The restaurant industry is living in a digital world - from mobile ordering to delivery and in-store kiosks – and, there are no indicators that these trends are slowing down as the customer experience continues to thrive on immediate gratification. Kiosks are making their mark and proving their relevance with a convenient and efficient digital ordering alternative to waiting in line.
Kiosks are engaging to customers, and allow the customer to tailor their own experience with the ability to personalize orders, take their time to browse a menu or quickly order a favorite and skip a long line.
Other benefits that keep the kiosk trend on the rise include increased order accuracy and efficient check out. Kiosks eliminate mistakes with overlooked orders. Decreasing lines with kiosks expedites the check-out process and allows processing of more orders thereby increasing restaurant revenue.
Kiosks are becoming increasingly prevalent. McDonald’s recently announced plans to invest $2.4 billion in kiosks in 2018, most which would go to deploying its “Experience of the Future” design at U.S. locations with the focus on kiosk ordering. Subway also has plans to roll kiosks out in 2018, as do Taco Bell and Wendy’s. Panera has had kiosks for more than five years. Kiosks are clearly here to stay.
This rise in demand shows that customers continue to thrive on technology, especially when convenience drives the process. And the numbers don’t lie. According to PYMNTS Unattended Retail Tracker the projected annual growth of the American interactive kiosk market through 2021 is 7.2 percent. In addition, self-service kiosks generated annual revenues of $218 million in 2016.
