In quick service or fast food restaurants, time is quite literally money. Customers walking in through a QSR door expect a quick meal, not an enduring wait. Only a few things are more mood-busting for customers than long wait times.
Long queues lead to irritated customers who will likely not visit again for a long time if this happens. It's not just the food; it's about providing the whole experience to the customer, and that also includes how quickly they go from walking in through the doors to taking the first bite.
But achieving those quick times requires perfect planning, seamless execution, and years of practice. However, if you're new in the business, here's a quick look at the strategies you should implement to decrease wait times at your quick service restaurant.
Optimise Kitchen Workflows
The kitchen, of course, is the heart of your operations. Your restaurant kitchen should perform like a well-oiled machine or a synchronised dance where each step, each part purposefully moves for maximised effect. Look at the kitchen layout. Is this working for or against you? Most of the time it can be as simple as shuffling things around a bit to get everything within reach so you're never scrambling for orders.
Standardisation is your best friend here. When each cook knows precisely how to make each dish you offer, you eliminate confusion and move faster. Pay attention to the ageing equipment struggling to keep it together. While the price tag will look high, it's worth every penny to update your equipment so you can move faster.
Use Intelligent Queue Management
Let's now move out of the kitchen and to the front of the house. Queue management is not about how to keep the line moving; it's actually about making people feel they are waiting less. Put interesting stuff around the path of the queue. Put a large print of a famous painting, a story worth reading, information about upcoming events, a beautiful aquarium with rare fish, or simply give them free WiFi. Train staff based on the highest queue management standards to enhance customer experience. Sometimes it isn’t about the wait time, but more about how the wait time is filled.
Consider implementing a virtual queue system in your fast food restaurant. This piece of high-tech software allows customers to get in line without having to physically be there. They can look at your menu, place an order, and only arrive once the food is bagged and ready. Once their order is ready, the system will automatically send them a text message reminding them to pick it up. The best thing you can do for your customers as a brand is to give them back their time. People will love you for that.
Leverage Technology
The restaurant industry is full of gadgets and tools designed to make service run more efficiently and reduce waiting times. A modern point of sale system can save you valuable seconds on every transaction. Mobile ordering systems, on the other hand, make the whole ordering process more streamlined. These systems enable customers to view them and put in their orders before they even step inside of your restaurant.
Self-service kiosks are also a great tool for decreasing restaurant wait times. These systems reduce the number of people in a queue and allow your employees to focus more on food preparation and customer service than explaining the menu to customers and taking orders. These dynamic systems also allow your team to track customer orders in the kitchen without having random paper tickets flying everywhere.
Monitor & Adapt for High Traffic Times
Each restaurant gets busy at particular times; knowing your peak time is the key to managing wait times. Use your POS System as a data gold mine in this regard. It may take a couple of months to see patterns emerge, but keeping a constant eye on your point of sale system data will help you highlight your peak and slow times. If you know that the real crunch comes at 6, there's no point in having a full crew twiddling their thumbs at 3.
Plan to prepare popular dishes ahead of time. When the order requests start to roll in, having a few bestsellers already prepared and ready to go will give you a solid head start. And if things get really hectic, don't be afraid to limit your menu. Prioritise speedy and high-ticket items. By concentrating on less labour-intensive meals, you can serve your customers quickly but still maintain quality.
Optimise Your Online Presence
These days, a restaurant's digital footprint can have just as much of an impact on in-store wait times as a quick cook. An up-to-date online menu allows customers to plan ahead of their arrival, thus decreasing queues at the point of order.
Allowing customers to place orders online with appointed pickup times will help distribute the workflow and prevent any sudden rush in your kitchen. Also, implement an online ordering system so customers don't have to wait for a table and are only informed to walk in when the table is ready.
Social media is not only for showing your favourite dishes; it's an important communication channel. Keep your customer posted about estimated order times and expected busy periods. Just giving them a little nudge allows you to set the right customer expectations and can even drive traffic during times that tend not to be as busy.
For almost 20 years, 3S POS has offered one of the most flexible EPOS systems to international brands such as Caffe Concerto, Chaiiwala, Heavenly Desserts, Pepe’s Piri Piri, GDK and thousands more delighted customers.
If you are looking for an Restaurant POS System or Quick Service EPOS System that will not just help you accept payments but includes inventory management, loyalty programs, and much more, speak to our sales for a free demo.