Group items tagged

McDonald's has consistently been "beaten to the punch" by its competitors regarding the use of technology in its restaurants, and it has shown in an overall 10.4 decrease in foot traffic from its peak. In a cross-promotional attempt to advertise its new menu offerings while connecting with a younger (i.e. Millenial) market to show off their increased technological offerings (e.g. mobile ordering, digital smart menu boards, self-service ordering kiosks, and even delivery), McDonald's set up a Big Mac vending machine in Boston's Kenmore Square that dispensed burgers in exchange for a video posted to the consumer's twitter account. This multi-facted marketing technique allowed them to deliver their tech-driven message to potentially several hundred new consumers for every burger that was dispensed. This is a highly cost-effective marketing strategy that will allow McDonald's to focus its resources on continued development of the tech solutions that the event is aimed at promoting.

This article, posted on the Visa website discusses how McDonald's UK plans to implement a new type of payment method for customers. This "cash free" payment methods allows for customers to use only debit or credit cards and pay up to 15 euros. Visa states that it is a quick and easy way for customers to purchase a coffee or lunch at a fast food establishment. As stated in the article, this form of payment helps companies save money with regards to operating costs and improves risk management because less cash is available at the restaurant. In my opinion, I believe this is a quick and convenient way for customers to get in and out of the restaurant - which is essentially what a fast food establishment caters to do. The down side of this new hardware addition to McDonald's is that it may reduce the amount of jobs in each store because the computers will be able to do the work, humans once did.

To me this is just a given. Of course contactless payments are going to increase. They already are especially in big cities where everyone is always on the go. I know that I barely ever have cash on me. I end up having to run to an ATM. Paying with cards is the easiest and an fastest way of paying for things.

I agree with both comments. I just wonder why they cap the amount to £15, which converts to $19.25. Is that to encourage individual transactions? To clarify, the only thing I can think of is they are trying to discourage people from purchasing for others. But that doesn't really make sense since the purpose of contactless payments is increasing convenience for the customer who wants to make on-the-go purchases and thus increasing profit for the business. Just something I was wondering.

McDonald's has been promoting mobile payments in the Austin, TX. Consumers' experience is not up to par compared to Starbucks mobile payments. Because the level of employees not understanding mobile payments is much different compared to Starbucks. In order to utilize the mobile payments, streamlined payments is the most important. Seconldy, experience should be seamless. Educating employees on how the technology works and creating a strong infrastructure would be necessary.

Unattended POS systems in fast food restaurants like McDonalds can significantly improve their efficiency and remove the pressure from their staff. Restaurants like these are often short staffed. They feel significant impact when they do not have enough staff to support the amount of business that comes through their doors. The cashier often will have to assist in making orders as well, causing a further delay in the line. Adding this and their new drive through initiative, McDonalds will be able to maximize profit, produce more orders in one day and keep their customers waiting minimal amounts of time.

This article focuses on the enhanced technology that fast food chains such as McDonald's are embracing to enhance their service and increase their productivity. An example of this is the self-service kiosks that many McDonald's have installed inside their restaurants. Consumers have adapted well to this technology because data shows that this has increased revenue over time, therefore proving how the unattended POS technology is helping companies be more cost efficient and increase sales.

Technology in the Fast Food Industry, McDonald's Big Mac ATM is free, short-term and Customers friendly. This new method of dispensing food to the public is convenient and it help improve guest experiences versus in store production

The premise of the article is based around the future of Quick Service Restaurants (QSR) and food delivery services within the industry. Within it is the premise it states that the Total Addressable Market for delivery will increase from $60 billion to $220 billion. Furthermore it notes that Amazon's acquisition of Wholefoods and the use of technology in more traditional restaurants may effect QSR performance. That being said though QSR like McDonald's, Dominoes, and Panera, have spent a considerable amount on their I.T structure to further compete with the trend.

This new company is looking to support startups with e-marketing solutions and e-commerce. It is loves to invest primarily in artificial intelligence for companies looking to have automated driven services. Some of the hospitality companies that engage with iCubesWire are: Domino's Pizza, McDonald's, GoAir, Qatar Aiways, Etihad and AirAsia.

Unattended POS is growing global trend which industry leaders will soon have to adapt in their business place. Quick service restaurants are quickly adapting to this change as it reduces wait time and increase in customer return rate. Other key benefits for businesses are the decrease in labor costs & minimal errors when processing guests' request. Ideally, merchants must speak with vendors to customize the self-service kiosk and to ensure they are in compliance. In the end this will expand revenue and efficiency.

Unattended POS machines hit a global growth of $9.22 billion in 2018 from 2017, and is still climbing. The unattended POS machine has shown to be particular popular in the quick service restaurant sector. McDonald's has announced a plan to put 1,000 self-service kiosks in their stores per quarter. Taco bell and Subway have also announced they will be adding the kiosks in their stores as an initiative to offer a heightened customer experience. The machines have come with the benefits of reduced wait time and faster customer turnover. POS growth is attributed to aligning with today's consumers' expectations. Customers value their time and rising labor costs can be eased with the machine as it expedites transactions and covers tasks not relied on by human interaction.

The self-serve kiosks or unattended POS systems are changing the customer behavior and getting consumers to spend more. Many major chain restaurants have incorporated them in their business such as Chilis, McDonalds and Taco Bell. Kiosks tend to upsell the customer while regular cashiers may not. Self serve is bette for business, not so much for the customers wallet.

AI continues to evolve in fast food locations. McDonalds is piloting voice recognition systems in their drive thrus hoping to hit their 95% accuracy benchmark before deciding whether to roll this out to 14,000 McDonalds locations. The technology is improving ordering processing on average by 20 seconds per order and could reduce human labor hours by 9 hours per day.

This article discusses the increasing demand for e-commerce and third party delivery in the food and beverage industry, as well as the costs associated with it. Restaurants are currently facing a growth problem in the United States as foot traffic has declined due to a "millennial generation shift" that sees diners doing more in their homes, while third party companies like Grubhub have seen it's stock rise 141 percent from a year ago. For many restaurants, it is a matter of opportunity cost. As explained in this article by Warren Solocheck, a restaurant industry analyst at NPD, "We're going to see more and more quick-service chains begin to try out delivery," he said. "The margins associated with third-party delivery may be slimmed down. But, the question for restaurants is, 'If I don't do it and I'm not delivering my food, am I in the game anymore? Am I in people's consideration? It boils down to being an opportunity cost. The hope is that at some point people will like the food enough to come in and sit down." I found this article very interesting as a General Manager. We recently decided as a brand to begin offering delivery through third party services as we noticed a decline in covers leading to a decline in revenue. This new revenue stream, although at a higher cost, still brings in revenue that we would be missing out on either way. We also offer free appetizer cards for a consumer's next in house visit to help attract new guests.

There is a new trend of diners opting to pre-order food through their mobile app and go themselves to pick up the food. This allows them to lower the cost by not having to pay delivery fee, and service charge. It also allows for the food to be more consistent and give them the flexibility to eat wherever the customer prefers either in the restaurant or out. About 20% of diners are using the pre-order option (32% millennials), however only 26% of establishments have the mobile POS technology but 59% of restaurants surveyed plan to add in the next year. About 18% of restaurants have technology allowing customers to order at the table, however 52% said they will add this in the next 2 years. Restaurants are starting to react to the trend from consumers where 53% of millennials mention that the restaurant they choose will base on the digital technology they have including online menu, read reviews, look at Instagram pics, and post their own.

Intel has been at the heart of Restaurant Innovation and the hospitality industry. A business solution that continues to impress. In this post by Intel they refer to how the POS system for a Restaurant has a few different options that are becoming more popular today. The big touch screens from McDonald's to Hotels having touch screens in mirrors. The IoT is creating solutions by partnering with company's like Intel. One highlight for me in this post was Intel's solution of Kiosks systems that can detect emotions using Ai camera's, and alerting employees to help the customer.

Unattended POS systems are being utilized in spaces beyond vending and self service. Many industries are leaning towards changing to self serve kiosks and this article explains why and shows for benefits to this system. I have seen this system move from grocery store checkouts to the McDonald's located in a busy beach side town.

the article highlights the benefits of using unattended pos systems and how there is a growing tendency for self service and less face to face interaction in retail and hospitlaity business

"Lower labor costs Fewer order or cashier errors Better space utilization with fewer checkout counters Reduced risk of employee theft due to less cash handling"

The article discusses how a service-based approach to e-commerce has tremendous value. The article focus on how Rakuten choose to infuse hospitality services, normally reserved for brick & mortar establishments on internet based business. Affording them the opportunity to generate profits by having access to this type of infrastructure at a fraction of the cost than if delivered in a traditional format.

I enjoyed reading this article and learning more about Rakuten. Their business approach seems valuable particularly for the culture it serves. Being that he is familiar with Japanese culture and their preference for an interpersonal approach, Hiroshi Mikitani the CEO of Rakuten was able to veer from the norm of a standardized and process-oriented approach and build a successful business. Rakuten platform allows allows hotels to set up so they can edit their pages themselves and tell their own stories, which allows the hotels to make a connection with customers.