Could Leveraging An ePOS System Increase Your Food Delivery Sales?
Are you trying to increase your food delivery sales? Here are five ways an EPOS (Electronic Point-of-Sale) system can help your takeaway thrive in 2024.
The food delivery industry has seen a huge surge in demand in recent years and is set to exceed $1.41 trillion USD by 2025 - driven mostly by changes in consumer behavior.
The convenience of ordering food online has made it so much easier to justify food delivery, meaning takeaway shops are striving to meet this growing demand. Without the right tech behind you, such as effective takeaway EPOS, you could be leaving money on the table.
An EPOS (Electronic Point of Sale) system is one of the best tools to streamline how you take orders, interact with customers, and overhaul your delivery operations. In this article, we’ll explore why.
Five reasons an EPOS system will increase your food delivery sales in 2024
Streamline order-taking
Integrating an EPOS system into your store can help you streamline order management. This will allow you to take on more customers in a night and ensure that no important information gets lost in the rush.
More and more consumers are opting to order food via delivery websites and apps, so you must handle a large volume of orders. Around 60% of U.S. consumers get delivery or takeout at least once a week.
An EPOS system can consolidate orders from various sources into a single interface by connecting with online ordering platforms. That way, you don’t have to take down the phone, online, and app orders separately and risk confusion.
Manual entry also risks resulting in an incorrect address or an inaccuracy that prevents you from quickly processing an order. This additional layer of transparency is crucial in a society emphasizing convenience, especially regarding food delivery.
Give customers what they’re looking for
A key factor in increasing food delivery sales is providing an excellent customer experience. An EPOS system can help speed up order processing, cut down customer wait times, and ensure that food is hot upon arrival.
These days, with so many restaurants and delivery apps competing for customers’ attention, the customer experience is paramount for retention. With an average contribution margin of approximately 3% ($1.20 on each order), every edge you can create counts.
Late deliveries happen, but if they become a trend, you might lose customers to your competitors.
You can also use an EPOS system to collect and analyze customer data to add an element of personalization to your interactions. You can tailor your marketing to tailored promotions by interpreting past orders and preferences.
For example, working professionals might be more susceptible to marketing about an easy dinner when they just arrived home from work and would prefer the convenience of food delivery over a home-cooked meal.
Make deliveries more efficient
One of the biggest problems in food delivery is managing delivery logistics and ensuring drivers know where they’re going and the quickest ways to arrive at their destinations.
Some EPOS systems offer GPS tracking for delivery drivers, allowing takeaway shops to monitor them throughout their delivery routes. This feature can help develop more efficient routes and account for the day's traffic conditions.
You’ll also have access to useful data, such as delivery times and fuel costs, which can help you improve your bottom line and the customer experience.
Inform key decisions with data
Data analytics doesn’t stop with customer or delivery driver data, either. You can use it to monitor sales on an item-by-item basis.
Knowing which menu items are your bestsellers, which promotions bring in the most business, and the times of day you’re busiest can help you scale effectively and double down on what’s working.
This data can help you strategize your pricing, hone in on your customer demographics, and determine your peak ordering times for more relevant marketing and seamless inventory management.
Plus, you can create loyalty schemes. 18% of consumers say they would sign up for retailer loyalty schemes, so there’s an opportunity to capitalize on this to increase your AOV (average order value) per customer.
On a marketing level, you can use the data you gather to automate email and SMS campaigns. You can update customers about new promotions through email and text messages, which pop up on their phones just as they start to think about their next meal.
Offer various payment options
EPOS systems also streamline the payment process for both you and your customers.
By accepting various payment methods, including contactless payments and mobile wallets, you can cater to customer preferences and speed up the checkout process. Removing unnecessary friction is a great way to address customers' objections about ordering food with you.
With these additional payment options, you also get robust security features that can help protect customer data and build customer trust and loyalty.
Conclusion
By leveraging an EPOS system, takeaway shops can exceed customer expectations, drive sales, and build a base of loyal, returning customers.
Every EPOS system provider has unique features to suit different business needs. When choosing the perfect EPOS system, consider how it can help optimize your takeaway business through customization, usability, and integration.
About the Author
I'm Neve Wilkinson, an experienced content writer at SEO agency Solvid. I write a range of business and technology articles for global clients to help them succeed online. I have previously been featured on SitePoint, The Future Of Commerce, Internxt, TestingTime, and more.
