Restaurant And Hospitality News – March 10, 2015
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
In news this week, Subway connects loyalty to Wi-Fi, Pizza Hut pilots mobile ordering via connected car, and Firehouse Subs CFO talks mobile payments rollouts. Also, tech trends that will transform the hotel guest experience, and advice on how to shift loyalty enrollment from employee to consumer.
Subway Ties Wi-Fi Access To Loyalty
Subway Restaurants has partnered with Turnstyle Solutions, a company that helps businesses monetize their Wi-Fi, to redefine how their shops interact with their patrons. Now, loyal customers can opt-in to the Wi-Fi network at their favorite Subway location and be rewarded with free subs. “After 50 years in the marketplace, we haven’t forgotten our most valuable asset, our customers. We are constantly looking for ways to enhance the experience in store. Turnstyle’s technology was appealing because it evolves the way that we can interact with our consumers, providing a platform for direct communication and a new innovative reward system for our patrons, all through the Wi-Fi,” Steve Beaudry, Board Chair of the local SUBWAY® Canada Franchisee Advertising Trust, said in a release.
Pizza Hut Demonstrates Mobile Ordering Via Connected Car
Pizza Hut, Visa, and Accenture teamed up to demonstrate a connected car shopping experience during the Mobile World Congress, according to Mobile Commerce Daily, and represents the next stage in consumer’s mobile addiction. The partners also anticipate testing the connected car commerce experience over a three-month pilot in Northern California this spring. The connected car features Visa Checkout, cellular connectivity, Bluetooth Low Energy, and Beacon technology deployed at Pizza Hut restaurants. Accenture is managing the integration of technologies. “the evolution of mobile devices and the consumers’ relations with those devices is what has enabled this type of connected-car shopping experience to be possible,” explained Will Phung, director of media with M&C Saatchi Mobile New York.
How Firehouse Subs Managed Mobile Payment Rollouts
In this article from the Nation’s Restaurant News, Firehouse Subs CFO Vince Burchianti discusses how the sandwich chain managed its mobile payments rollouts to respond to the growing mobile demands of its patrons. Firehouse added ApplePay to its payment methods at its 870 units this year, on top of Softcard tap-and-pay technology that it installed last year. Firehouse will also accept Apple Watch payments. “Mobile payments are the next evolution of the handheld device frankly,” Burchianti, Firehouse’s chief financial officer, told NRN. “If the customer wants to pay with their telephone, if that makes them happy and they feel more secure, I’m going to go ahead and make sure I have that option for them to use.”
Three Ways Technology Will Transform Guest Experiences in 2015
This article from eHotelier examines how technology will transform guest experiences in 2015. Research shows that 96 percent of unsatisfied customers do not complain, while 91 percent will simply leave and not return. An additional 55 percent would pay extra to guarantee better service. That means that hoteliers need to focus on customer satisfaction. In 2015, eHotelier predicts, these changes will be coming: the rise of wearable technology on both customer and employee sides to improve overall guest experiences; an emphasis on the Internet of Things, which means that hoteliers need to be able to integrate the technology into their plans; and the rise of the in-room concierge, serving as a direct line to the front desk and outside world.
Put Loyalty Into Consumers’ Hands, Not Employees
This article from QSRweb discusses how to optimize employee performance and create a more personalized, successful experience for consumers by shifting the control of loyalty away from employees and into the hands of the consumers. As QSRWeb explains, one of the common challenges of loyalty programs is enrollment: using employees behind the register to enroll new customers requires extra time, which significantly slows down line frequency and speed. One solution is to shift enrollment away from the point-of-sale and into consumers’ hands, thus freeing employees from additional obligations at the register, translating into more customers being served in less time via faster lines.