ways to cut down on customer wait times
How great would it be if customers can just visit a restaurant, order, and poof, the food appears? It sounds silly, but people visit drive-thru restaurants specifically for that reason. They want their food served as fast as humanly possible. In fact, from a Kellogs study, experts found that a 7-second reduction in wait time can greatly increase sales.’
Taking this into consideration, restaurants should look for bottlenecks that might be slowing down their service and address it as quickly as possible.
- Set your staff up for success
Staff that put in time and effort to attend to each guest individually are the foundation of excellent customer service.
If your employees feel like the drive-thru operations are complicated, slow-paced, and unable to keep up with demand, they will be required to rapidly transition between multiple tasks, eventually leading to their burnout.
Keeping them incentivized to work faster while rewarding them for their hard work is an effective way to maximize the efficiency of your staff and kitchen.
It is also important to acknowledge that in high-pressure situations like a drive-thru, mistakes are bound to happen. Managers should be compassionate and understanding while looking for ways to minimize future mistakes rather than punishing staff for it.
Employees are more inclined to work hard and take pleasure in going to work when they feel heard and valued. Effective management may enhance employee satisfaction, which can result in better customer care and service. Make sure your employees have the tools and training they require that can help them do their tasks as effectively as possible.
Restaurant managers who effectively organize and assign tasks can frequently enhance operations, save expenses, and discover novel ways to achieve corporate objectives.
- Adopt mobile ordering
Technology is combining with drive-thrus to provide customers with seamless in-store experiences with self-ordering kiosks and interactive displays. Combined with online ordering options, customers are given every convenience possible when it comes to their food.
Since everything can be done from a car, workplace, or couch, there is no need for someone to take your order while you wait in your car. Another advantage of mobile ordering for restaurants is that it makes it simple for them to provide delivery services without having to hire more workers or purchase pricey equipment.
Additionally, you can also operate a separate drive-thru or parking area for customers who have ordered ahead of time and are just pulling in to pick up their orders.
Mobile ordering can promote a company’s marketing strategy in addition to being convenient and cost-effective. A consumer who places an order via a mobile device can sign themselves up to potential marketing messages.
- Digital and interactive menu boards
Modern-day drive-thrus are doing many things differently, and one of them is harnessing technology via Digital Menu boards.
You might think that a normal, print menu board will get the job done – customers pull in, look at the menu, order, and leave. But here’s where you are missing out on a big opportunity to make a lot of money.
Digital menu boards offer various opportunities for you to upsell items. Depending on what your customer adds to their carts first, you can set up programs that recommend items that pair well with the first menu item, suggest bigger portion sizes for a discount, and much more.
When you give your customers the chance to place their own orders, their ordering experience becomes more convenient, and they won’t have to shout into a microphone to reconfirm their orders.
With digital menu boards, you can change your menu as much as you like without having to print and put them up outside your restaurant. Not only do you save money, you’re also able to give customers your most recent menu in real time.
Additionally, you can remotely alter between your chain’s morning, lunch, and dinner menus, increasing operational effectiveness.
- Get a POS
Improperly managed drive-thrus can be notorious for its long wait times. This can be due to a number of reasons, from obscure print menus to inefficient staff.
All of these factors can make the ordering process longer and lengthen customer wait times by 60 seconds or more. However, with the correct POS system, you can easily alter an order’s details without having to completely redo it.
Restaurants are increasingly automating processes like order taking by using various technologies like voice artificial intelligence (AI), freeing up staff to concentrate on the crucial aspect of in-person customer service.
Opening Drive-Thru Restaurants: The Takeaway
In the age of the drive-thru renaissance, restaurants are constantly evolving to offer everything that the customers want while making sure they stay ahead of the competition.
Experiment with mobile ordering, self-ordering kiosks, curbside pickup and more when you harness the latest technology in the food industry today. Give exceptional service, revamp menus in a flash, and keep customers coming back for more.
One thing is for sure – the future of drive-thru restaurants is sure going to be an exciting one!