You can’t download your dinner, but often, you can order and pay for it with your smartphone. Consumers are increasingly using connected devices to locate restaurants, make reservations, browse menus and nutrition information, order food for delivery or pickup, pay for meals, and instantly redeem rewards. And restaurant operators are using consumer-facing connected devices to keep in touch with customers, accept online and mobile orders and payments, increase sales and tips, and respond quickly to complaints.
It’s all part of a bigger trend. Bricks-and-mortar retailers understand that they must also compete online. Walmart, for example, recently reported that it has grown its online sales to $10 billion.
In the future, nearly all retailers will employ a combination of online and physical techniques, because the combination enables marketing that is more continuous, interactive, and powerful. That type of approach though creates both opportunities and challenges for retailers’ IT departments. Fortunately, much can be learned by examining the best and worst examples of how restaurant chains are already using consumer-facing connected devices.