James Winstanley, Regional Director EMEA at me&u
The hospitality industry is a sector that has been highly impacted by the cost-of-living crisis. Many of the British population are still struggling to justify going out for meals or for a drink, and for the hospitality owners, wholesale prices are soaring at new highs, making it a catch 22 for many.
The hospitality industry is desperate for streamlining methods that don’t impact jobs or require an extensive rework of systems and ways of working. During Covid, many hospitality establishments adopted QR code ordering, which had its obvious benefits in contact and hygiene – but it also had its positives in other areas, such as: not having to endlessly print new menus, clarity and interactivity for customers, and also more effective upselling opportunities.
But there was something that was missing – the human element. QR codes removed the central ethos of hospitality and good old fashioned heart-warming welcome from waitstaff, the role for today’s order & pay platforms is in service of humans. To move forward, hospitality technology has to elevate, rather than eliminate the human experience, moving hospitality on from a one-way transaction to a two-way experience, with human interaction & personalisation at its core. It hasn’t been the easiest journey out of the pandemic for many hospitality owners, and we know that many of them have been doing everything they can to personify their service and go above and beyond to reinstate much-needed customer loyalty with a friendly face.
Newer, smarter technologies are also genuinely helpful – helping speed things up, splitting bills out with large groups of friends or hospitality tech which is hyper-personalised, with a menu specifically tailored to you – removing the mushrooms you hate, remembering how you like to pay, and learning your favourite pint on tap – providing much more than just a QR code.
Leading British Asian fusion street food and drinks chain, Bar Soba, has implemented an at-table ordering solution that incorporates both the digital element, mixed with human service1. The system allows for service staff to work smarter, and not be stuck behind tills managing payments, making more opportunity for great customer service and also upselling. Across the five venues using this system, it now regularly gains £1,000 of upsells and £4,500 in tips for staff each month, which is the perfect example of the symbiosis of the mix of new and old methods.
It’s gradually becoming the new norm for many hospitality owners across the world, and the dropkick into trialling these new methods has forced the industry to adapt quickly. But, like all good technology, the solution has presented itself as an assistance to traditional methods, rather than rewriting the book that moves everything away from what made going out for dinner with the family, or drinks with friends so special.
me&u, has introduced a game-changing new service product into the UK market, me&u flex. me&u flex has been created to better merge app and in-person options. See me&u flex in action here and learn more here.
https://www.meandu.com/success-stories/how-bar-soba-boosted-revenue-across-every-venue-with-me-u