You may have noticed NetWaiter recently released some upgrades to its restaurant online ordering system.  So far, the customer feedback has been great and we hope you’re hearing good things too.  Here are a few of the upgrades:

More Attractive Site – NetWaiter has created a smoother, more attractive site for customers as they navigate their way through your online ordering site.  The general ordering process has not changed much, however, please feel free to evaluate your custom site design to determine if any ‘refreshing’ may be warranted.

Enhanced Mobile Ordering – Your site is now more user friendly on mobile devices.  Your previous mobile site has been upgraded for easier navigation and performance.  NetWaiter has also extended the Group Ordering feature to be available from mobile devices.  Previously, customers could only join a Group Order from their mobile device.  Now you can initiate a Group Order from any device/computer.

Stronger URL Branding – Previously, when a customer visited your NetWaiter online ordering site, the URL would be shown as www.netwaiter.com/Your_Restaurant. Now, your restaurant name is shown first, to better reflect your restaurant and brand: Your_Restaurant/netwaiter.com.  You do not need to make any changes to the links you have on your website – customers will automatically be redirected.

Has your restaurant ever been blindsided by an online complaint?  It doesn’t matter if it’s about your online business, or an in-restaurant experience – it’s not a good feeling.  Whether it’s legitimate, or something totally unwarranted – you need to know how to respond. 

Often it’s based on a misunderstanding or a failure to respond early, when a complaint is fresh.  A recent webinar from the National Restaurant Association had some tips on how to respond to these online complaints.

• Don’t be the last person to find out about a problem at your restaurant, or with a takeout order. Get familiar with the tools.  Use Google Alerts, monitor Yelp.  Have systems in place. 

• This isn’t personal, so don’t get defensive.  Your goal is to neutralize these incidents. 

• Take responsibility online.  Denying that it happened is usually the wrong tactic.  If it’s a completely false or bogus complaint, contact the site (i.e. Yelp) and have them remove it. 

• Get the response public and prominent.  Don’t be the 75th person to comment.  Tell the complainant that you want make it right.  Make sure everyone sees it. 

• Treat your online communication as carefully and as thoughtfully as you would in-person.  You don’t want these things going viral.

• If you are posting online, keep everything positive.  If a customer persists with negativity, take the conversation offline by suggesting they call you. 

• Train employees with your approach to handling complaints so that your staff speaks in one voice. 

• If complaints are routine or happening in patterns, it can indicate a weakness in your operation.  Use that information to your benefit and correct the issues. 

Be persistent to make things right.  People tend to remember the last thing you did for them.  It could be a big problem or small dilemma, but if you bend over backwards to make things right, that’s what they will remember most. 

 

Pre-paid orders are one of the best benefits for restaurants using online ordering.  The question is: how many of your customers take advantage of this option? Recent internet reports cite less than 19% of customers choose to pre-pay online.

Our figures are substantially different. With NetWaiter, we see 68% of customers choosing to pre-pay for their online order, if given the chance.  For delivery orders, that number jumps to 77%.

Pre-paying for an online order is just one of the ways NetWaiter streamlines the takeout business.  A customer who pre-pays can quickly pick up their order.  There is no fumbling with money or credit cards at the cash register.  It’s a time saver, especially during those peak hours, for both restaurant and customer.

Some NetWaiter restaurants report frequent instances of twenty or thirty online customers during their lunch rush.  Imagine the logjam that would be caused if they didn’t pre-pay online for their order.

Another major advantage NetWaiter provides restaurants is immediate access to their funds.  Some online services charge customers and do not transfer the payments to the restaurant for as long as a month.  NetWaiter allows restaurants to charge their customers directly and the money is immediately deposited into their merchant account.

“Allowing a third-party to take control of your receivables and then hold your money for up to 30 days is never a good business move,” said Jared Shimoff, Senior Director at NetWaiter. “Then again, if less than 19% of customers chose to pre-pay with that service, you’re probably not missing much!” 

Why does NetWaiter have higher rates for pre-payment?  A significant reason is that we are constantly evolving the NetWaiter system, making changes to increase convenience and improve the customer experience.  Cleary, the results show – producing 3 to 4 times the number of pre-paid customers.