A nationwide labor shortage in the restaurant industry has received a lot of attention. According to recent research released by the National Restaurant Association (NRA), four out of every five restaurant operators are currently experiencing staffing shortages. There are 81 percent of full-service operators and 75 percent of limited-service operators who fall into this category.
Restaurant owners and operators are increasingly turning to automation to help with staffing issues and to speed up operations.
To be sure, the word “automation” conjures up images of robots replacing humans in most people’s minds. In reality, however, automation does not always replace human labor. Instead, automation enables foodservice professionals to excel at what they already excel at.
Automation allows employees to focus their time and attention to responsibilities that have a greater impact on the bottom line by streamlining small, everyday tasks. These are tasks that machines cannot and were never intended to perform. This allows the staff to create lasting connections with guests.
Automation isn’t only a luxury at a time when food service employees are being pushed to manage ever more jobs with fewer resources. It’s a must-have.
At Milagro, we’ve made it our mission to assist restaurant owners like you in reaching their full potential. Our AI-Powered Restaurant Operating System (ROS) was created for multi-location restaurants and retailers.
Milagro ROS features robust automation capabilities that eliminate the guesswork from your marketing campaigns. It’s a comprehensive solution via a single unified, simple, and transparent platform that manages all aspects of your sales, operations, HR, and marketing.
Let’s take a closer look at how Milagro’s automated solutions can transform your restaurant’s operations.
Identifying the Best Areas to Automate
ROS solutions, such as Milagro, are extremely beneficial in automating repetitive and labor-intensive daily tasks in restaurants. This includes strategies for lowering operational costs, increasing productivity, and raising the bar for customer service in the restaurant industry.
When it comes to automating your restaurant, one of the first things you should think about is what would give you the most return on investment. Restaurant owners might begin by considering the highly repetitive, day-to-day chores that affect numerous elements of their operations.
1. Elevate Client Experience
Automated systems can complete tasks faster and with fewer errors than humans. In the end, this translates to more accurate orders, shorter wait times, and other benefits for guests.
Because automation technology like Milagro focuses on the more mundane jobs, it has been shown to improve staff morale. Staff is freed up to focus on high-value functions like attending to guests by reducing tedious repetitive work from their responsibilities.
Point-of-sale (POS), inventory management, bookkeeping, and video footage can all be integrated into automated systems like Milagro. This aids in the reduction of errors, theft, and other issues that may impair the accuracy of reporting.
Restaurants should expect greater check sizes, more tables turned, and a boost to their bottom line as a result of increased customer experience and general efficiency.
2. Automate Marketing and Remarketing
Many restaurant owners and operators struggle with deciding which areas and operations to automate. Starting with areas of restaurant management that currently use a lot of technology is a good place to start.
Automating marketing is one area where restaurateurs can save time and effort. They can automate everything from scheduling social media posts to targeting potential visitors in their community with ads to sending follow-up messaging to guests with promos.
Milagro, for example, can remind guests to post a review after they’ve dined at a restaurant. In other words, you can use your existing happy consumers to bring in new clients and earn 5-star ratings. They not only help to promote the business, but they also help to increase its visibility on search engines.
3. Streamline Reservations and Waitlisting
Reservations are one of the simplest methods for restaurants to automate their processes. Consider how much time the average host spends on the phone, confirming reservations, and handling the reservation book each day.
Guests can check table availability in real-time, provide any special requests or pertinent information about their group, and receive an automated confirmation of their reservation.
In today’s world, utilizing a pen and paper to organize your table setting can come across as shabby. Guests can use Milagro’s SmartWAIT self-add waitlisting system to see how long the line is, sign up without having to come in, and receive an SMS notification when their table is ready.
4. AI-Powered Phone Auto Attendant
Missed phone calls cost restaurant owners money every day. Missed phone calls imply missed revenue opportunities, whether the lines are clogged with simple inquiries or eateries are too short on employees to answer the phone.
Milagro’s automated phone answering service solves this issue. It has an artificial intelligence answering the phone to assist guests with inquiries and orders. AI-powered answering, whether it’s answering simple questions about a restaurant’s hours or taking orders and entering them into the POS, can help owners recoup previously lost revenue.
5. Simplify and Secure Self-Checkout
Self-service ordering and self-checkout are becoming increasingly popular among restaurant patrons. In addition, thanks to new technology, they may now make contactless payments straight at the table. They can also examine itemized receipts, split payments, and even leave a tip, making the checkout process faster and easier.
6. Automate Order Delivery
Restaurants are also employing automated technologies to improve their meal delivery services. More and more restaurants are using mobile apps and online ordering platforms to connect their POS systems with their customers’ online orders.
That means you won’t have to spend as much time manually taking and processing online orders, allowing you to focus on the things that bring in more money.
Milagro: The All-in-One Restaurant Operating System
Milagro is an all-in-one solution for restaurants, bringing together all of their contemporary technology in one place. To learn more about how our automation capabilities can improve your restaurant business, contact us now.
Read on for more insights why top line revenue is critical to the restaurant success.
