A third of restaurant operators say they lag in tech use - NRA
It might seem that technology is everywhere these days, but it’s still not the norm in many restaurants, according to new research by the National Restaurant Association.
Presented in an education session at NRA Show 2016, the soon-to-be-released Restaurant Technology Survey 2016 shows that restaurant operators agree technology can help increase sales and enhance customer service. However, barriers of implementation hamper progress and lead a third of restaurant operators to say their operations are lagging in tech use. Only about one in 10 believe their establishment is leading edge. [click on the image to download highlights]
"The restaurant industry is very labor intensive. Average sales per employee are about a quarter of what they are at grocery stores, for example," Hudson Riehle, the NRA's senior vice president of research, said at "Mapping the 2016 Restaurant Technology Landscape," where the research was presented.
"Technology can help boost productivity and efficiency in restaurant operations, but it's important to choose the right processes and systems to make sure it doesn't make the customer experience more complicated," Riehle said.
Adoption of technology among restaurants is higher in some areas, such as using a POS system, having a website and offering Wi-Fi to guests, the research found. Other areas are less common, including tabletop and kiosk ordering and payment stations, mobile payment and smartphone apps. There are fairly significant differences in adoption among segments and ownership categories, however.
"Franchisees and chain-operated restaurants have a higher rate of technology adoption, likely because of the resource network they can tap into through their brand. Independent restaurants have to basically start from scratch on things like smartphone apps and POS systems," said Annika Stensson, the NRA's director of research communications and co-presenter of the session.
"Similarly, limited-service restaurants are more tapped into technology, likely because of their emphasis on speed and off-premises business. Online ordering, smartphone apps and mobile payment are much more common in quickservice eateries than tableservice restaurants," Stensson said.
The survey also found that among restaurant operators who aren't currently using these technologies, only a few plan to adopt them within the next year.
"Cost is still perceived as the biggest barrier to implementing more customer-facing technologies, along with lack of existing infrastructure and customer acceptance. Finding cost-efficient solutions and convincing arguments as to their importance are paramount for restaurant operators," Stensson said.
The Restaurant Technology Survey 2016 was conducted in partnership with American Express. It surveyed more than 500 restaurant operators in the spring of 2016 about use of technology in their restaurants. The full report of the new research is due out this summer.
About the National Restaurant Association
Founded in 1919, the National Restaurant Association is the leading business association for the restaurant industry, which comprises nearly 1 million restaurant and foodservice outlets and a workforce of 14.5 million employees. Together with 52 State Associations, we are a network of professional organizations dedicated to serving every restaurant through advocacy, education, and food safety. We sponsor the industry's largest trade show (National Restaurant Association Show); leading food safety training and certification program (ServSafe); unique career-building high school program (the NRAEF's ProStart). For more information, visit Restaurant.org and find us on Twitter @WeRRestaurants, Facebook and YouTube.
