There is a wave of change in consumer habits time and again. Given the backdrop of the recent pandemic, a lot has changed.
Every industry has had to adapt according to the needs of their customers,and carve out a path for their business growth.
The ways businesses used to interact with their customers a while ago are no longer the same.
Now customers lookout for more customized solutions and prefer to have everything they want well within time. The sooner, the better.
Thus, the food sector calls for a quick action mechanism to cope with all the losses incurred, and this needs to be smart implementation. The best way to boost sales is to develop an understanding with your customers, knowing just what they are looking for, and without any ado, catering personalized service.
Impact of the pandemic on the food industry
The Coronavirus has caused a massive tumble across the globe. Needless to say, social distancing has been the only resort that people have turned to,to keep themselves protected. This precautionary measure, however, means a turnaround in the revenues of various industries around the globe. The sectors that have been most affected are those concerning the collective assembling of people.
The restaurants that once used to be buzzing with people are now filled with silence and thus, owners need to make tweaks in their marketing strategies. Even so, the buzz must keep going; hence, business owners have gone far and beyond to sketch out creative ways to enhance their products and services.
In any way, regardless of these downplays, some restaurants managed to boost their sales despite the conditions the pandemic has brought in. This has come about,through carefully researched planning,and on-point execution.
Here is an insight into how they have made it possible.
How restaurant businesses can find a silver lining even in these challenging times.
Gaining an online presence:
Through these testing times, we have realized the value of the internet and the abilities to keep economies running. Restaurants have realized this boon and put it to the best use. Customers can now directly reach them through any online interactive platform, like WhatsApp for instance.
The presence of WhatsApp has significantly enriched interactions more than ever. This has been made possible with daily offers, and even better- personalized offers. The advertising of restaurants online with precise customer targeting and integration with hassle-free interaction platforms has made it even more useful.
Scale your business, switch to WhatsApp business API today.
What is wrong with using too many apps?
Due to the latest trends this pandemic has brought forth, more people are looking forward to safe and contactless delivery, which means ordering on many apps for different restaurants.
This bullet points to the issue – the abundance of food delivery apps. In such a scenario, you should look at it from the perspective of your customers. Staying direct to the point, all you will want is a platform that serves as a central ordering location, and something you have been using for quite some time now – WhatsApp business API has entered the chat.
What is wrong with using too many apps?
Trust us; your customers need an app not only because it saves space, but also for the accessibility it provides them to your restaurant. WhatsApp gives them just the platform they need, hosting a clean interface, real-time messaging with multi-media inclusion. This accessibility serves as a great tool to boost sales and drive your ROI.
A completely sanitary and contactless delivery with the most convenient food ordering is precisely what will draw customers to reorder from your restaurant.
The benefits of WhatsApp business API
- Zero contact and no-hassle delivery: WhatsApp allows your customers to order food, and yet keep both sides of the transaction safe, all while following social distancing. More so, the aspect that your customers are not required to install any additional apps to reach your restaurant is what keeps you in the limelight against other restaurants.
What could be a more convenient method for customers to receive the food, right?
- Ensure customers through well-backed support: A great way to maintain customer satisfaction is staying with them throughout the complete transaction. This lets them know they are a valued visitor, having them take the next round to your restaurant. WhatsApp allows your customers reach you directly and also helps you get their queries and concerns solved.
- Reach out with a faster update: Giving your customers accurate updates about their orders is similar to conversing with them throughout their buying journey. Notifying them about crucial milestones of their order, the payment, and location keeps the customers engaged with your restaurant. Your customers are more likely to applaud as they are notified at each step of their buyer journey.
Remember: Customer engagement always keeps you ahead of the competition.
- End to end encryption for customer safety:
The end-to-end encryption feature on WhatsApp allows you to securely send OTPs to their numbers and lock deliveries. Customers no longer have to worry about their privacy now.
- Click to chat ads on integrated versions:
As WhatsApp is integrated with Instagram and Facebook. Thus potential customers can directly reach your WhatsApp Chat through these advertisements.
What makes too many apps non-sustainable?
No matter how well you offer your services, it is crucial to understand the needs of each customer. At the end of the day, personalized products win the cake. Looking at it from the perspective of your customer, we have listed out a few reasons that answer this question. Hope these points will help your business to gain deeper insights into customer preferences.
- Too many apps = Unnecessary Storage loss
When your business has a separate app deployed to serve your customers, customers may find it strenuous and bothersome to maintain it for the sole purpose of ordering food. This may lead them to abandon the app eventually.
- Time-efficiency is lost
At this time and age, it is inconvenient to allot a specific time, just to learn the know-about of how an app functions. This just equals the expenditure of extra effort; customers are more likely to focus on a platform that they are familiar with and do not need to give extra attention to, while it serves them in complete efficiency.
- Complicates the process
With too many apps, it becomes a nuisance to function with them separately; overall create clutter on the homepage of the smartphone. What you are looking at is hungry customers, and they want food on their tables at the quickest pace. It makes no sense going through the registration, login, and verification process to order food when you have more reliable options. Thus, the efficiency of these is still not guaranteed.
- No widespread knowledge about usage
Not every customer is tech-savvy. Introducing an app that is completely unfamiliar to them will just produce a spill out for you. Your customers want a platform that will get the job done well, and done quickly. With no specific knowledge about the app, the chances are very narrow that they will hang on to it for too long.
From the business perspective:
While we have listed a few issues that your customers may face with an exclusive app for your restaurant, here is the business perspective – a quite significant one to how an exclusive app is not the best thing for your business :
- Unnecessary consumption of effort, time, and money
First and foremost, the development of an app requires a great deal of effort put in by a team of developers. Besides, businesses have to spend a lot of money on running an app. After the development of your app, you are required to hire another team to maintain it. Opting for a company app needs extra time, money, and effort from your team.
- Extra investment on branding
You have to waste time, effort, and money in running marketing campaigns to popularise your app and make its presence known among consumers. Even after all these efforts, it is not certain that your app will gain the traffic that you intend to bring to it. Since times are not okay, it would be wise to save every single penny you get instead of spending on some fancy app.
How does WhatsApp overcome these issues and provide solutions?
Saves storage
WhatsApp overcomes the disadvantage of storage loss by letting your customers order through the same platform that is deployed to contact friends and family, without the requirement of extra space-consuming apps.
Customers need no help in using the app
With widespread knowledge of WhatsApp around the globe, it sure is one preferred app. The well-known interface of WhatsApp allows it to be a great platform to integrate with your business. With its popularity on the high, across various borders, among people from several age groups, be it a kindergarten kid to a retired professional. This allows you to have massive coverage for your restaurant.
Zero expenditure on branding
WhatsApp allows you to utilize its booming popularity for the benefit of your business. With almost every other person knowing about the app, all you have to do is get registered and let your customers reach you in a way that is most convenient to them while doubling the number of customers that visit you for this reason.
Provides an easy, clutter-free experience
The more reliable and convenient an app is, the more people are likely to be inclined to it, solely for the reason that it gives them comfortable and practical solutions, with an interface that makes instant ordering so easy. WhatsApp demands no extra effort needed to put in and thus, it remains an excellent choice for many customers. Since it makes things easy and simple, it is well-known across the world.
Past order history of your customers
We live in a world where data is considered to be real wealth. Every single detail of your customer buying history allows you to provide a customized and well-planned product. Besides, if your restaurant business succeeds in offering the right product or service to the right customer, it will eventually boost up your sales as your customers are more likely to return to you.
Save your staff time with auto-replies
Since your human staff is already loaded with a ton of work, it is highly impossible to address queries or answer questions of each customer. Go ahead and automate the replies through WhatsApp chatbots. Chatbots never get tired, even at odd hours, and always serve accurate information to customers in the initial query stage. Later, if the customer needs more detailed or critical information, the conversation can be transferred to human agents.
With simple and easy solutions, it is the best partner for your restaurant business.
Thus, instead of investing the time and effort of your staff in running a company app, switching to a WhatsApp business account will be a smarter choice to scale up your business. Moreover, it is also essential to take steps in the right direction by seeking expertise from Twerlo and leveraging the true potential of WhatsApp.
