During the coronavirus pandemic, QR codes thrive as one of the restaurant business solutions. Many experts think that the technology will stay around long after the crisis ends. 

A Japanese engineer initially used QR codes back in 1994 to keep track of car parts efficiently. Today the rapid use of this technology has entered the mainstream as the smartphone with cameras took over. It was not until the ongoing pandemic forced many industries to implement QR code technology to replace physical menus, especially in bars and restaurants.

The tremendous increase in QR code usage over the last 18 months has made many business owners realize how valuable this technology is, beyond facilitating social distancing for the customers. 

Menu modifications

Restaurants can now easily adjust their menu offerings on the fly on food availability, commodities prices, and other variables. With the shortages of food sources has been an area of concern for restaurants, chicken wings and tequila are among the items lacking to source due to supply chain issues during the pandemic.

WhiteBean’s QR code solution is designed from the ground up to handle effortlessly and digitalize the menu and ordering aspect of businesses to accommodate the “new normal.” Start contacting our experts today to design your Point of Sale specifically for your restaurant.

Customer’s pieces of information

A QR code menu can collect information about their customers. You can let customers book reservation services to pass the data to the restaurant. That way, you may learn about the customers even before paying for the meals. 

When you know your customers, you can provide better services and recommend suitable tables when they finally arrive at your restaurant. Many experts believe this can increase customers’ experience predominantly in high-end dining places. So far, to say that QR codes limit customers’ experience for a high-end restaurant, many still lack experience in implementing this new technology.

The usage of QR codes has now seen the light beyond just replacing physical menus. The pandemic ushered in an online ordering increase, and it forecasted that it would stick. Not only tied to delivery and takeout transactions but also help bring online ordering on-premise.

Increase order

It is recorded that digital on-premise transactions have now made up to 1% of overall industry transactions today. The usage of QR codes and self-ordering kiosk has highly affected this outcome, especially when we consider that 60 billion transactions are happening in the US annually, and 1% is certainly not a small sum.

Integrated payment method

Another advantage of QR codes is that they can direct customers to order and pay simultaneously through their smartphones, even when applied in a full-service restaurant.

That way, you can have less staff to run more efficiently as today many restaurants across Malaysia face staff shortages. 

QR codes could allow your restaurant to track customers’ past orders allowing them to reorder with ease the next time they visit and saving both time and effort, increasing customer loyalty through technology. You can include rewards such as gift cards or credits with other vendors.

The QR codes certainly make their mark in everyone’s heart with how they can still sustain post-pandemic. Today, smartphones have become part of people’s body parts, as Elon Musk said, and QR codes are just software that customers feel natural to use in today’s time. 

Although we can not neglect that some people will still prefer traditional menus even today, the technological revolutions do not seem to stop. In the end, customers will have to adapt just like when smartphones were introduced a  decade ago.

Image Credits: Kina