McDonald’s is giving customers in Monterey and Salinas, California, and Spokane, Washington, the opportunity to first experience the new level of convenience of mobile ordering and pay within its app in a beta pilot designed to elicit valuable feedback leading up to the national launch later this year.
Mobile ordering and pay is now available at 29 restaurants throughout Monterey and Salinas and the pilot will expand to an additional 51 restaurants in Spokane on March 20. The local pilots are designed to obtain customer feedback and prepare McDonald’s for the national launch of mobile ordering and pay across its 14,000 U.S. restaurants beginning in Q4.
“We look forward to learning from our customers in these markets as they order ahead, pay within the app and choose one of the various ways to pick up and enjoy their favorite McDonald’s foods,” says Julia Vander Ploeg, Vice President of U.S. Digital. “From the app to our restaurant operations, we’ve taken a fully integrated approach to ensure a seamless customer experience that we think our customers will love.”
Through mobile ordering, McDonald’s is providing customers with more flexibility and convenience than ever before. Customers will be able to place their order in the mobile app and then go to any participating McDonald’s restaurant to check in, pay in the app, and pick up their food at the front counter, the drive-thru or at convenient curbside delivery. Using geofencing technology for check-in, McDonald’s can determine that customers are nearby so their food is freshly prepared, allowing them to pick up their order at any participating McDonald’s location.
If customers choose the drive-thru, they will simply read the already placed order code to the crew and their mobile order will be ready for pickup at the window. Curbside service is even easier, allowing customers to skip the drive-thru line altogether. These enhancements make for a simpler and faster experience for customers.
“We are proud to pilot mobile ordering and pay in the Monterey and Salinas area, and excited by the opportunity given to our local restaurant teams and customers,” says Northern California owner/operator Steve Peat. “McDonald’s is empowering its customers to order when and how they want, and delivering a uniquely flexible experience at the speed and convenience we are known for.”
