If you’ve been to an airport, movie theater, post office or hotel recently, chances are you used — or at the very least, saw — a kiosk. Kiosk POS technology has penetrated many areas of our lives because they’re user-friendly and provide the one thing we all need: convenience.
Cafeterias also are recognizing the many benefits that kiosk POS can offer as other dining establishments, from McDonald’s to Panera — have embraced the technology. From enabling better service to helping employees be more productive, cafeteria kiosk POS is a win-win for both businesses and their customers.
Shorten the Lines
There’s nothing more distressing to a hungry customer than walking into a cafeteria only to encounter a long line. Cafeteria kiosks are a great way to keep queues to a minimum and ensure traffic flows smoothly. They’re a useful supplement to traditional ordering via a cashier, giving customers the speedy self-service option with kiosk POS.
Customers who encounter long lines in a cafeteria may be tempted to edit down their desired order in the hopes of getting served more quickly. So, shortening the wait time with kiosk POS can boost cafeteria revenues as well.
Keep Customers Happy
Diners often choose cafeterias because they want a good meal — and quickly. Adding kiosk POS to the cafeteria experience can significantly accelerate the order-taking or check-out process. When customers enter orders themselves, they’re more likely to get it right the first time around. This is especially true for complicated orders in which something might get lost in translation when verbally communicated to an order-taking cashier.
With a cafeteria kiosk POS, customers may be less hurried and rushed and feel empowered to order at their leisure. Think of the specific scenarios in which kiosk POS truly adds value for customers: the guest who has hearing difficulties, for example, or the tourists who don’t speak the language. The kiosk’s visual interface can streamline and simplify a process that otherwise might overwhelm certain guests.
What’s more, kiosk POS can be programmed to cross-sell and upsell where appropriate, adding incrementally to overall sales. Maybe the customer wasn’t even thinking about dessert or didn’t know about your full range of beverages until images of those items appeared as suggestions on the kiosk screen. A cafeteria kiosk can expose more of your menu to customers, improving their experience and — it’s hoped — their satisfaction.
Focus on Productivity
Cafeterias with kiosk POS often find that not only are their labor costs controlled but also their staff are freed up to engage in more useful activities such as tending to back-of-house duties like preparing food, organizing the kitchen, keeping the dining room tidy, and other tasks that keep orders flowing quickly out to customers.
Customers are embracing self-service technology in many areas of their lives so it’s no surprise that they’d want the convenience of an ordering kiosk in a cafeteria environment, too. Businesses adopting kiosk POS elevate the experience for customers while improving operations and sales.
