Part 3: 14 Ways The Cloud Can Give Your Business A Competitive Advantage

The idea of using cloud technology may seem a little daunting, and you may think: The business is running smoothly so why change what’s working?

But there is a difference between excelling and good enough, argues Oracle Hospitality, especially in light of the competitive advantage your QSR business can gain by moving to the cloud.

From increased revenues and better customer engagement to reduced costs, the advantages that the cloud brings may convince you to make the switch. We’ve listed 14 advantages below:

1. Improve data security and protect your brand – Cloud systems remove the need to store data locally, and instead, use central data repositories that are protected with world-class security infrastructure.
2. Make your brand more relevant to today’s consumers – The cloud lets you provide the experiences millennials and other modern consumers expect, such as intuitive mobile applications and tailored communications, which are easily powered by the cloud.
3. Increase revenue opportunities with off-premise ordering – With the power of the cloud, orders that are placed through mobile devices, tablets or desktop PCs can be sent directly to your existing systems for fulfillment.
4. Reduce the time and cost of technology upgrades – If you’ve ever spent weeks sidelined because your system is undergoing major upgrades, then switching to the cloud should bring greater ease. That’s because upgrades can be delivered regularly with reduced downtime.
5. Achieve consistency through centralisation while maintaining local flexibility – Need to add a new menu item to your point-of-sale (POS) system in all your stores or offer a unique item in one specific store? The cloud can make those tasks a breeze by letting you control every POS terminal, manager’s workstation, kitchen system and connected mobile device in all locations from a central office.
6. Influence decision-making with better data – Cloud systems can collect data from all your stores and make that available in real-time to all managers, which results in overall better decision-making.
7. Engage your guests with mobile technology – With half of the adult population now owning smart phones, the cloud can help you connect with customers through their mobile devices.
8. Leverage your mobile investment for staff engagement – Cloud ensures that all managers are able to do their jobs without having to sit in front of a computer in an office because they can access data through their mobiles, increasing their productivity and responsiveness.
9. Expand globally with greater ease and efficiency – If you want to make your QSR brand an international success, you need to deliver consistent service, food quality, menus and promotions – and the cloud helps keep you firmly in control.
10. Control staff and inventory costs – Switching to the cloud gives you the data to lower staff and inventory costs through more efficient staff scheduling and reduced inventory wastage, respectively.
11. Reduce staff turnover – Most of your staff are likely more attuned to digital systems, and they can bristle against using inefficient systems, ultimately leaving in frustration. The cloud makes staff tasks smoother and more efficient, giving you more productive and less frazzled employees and managers.
12. Let team members focus on hospitality, not IT – Everything is working fine until it is not, and then you have a big headache on your hands because no one in your store is an IT expert to solve the problem. The cloud makes sure your staff focus on their expertise instead of becoming distracted with IT concerns.
13. Engage on social media more effectively – How your stores are discussed on social media can make or break your brand. The cloud assists by providing managers with insightful data on store feedback online and allows them to quickly appease complaints or trumpet praises.
14. Make it easier to comply with standards and regulations – If there is a new regulation, such as displaying an allergen or nutritional information in your menu, your business can quickly adapt without skipping a beat in operations because of its centralised cloud system.

Learn more about how the cloud can bring key advantages to your business by downloading the full Oracle report here.