A typical feature of the quick serve industry is the high level of standardization. Customers know what they’ll get from their orders, regardless of the restaurant location or staff. There’s no place for surprises; sizes, ingredients, combos—they’re known and loved. Yet, the consumer mindset is strongly influenced by the personalization trend. From shopping to entertainment experiences, more and more daily activities highlight and embrace the individual needs of modern consumers. But how can the QSR standards accommodate the personalization needs of their customers?
In short, order customization is the answer, our QSR projects showed. A mix and match of flexibility, research and a proper tech stack can fill the gap between the QSR standardization and the mass customization trend.
Finding Balance Between Flexibility and Profitability
- One ingredient shouldn’t spoil the whole order. You can’t be aware of the various food preferences, allergies or dietary restrictions your customers have. And you shouldn’t! A simple ingredient removal option can improve the shopping and eating experience in your quick service restaurant. Give your customers the freedom to choose if their burger includes that slice of cheddar, and it’s a win-win situation.
- Different sizes for different tastes. The preferred portion size varies among customers. If you add the food waste concern, clearly, the one-size-fits-all doesn’t fit into the 21st century. That’s why a range of options for the portion size can make a difference for both the guest experience and the restaurant’s resource optimization.
- Keep the options open in comfortable limits. Ingredient removal, allergen filters, product size options—these are order customization features that can be easily managed with the right tools, but can you go further without compromising your restaurant operations? When choosing your order customization options, make sure you thoroughly assess their implications and set them up on your own terms.
Customer’ Expectations Matter
- Use your customer insights to decide the level of customization. Customer behavior is the most reliable data source, and an analysis of your customers’ preferences can benefit your QSR personalization journey. What’s your most popular product bundle? Or the most excluded ingredient? Every piece of information can help you refine and improve your offer.
- Let them be part of your story. A build-your-own experience is likely to increase brand attachment. Giving customers the freedom to add a twist to their favorite product is getting you the best of both worlds: the speed of standardized meals and the customer satisfaction of personalization.
How You Put Order Customization in Practice
No matter the level of order customization you choose for your quick service restaurant, this digital transformation needs a reliable tech partner.
We build industry-dedicated products that can solve the most complex QSR challenges. Not only can we support your order customizations, but our Quick Service Restaurants Accelerator can enhance any quick service restaurant with industry-dedicated features and capabilities for the master brand, franchises, and end customer. With our multiple order options, we empower QSR owners to let customers personalize their orders with product size selection, allergens filter, ingredient removal or replacement, and product bundling, all from a user-friendly storefront.
Did we mention we’re the first Salesforce Partner to trailblaze a path to the QSR industry? Let’s see how we can use our expertise to make your quick serve business stand out.
