3 Reasons to Implement a Curbside Payment Solution
The coronavirus has reshaped the way the world works in the past year and will surely leave a lasting imprint on our lives. While it has redefined our personal spheres, it has also challenged our businesses, and most notably, the restaurant industry. Many restaurants have adopted tech-savvy solutions to ensure that their establishments are pandemic-friendly, including online ordering, mobile POS, and contactless payments. However, one method is a must-have for restaurant owners who haven’t already jumped on the wagon: curbside pick-up.
Quickly becoming a customer go-to, curbside pick-up allows service to be provided at the curb; orders are delivered to customers while they stay in their vehicle. While many customers prefer to pay online, there will be instances where curbside payment is necessary. Implementing a curbside payment solution will allow restaurants to minimize contact between customers and staff, boost employee efficiency, and stay competitive during COVID-19.
Read more to learn about why implementing a curbside payment solution is a good idea for your business:
Minimize Contact & Crowd Control
Restaurant owners have bent over backward to operate, ensuring that their establishment is safe for their customers and employees, adopting specific health and safety methods to draw in corona-conscious customers. By utilizing contactless payments like curbside tap-and-pay or EMV card payments, curbside pick-up is a perfect, socially-distant option for businesses looking to maximize their revenue.
Keeping with the theme of social distancing, adopting a curbside payment solution will help immensely with crowd control and keep physical interaction to a minimum. Instead of having customers pick up their orders inside and risking a line forming, they can wait for their order to be delivered to them in their car. This keeps curbside customers socially distant from each other as well as from those who are dining-in.
Crowd control is not only beneficial for social distancing reasons, however. Many industry professionals expect online ordering and curbside pick-ups to continue in popularity long after the global pandemic fades. When restaurants can open at full capacity, a curbside payment solution will eliminate traffic in and out of the restaurant, keeping operations running smoothly.
Boost Employee Productivity
Curbside-pickup is a convenient and efficient option to offer your customers when done correctly. If your employees are trying to manage a curbside pick-up solution without the proper technology, things could get messy. First and foremost, it is crucial to have a mobile payment terminal for processing payments at the curb. Without this technology, your employee will have to travel in and out of the restaurant to process payments, causing unnecessary foot traffic, stressing out the employee, and making the customer wait. Adopt a curbside POS to keep operations quick and straightforward.
Curbside payment technology must also be up to date. Using old, slow technology will lead to disgruntled employees and impatient customers. A proper curbside POS system will allow an employee to reach their greatest potential and give the customer the best possible service.
High employee productivity is especially crucial during peak business hours. With up-to-date curbside POS, employees can provide efficient queue management when customer traffic is heavy. The employee can use the POS to look up the customer’s name, car model quickly, and location to maximize order accuracy.
A New Industry Standard
Although COVID-19 has taken a toll on nearly everything, it has pushed the restaurant industry into embracing various new dining experiences they otherwise might have never tried. Online ordering, tap-and-go payment solutions, and curbside pick-up are just a few examples of restaurant owners’ numerous technologies.
It would be foolish to believe that these technologies will disappear when we return to “normal.” Customers will expect to utilize these options in the future, and who would blame them? They not only offer convenience and ease but open doors for restaurateurs to generate revenue. Curbside pick-up and payment are slowly, if not already, considered part of a new industry standard, and will no doubt stay popular in a post-COVID world. Adopting it now will only benefit your restaurant—both short and long term.
Curbside payments will keep your business on top of industry trends and ahead of the competition. In a global pandemic, it is a great way to boost efficiency while also putting your customers’ and employees’ safety first. In short, curbside pick-up isn’t going away any time soon.
Adopting a curbside payment solution is also a perfect way to prepare for a modernizing future. NCC provides solutions that make curbside payments possible and track pick up and payment so kitchens can operate efficiently. If you haven’t invested in a curbside payment solution yet, see how NCC can empower your restaurant and contact us today.
