Restaurant chains: how can I keep my menu up to date?
July 15, 2024
Running a chain of restaurants requires meticulous organization and impeccable coordination to ensure a uniform customer experience at every outlet.
Maintaining an up-to-date menu is one of the challenges facing restaurant chain managers.
Fortunately, in the digital age, digital solutions offer real advantages for restaurateurs: time savings, data reliability, reduced risk of error...
Let's take a look at how you can keep your menu up to date across your network of restaurants.
Menu updating challenges for restaurant chains
A standardized menu to guarantee customer satisfaction
The quality of the customer experience is at the heart of restaurant chains' success: whatever the establishment, customers expect to find the same menu, the same prices, and to be able to order their favorite dish.
It is therefore essential to offer a uniform menu in all your catering areas, even if some outlets can afford to add regional dishes or local specialties.
In a nutshell
✔︎ Clarity: Clearly explain how the program works, how points are earned and how rewards are earned.
✔︎ Accessibility : Make sure the program is accessible to all your customers, with no exorbitant minimum spending requirements.
✔︎ Transparency: Don't forget that by giving you their personal information, your customers are also giving you their trust. Be transparent with them about how their data is used.
New additions to the menu
Imagine you're launching a nationwide advertising campaign to publicize the launch of a new vegan dish. Your customers go to the nearest restaurant to try out the new dish, and then, surprise: it's not on the menu.
Obviously, managing a restaurant chain For each new item on the menu, this means supplying restaurants with the right ingredients, training teams to prepare the recipe and... offering this new item on your menu!
Recipe adaptation and allergen information
With the explosion in food intolerances and allergies, restaurant chains are having to adapt their menus by excluding certain ingredients from their recipes or informing customers of the composition of dishes. With printed menus, this is a real headache and can quickly become extremely costly.
And that's exactly what digital menus are all about. Creating a restaurant menu for a chain and modifying it at any time is now as easy as 1-2-3!
How to get organized?
Do you want to make sure that all three aspects are properly managed, but don't know how to get organized? Don't panic, you've come to the right place. Read on for our tips!
The benefits of digital menus for multi-site catering
Centralized configuration and updating
When you create a standardized menu, you can distribute it simultaneously to all your points of sale using theproduct catalog heritage. We know that the daily menu is a good way of attracting and retaining customers. But for a chain of restaurants, it's not always easy to manage. With the digital menu, each time you modify your menu, you can synchronize menu update for all your establishments, at the click of a button and in real time. This is handy if you decide to change your menu each season to attract more customers, or create special menus for certain events like Valentine's Day.
Simple management of user rights
Digitizing your menu allows you to choose which users can modify the menu or adapt it to suit local conditions. Simple to use, the back-office is a management tool that lets you update the menu at any time. You can choose to give your restaurants autonomy by allowing them to add certain dishes to their menu, such as the dish of the day, for example.
Adding value to your products
The digital menu is an excellent way to showcase your dishes. By browsing the online menu, customers can choose an appetizer, main course, dessert or drink, inspired by beautiful photos. So you can modernize the image of your restaurant chain. What's more, you can personalize your digital menu using your establishment's colors, for an even more immersive experience.
Expert advice?
Invest in an expert photo shoot to take beautiful pictures of your dishes. The expression "a picture is worth a thousand words" is even truer in the restaurant sector. A beautiful presentation of your dishes will make your customers salivate! Your photos can be used on your Google Maps page to attract customers, as well as on all your ordering interfaces: kiosk, digital menu, click & collect, home delivery service, etc.
If you're going to make an investment, it's worth it.
Machine translation
With the digital menu, you don't have to waste time translating each line into several languages. Just select the language(s) you need for your customers, click on "Translate" and you're done. This is a real asset for your various points of sale, which can then attract international customers more easily.
Cherry on the cake: your teams are no longer called upon to do approximate translations, and your international clientele becomes virtually autonomous!
✔ Organize training sessions to explain how the program works and its benefits for customers.
✔ Provide communication media such as in-house brochures and guides, to help your employees familiarize themselves with the solution.
Integration with your POS system
Connecting the menu management tool to your point-of-sales software is essential for correct customer payment. For example, updating a price on your restaurant menu is automatically replicated on your cash register system. The choice of cash register software is therefore crucial if you're just starting out. Depending on your software, your digital menu can be updated directly in the event of a stock shortage. That's peace of mind compared to a paper menu that doesn't update automatically.
A smoother customer experience
With this solution, customers can consult your restaurant's menu by simply scanning a QR Code on the table. They no longer need to call a waiter for a paper menu. Images of your dishes allow them to refine their choice when placing their order.
More time for your team
Your staff no longer has to go to the table to bring a paper menu. The team can concentrate on quality of welcome and service for even greater customer satisfaction. But don't forget to train your staff and every restaurant owner to help them guide customers through the QR Code menu.
Savings for all
No need to print out a paper menu! With the digital menu, you don't have to waste time - and money! - creating an attractive menu in your colors, choosing a printer and managing the supply of printed menus to each restaurant. It's a weight off your budget.
Digital menu management solution for restaurant chains
Manage your menu with Obypay
L'digital menu tool developed by Obypay is perfectly adapted to the needs of restaurant chains and franchises. It allows you to create a menu from a single interface and deploy it in all your establishments with a single click.
You can give your restaurant owners the freedom to add items or options to certain dishes. In this way, each outlet can customize its menu to add a little local color. Automatic translation is included, saving you even more time.
Put your restaurant menu online
Don't forget to share the link to your online menu on your social networks (Instagram, Facebook, TikTok...) your Google My Business page, your website.... It's a great way to showcase your restaurant's menu and increase footfall to each location.
Suggest ordering and payment at the table as a complement
The advantage of this solution is that it can be coupled with the tabletop ordering and the QR Code payment. In this way, you offer your customers the chance to order and pay independently, without having to wait for a waiter. Once again, all they have to do is scan the QR Code on the table.
Use the menu for takeaways and home deliveries
And to supplement your income, Obypay has developed a digital solution to offer your customers the Click & Collect (takeaway sales) and Click & Delivery (home delivery). You can offer the same menu as in your restaurants, or manage the menu differently for these ordering options. Management is also centralized in the back office, and each establishment can choose whether or not to offer these services.
Numerous restaurant chains have already chosen Obypay to digitize their customer journey and rely on the multi-site management solution. This is the case, for example, of the SignorizzaFlunch and 3 Brasseurs.
Do you manage a restaurant chain and need tailor-made advice?
