The customer experience goes far beyond the four walls of a QSR franchise. Restaurant managers and operators need to consider every touchpoint—from mobile ordering to delivery—that happens in and around the restaurant itself. Another experience that’s been around for a while and needs attention? The drive-thru.
Drive-thrus are key to the success of many QSRs—especially when they’re outfitted with technology. For example, a QSR study found that order accuracy was 18 percent higher when customers placed their order through a speaker that was clear. As the QSR industry looks to grow over the next decade, drive-thrus will continue to play a crucial role in this growth and in driving consumer loyalty.
QSRs are increasingly turning to advanced technology to improve drive-thru convenience, speed, and personalization. From digital menu boards to new mobile devices and better communication systems—a better drive-thru experience is just an order away.
Digital Menu Boards Deliver Customized Information
Digital signage enables restaurant owners to quickly create and update menus, and then share them in a contactless way with large numbers of customers. This is particularly important in the drive-thru because, in addition to offering more visually compelling information to customers, the latest digital signage technology is easier to update across dozens of locations. This is critical given the FDA’s menu labeling requirements, which say restaurants and similar food retail chains with 20 or more locations must disclose the number of calories in standard items on menu boards. Since menu items are constantly changing, restaurant managers need technology to swiftly change the information displayed to consumers.
Restaurants are also incorporating interactive, immersive digital signage to deliver a more customizable and personalized experience to consumers at the drive-thru window. With bright, clear visuals, customers can easily see daily menu offerings, including price promotions, ingredients, and allergens. Employees and managers can make updates throughout the day, like switching from breakfast to lunch menus. Additionally, employees can promote specific menu items—for example, if it is a particularly warm day, employees can focus specials on iced tea or milkshakes.
Mobile Devices Bust Through Long Lines
Many QSRs are deploying line-busting technologies, such as rugged tablets and handheld devices, to speed drive-thru service, especially during peak times. With a connected mobile device in hand, employees can visit customers’ cars to take orders, instead of having customers wait in line. This not only reduces annoying wait times but also gives employees face-to-face interaction with customers. This allows them to address questions and concerns, create personal connections, and increase upsell opportunities.
Drive-Thru Communication Systems Deliver Orders Loud and Clear
The latest audio systems, such as noise-canceling headsets and microphones, allow employees to accurately capture consumers’ drive-thru orders, reducing order errors and wait times. By comparison, traditional speakers can aggravate consumers who have to yell their orders, or repeat their orders more than once, and they can frustrate employees who struggle to get orders right and serve customers quickly.
On the employee front, when they’re not tied down to wired communication systems, they can move around their space more efficiently and comfortably. Hands-free, wireless communication systems make it easier for employees to get their jobs done. And ensuring excellent sound quality makes it easier for them to hear and be heard so they can process, prepare, and deliver food faster and error-free.
Advanced Technology Brings Forward a Better Drive-Thru
The latest technologies are transforming the drive-thru experience for QSRs, from delivering a superior consumer experience to driving operational efficiency and sales.
With advanced digital signage solutions, connected mobile devices, and integrated communication systems, QSRs can extend the same great experience to drive-thru customers as they already provide to in-house customers, while also staying ahead of the competition and ensuring more return customers.
James “Jay” Burdette is the Senior Director of the Enterprise Process Innovation Center, Panasonic Connect North America.
