Over the past several years, consistent trends have shown that quick-service restaurant customers prefer kiosks over traditional ordering systems. 78 percent now say they prefer kiosks over cashiers, and 82 percent say they are likelier to visit a QSR that offers kiosks.
However, some QSRs have hesitated to adopt kiosks for fear that asking customers to place their orders may negatively impact the overall restaurant experience. Others worry that installing, configuring, and maintaining kiosks will be time-consuming and difficult.
But, as forward-thinking QSRs are finding out, adding kiosks to your restaurants doesn’t mean you have to stop offering counter and cashier service. You can offer self-service and traditional counter service at the same time. That way, different customers can choose their preferred ordering method, and they can enjoy the convenience and speed of self-service when it’s what they prefer or when lines get long and they don’t want to wait.
That convenience has become increasingly important as more QSRs have added kiosks and more customers have had an opportunity to use them.
The National Restaurant Association has found that 79 percent of customers now believe that self-service digital kiosks make their experience more convenient, and 65 percent now say that they prefer such systems over traditional ordering and payment options.
As more QSRs and customers adopt self-service, those numbers are likely to continue to grow. In the meantime, a hybrid approach of traditional and self-service makes perfect sense, and not just for convenience.
Kiosks are also a great way for busy restaurants to keep up with demand and maximize sales during peak times and surges. When your counters become too busy, your kiosks can absorb much of the overflow, which helps prevent customers from leaving when they see that lines are too long.
Additionally, studies from as early as 2015 have shown that kiosk-based upselling can increase the profit from a restaurant order ticket by up to 30%. You can maximize ticket value and profitability by recommending additional items, upsizing, and popular combinations while improving your restaurant's efficiency.
That’s welcome news for QSRs, which are facing the challenges of labor shortages and rising wages. Kiosks provide a great way to balance traditional counter and self-service options, maximize orders and tickets, and get more out of your existing restaurant staff—all while giving customers the speed and convenience they increasingly prefer.
Importantly, kiosks don’t have to be complicated and time-consuming to install, set up, or maintain. Great kiosk systems are available that provide all the hardware and software you need, including easy integration with your restaurant systems and point of sale. All from one provider who can help you deploy, maintain, and support your kiosks long-term.
At Barcoding Inc., we’ve been helping QSRs do this with complete all-in-one kiosk systems from Zebra Technologies. Zebra’s kiosk system is a comprehensive, flexible, and modular solution that’s designed to meet a wide variety of self-service and assisted checkout needs across the QSR industry.
In addition to a kiosk screen that includes barcode and QR code scanning as well as a stand and mount, you can add a receipt printer, an integrated payment solution, and customer-facing software, so you have everything you need for a complete self-service kiosk.
Each kiosk is a fully digital touchscreen system that’s extremely powerful, rugged, and reliable while providing a very modern, elegant, and easy-to-use experience for customers.
It’s built with Zebra’s KC50 kiosk tablet, which is a rugged Android enterprise touchscreen device that’s available in two sizes and can be configured in portrait or landscape viewing mode. For users, the touchscreen interface is completely customer-centric, where everything is large and easy to read, and each step of the ordering and payment process can be completed with a simple tap on a large button or control on the screen.
Zebra’s solution can be set up as a single-sided or two-sided kiosk, and you can mount it on your restaurant floor, on your counters, or a wall or desk. With integrated barcode and QR code scanning, customers can also scan loyalty cards and coupons while they order, and they can quickly process card-based payments with companion payment solutions, getting a printed receipt from a compact Zebra companion printer or a digital receipt via email.
Peripherals such as payment terminals and printers are easy to connect on any side of the kiosk with Zebra’s Z-Flex connectors and USB connection including input and output ports, Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) capabilities, and much more. Plus, with Wi-Fi 6E connectivity, you can place a kiosk virtually anywhere you want and get high-speed connectivity to your restaurant network and systems.
Zebra’s powerful computer processor and expanded memory handle all the interactions and order processing on the back end, with high-speed responsiveness. Integration with other restaurant systems, apps, software, and peripherals is very easy with Zebra’s built-in connectivity as well as its Mobility Extensions and Enterprise Mobility Development Kit.
You also get support for all leading third-party payment terminals and card-reading needs, including support for Zebra’s future Zebra Pay, a comprehensive solution that includes everything required to accept card-based payments. Additionally, there is full support for digital wallets such as Apple VAS and Google Smart Tap.
To take your self-service speed and ease of use even further, Zebra’s kiosks also come with application programming interfaces (APIs), which allow you to use AI-driven digital conversational assistants, which help customers find what they need and their enter orders, including support for voice-enabled ordering through Zebra’s integrated noise-canceling microphones and dual 1W speakers.
All of this comes in a modular, easy-to-deploy, and durable solution that allows you to get kiosk ordering up and running quickly and easily, with the flexibility to place it, configure it, and set up the user experience exactly the way you and your customers prefer.
Our team at Barcoding Inc. is also able to help with every aspect of installation, configuration, and ongoing maintenance and support, with remote monitoring and management that means we can help you keep your systems up, running, and optimized 24/7, without you taking all of the burden on yourself or your IT team. But, ultimately, your level of service and support depends on your preferences and needs, so there are flexible options to match them.
With so many trends and statistics pointing to increased customer preference for self-service, and with so many QSRs looking for ways to serve those customers more efficiently, conveniently, and profitably, with a limited workforce, kiosks are an important consideration.
To learn more about self-service kiosks, how you can easily and affordably implement an all-in-one solution, and to find out if kiosks are right for your business and how to get started, feel free to reach out to our experts at Barcoding Inc. We’d be glad to set up a consultation at your convenience, to demo Zebra’s KC50 solution, answer your questions, and provide guidance, recommendations, and solutions.