Using Technology to Elevate Customer Service: What Food Service and Hospitality Businesses Should Know

The line between physical and digital retail is thinner than ever, and nowhere is that truer than in the food service and hospitality industries. To thrive, food service, restaurants, and hospitality businesses have had to make substantial changes to accommodate new payment options, prioritize different service methods, adhere to new safety protocols, and much more. As the retail environment continues to evolve, operators continue to face uncertainty around traffic, demand, and labor. So how can these businesses keep pace with this rapid change to deliver seamless omnichannel experiences for customers in a cost-effective way?

Here’s how the right technology can help you take even better care of your guests.

Meet guests where they are
Food service businesses and restaurants are continuously evolving to accommodate new buying journeys and expectations, and it’s important to be compassionate to customers’ shifting standards of what makes an “ideal” experience. While some guests are looking for the experience of being served in an indoor dining room, others much prefer the ease and low-touch efficiency of takeout. What customers will remember during this time is how they felt when they interacted with your business, whether it’s over the phone, online, or in-person. Look for ways to reduce and remove friction from the buying journey with technology solutions and point-of-sale platforms that are designed for retail, food service, and hospitality. That way, you can provide a consistent, unified experience across channels so that no matter how your customers interact with your business, they can find the experiences they want.

Leverage tools to adapt to ongoing labor changes
Higher wages and labor shortages have meant that food service and hospitality businesses have had to make unprecedented adjustments to staffing. Businesses have also had to reallocate staff to new roles with added responsibilities, such as curbside or at-home delivery, as well as new cleanliness standards and local guest capacity regulations. With flexible, reliable technology solutions, your staff can switch a cashier-led point-of-sale solution to a self-service checkout or ordering kiosk to respond to peak times. And when those restaurant technology solutions are easy to use, training and retaining employees can be a little easier, too.

Deploy future-ready solutions
A point-of-sale solution that is ready for whatever the future might hold is a smart investment. The food service industry needs point-of-sale technology that’s retail-hardened, designed to handle extreme temperature, humidity, vibrations, impacts, constant cleaning, and operate after accidental spills, a common hazard in food service. Retail-hardened technology is physically resilient but is also powerful enough to integrate with new digital applications and future peripherals in the future. When you use retail-hardened technology, you can avoid closing POS stations, serve more customers and keep your lines moving.

Build your infrastructure today with an eye toward the future
Toshiba delivers retail-hardened technology, specialized services, and expertise to help your business adapt to changing customer journeys, maximize profit and streamline operations. With our broad hardware software and services portfolio, along with our extensive network of partners, we take a collaborative approach to make sure businesses have the tools they need to meet their goals. Check out our market snapshots to learn more about redefining guest experiences and the challenges restaurant operators must address to be ready for what’s next.