A phone in your pocket, laptop in your bag, and wifi around every corner. Technology and its ubiquity has fundamentally changed the way we go about our day-to-day, affecting everything — including where, when, and how we dine out. Five years ago, a lot of the things that now rely on were completely different. For example:
Constant communication. It’s hard to imagine how, exactly, people made plans before cell phones. Planning ahead, having to actually get somewhere on time — sounds exhausting. Today, we’re on the go all the time while making, keeping, changing, or modifying plans. Shoot a text if you’re running late. Call the restaurant on the way to reserve your place in line. Reserve a table with an app. Make a last-minute change of plans if something better comes along. It’s fast, simple, and the way we’ve come to expect how things are done.
Online contact info. Things that were harder ten years ago: quickly finding directions, phone numbers, hours, or other contact info for a business. Now, Google a restaurant and you’ll find operating hours, a phone number, a website, and probably a social network or two. Search on Google Maps and you’ll see not only the restaurant’s name and location, but details about the type of restaurant, operating hours, and probably the best way to get there. It’s a one-stop shop for useful information.
Instagram. Who among us hasn’t visited a restaurant based on a photo of a plate of amazing-looking food? Love them or hate them, well-composed shots of food can give you a serious opinion on a place. And after your interest is piqued, you can find any information you need about a certain place, fast.
Everyone else’s opinion. Yelp reviews. Foursquare tips. Check-ins and photos and tweets and all sorts of shared information about restaurants… everywhere you look. If someone suggests eating at a restaurant you haven’t heard of, there are no less than five outlets to find out exactly what that spot is all about — from the professional review sites to the crowd-sourced. Reviews tell you what to order, what to avoid, and by the time you actually sit down in a place, you have a good idea of what to expect.
All of this available technology has changed the way consumers discover and choose where to eat (and what to eat.) But it doesn’t seem like in-restaurant technology has advanced at quite the same speed. As such, the places they dine should be as tech savvy and connected. This is why SALIDO is building a comprehensive restaurant operating system. The rOS manages every aspect of the business. It takes care of connecting the dots behind the scenes so that restaurants can focus on giving all guests the best human interaction and hospitality possible.
Consumers have come to expect the fast and easy availability of information. Restaurant operators should expect the same functionality from the software that helps them run their restaurants.
