Even drive-through restaurants are employing AI. Why? Because the technology can reduce errors by as much as 90 percent.
We have compiled a list of even more ways the restaurant business can benefit from using AI, from answering customer calls all the way to managing a facility’s reputation.
1. Customer Call Answering
A missed call can mean an unhappy customer, and that can result in lost revenue. A conversational AI solution can automatically answer customer calls 24/7, providing information about restaurant hours, delivery options, directions or the menu. If someone calls during peak business hours, the AI agent can answer inquiries without disturbing staff, another way to alleviate burnout among employees.
2. Custom Order Taking
A lot of customers have favorite menu items or at least stick to the same sort of cuisine. Some conversational AI agents have the capability to make menu recommendations based on customers’ previous orders, thereby improving consumer satisfaction. Similar AI tools enable customers to provide immediate feedback after their meal, which enables restaurants to personalize future meals for those individuals.
3. Inventory Management
Along with labor costs, food expenses are one of the two biggest line items for restaurants. Utilizing conversational AI platforms allows restaurant operators to more accurately track inventory and eliminate food waste. Such tools also integrate operational data to predict ingredients for reorder, so whether the restaurant is unusually busy or unexpectedly slow, operators can stock accordingly.
4. Marketing
Making your restaurant visible to potential customers is crucial to its operational success, which is why marketing is essential. Using customer data, AI can create targeted marketing campaigns or send specific messages to consumers based on their past visits to and orders at the restaurant. This data also can be utilized to know which audience a restaurant should target for a special event.
5. Table Management
Minimizing wait times is not always easy for restaurants to achieve, but it does do a lot to improve customer satisfaction. Through AI, restaurant operators can automate bookings based on real-time table availability, how many customers are dining and how busy the facility is. It can track which tables are full, which are being cleaned and which are ready for new customers, enabling restaurants to optimize their seating capacity.