Key findings map the way forward to better restaurant guest experiences

Today, GoTab releases its inaugural State of Service Report. The report highlights key perceptions of mobile order and pay-at-table solutions, as well as a roadmap for restaurants that are looking for ideas to map their way forward to better guest experiences.
 

Based on a survey of U.S. adults who have worked in the restaurant industry during the past two years, the report shares insights about the tactics restaurants are using to speed service, reduce staff workload and empower guests with mobile order and pay-at-table solutions.

Download GoTab State of Service Report to Learn:

• How likely restaurant guests are to adopt mobile order and pay-at-table solutions 
• Top strategies to help front-of-house and back-of-house staff be more efficient
• The biggest opportunities to increase average check sizes without sacrificing the guest experience

By using mobile order & pay-at-table technology, operators can give guests more control in the hospitality experience, unlock higher sales, reduce operating costs, and provide their employees a more rewarding work experience. In this report, we’ll show you how. We’ll also share new data on adoption of mobile order & pay-at-table solutions, as well as real-life examples of how the technology is transforming hospitality service delivery. 

Current Restaurant Industry Dynamics Make a Strong Case For Mobile Order and Pay-at-Table 

While the number of diners sitting at a restaurant continues to rise steadily, Yelp recorded a 23% increase in customers mentioning long wait times and a 229% increase in reviews mentioning short staffing during Q1 2022 (compared to Q1 2021). As much as we all want to manifest a ‘return to normal’ (and we know that ‘normal’ differs from one guest to the next), these numbers clearly indicate that the hospitality industry continues to face enormous challenges, the number one challenge being an extremely tight labor market and workers defecting from restaurant jobs. 

Combating Heavy Server Workloads and Frustrated Guests

The GoTab State of Service report addresses the current dynamics that are bringing continued uncertainty and how they can be addressed through the smart application of guest-centric technology. It also shares that as much as these dynamics are known to hinder a restaurant’s ability to turn a profit, a remarkable margin of respondents are still not giving guests the options to take on more of the workload themselves. They don’t offer guests an option to browse a menu or place an order on their phone. They don’t let guests add to a tab on their phone. They aren’t supporting guest check-out on a mobile device. It all adds up to a big missed opportunity to reduce server workloads and give often frustrated guests what they want when they want it. 

Whether it’s empowering guests to take charge of the ordering and payment process, or offering them a hybrid service model that blends traditional service with mobile order and pay-at-table technology, the report shares real-world case studies of operators who are using technology to achieve higher check averages and serve more guests with less labor costs, without sacrificing their guest experience. 

Getting Guests to “Upsell” Themselves

With almost 30 percent of survey respondents saying guests are happy to view a menu on their phone, and almost 25 percent saying guests are willing to checkout via a mobile device, the restaurant makes a strong case for every restaurant to offer mobile order and pay-at-table solutions as an option in their service model.

When asked about upsell, nearly 40 percent of the survey respondents say they never, or rarely, offer their guests a second round. This is yet another opportunity to gain higher profits through the use of technology - one of the beauties of mobile order and pay-at-table solutions is the ease at which guests can submit orders, add modifiers, and reorder, without ever having to flag down a server. 

“GoTab was built from the ground up to help operators grow profit. We started in 2016 with a vision to introduce e-commerce into the dining experience in a way that helps operators increase their profit without sacrificing service. GoTab operators have increased sales by as much as 100 percent, reduced operating costs by up to 30 percent and increased revenue by 300 percent. This report should serve as a resource for operators who are looking to make a meaningful impact to their efficiency and profitability while maintaining the level of experience and service their guests’ expect,” says Patricia Mejia, CMO of GoTab, Inc.

While restaurant technology won’t be the cure for all that ails the restaurant industry today, GoTab focuses on providing operators options to flex their service models. With GoTab, guests can:

• Order through a server using the GoTab All-in-One Restaurant POS 
• Order through a mobile device using the GoTab Contactless Ordering & Payment Platform
• Blend the two experiences through a shared tab

The full GoTab State of Service report provides additional insights into the current hospitality experience, and offers solutions to personalize and optimize the guest experience moving forward. For more information, please visit https://gotab.io/en/gotabs-state-of-service-report.