Spinning up off-premises dining and delivery services
Oracle Food & Beverage offers tips on how to pivot your operation to accommodate high demand for delivery services.
(Editor’s Note: The article was written by Chris Adams, Oracle’s vice president for F&B strategy. Reposted with permission. Original article here.)
In recent weeks, we have seen tremendous disruption in the food and beverage industry worldwide. One of the most pressing issues for bars, restaurants, cafes and stadiums is how to continue to generate revenue when footfall is either severely restricted or completely halted as we are now seeing in a number of countries across the world. Staying afloat in the face of these unprecedented headwinds is critical for businesses, their employees and the communities they serve.
Delivery and off-premises dining has moved from a popular to a critical service in a very short period and just catapulted to mission-critical. But transforming your operation to focus on off-premises dining overnight is not trivial.
There are essential steps and decisions that need to be made – quickly. Here’s a rundown of how to pivot your operation to accommodate high demand for delivery services:
- Get the word out: your loyalty members, social follows and people in your community are looking for options. They are anxious about the days and weeks ahead and will take solace in knowing you are there to serve and support them. Communicate your plan to offer delivery services, be transparent about your timeframe and commitment to the community. Use all channels at your disposal including your website, social channels and local media.
- Curate your menu: consider pruning your menu to focus on three key attributes: ease of transport / travels well, dietary restrictions and family-friendly. It’s smart to stick to the basics and focus on meals that are both emotionally and nutritionally satisfying but don’t forget the significant number of patrons that have dietary restrictions and will be looking for options too. If this isn’t in your wheelhouse it’s probably not the best time to pursue gluten-free options, but if you have them, include the ones that perform and travel best. Your customers will remember that you remembered them and will be forever grateful. Also consider that many consumers will want options that feed large families, stock their freezer and reheat well.
- Think carefully about inventory: Building upon the above. The decisions you make about your menu will greatly impact the long-term viability of your business. Once you nail down an off-premises menu that is appealing and suitable, take another pass with a financial lens. Run a series of reports on the last six months to determine the best configuration for your customers and your bottom line.
- Leverage the ecosystem: Many delivery service providers are waiving fees. The Oracle ecosystem has stepped up in a significant way, and the following providers are willing to make several adjustments to their standard commercial offers to help businesses maintain revenue generation channels:
- Deliverect, in partnership with Oracle, is offering fast and free setup of the Deliverect solution and waiving set up fees (usually £/€499 set-up fee per location)
- ItsaCheckmate, in partnership with Oracle, is offering an extended one-month free trial of its third-party delivery integration service with Micros Simphony to restaurants. (offer available through June 30, 2020).
- We have many other certified delivery partners who continue to look at ways to support the industry during this time and will keep sharing these in the coming days.
