Payments

Independent restaurants need more digital ordering, payment options

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March 24, 2021

Expanding digital ordering and payment options could help independent restaurants drive customer spend, according to a report published by Newton, Massachusetts-based Paytronix Systems Inc. The report, "Delivering on Restaurant Rewards," also found that nearly half of the 2,130 independent restaurant customers it surveyed would spend more at restaurants with loyalty programs.

The report, which revealed how the pandemic has changed independent restaurant businesses in the U.S., surveyed the consumers about their food-ordering habits to understand how independent restaurants have fared as digital ordering grows more integral to their survival. Respondents were 47 years of age on average, 34% had college degrees and 36% earned more than $100,000 in annual income.

Key findings from the research include:
• Independent restaurants have lost 10% of their customers since the beginning of the pandemic.
• 45% of independent restaurant customers' monthly food spend is on orders placed online.
• Consumers who order online spend upwards of 50% more than those who order in person.
• 11 million independent QSR customers and 32 million independent sit-down restaurant customers (almost half) would spend more if the restaurants from which they are ordering offered loyalty programs.
• Expanding digital ordering and payment options could help independent restaurants drive customer spend.

"Independent restaurant customers are more loyal than chain QSRs' customers, but their engagement is still falling during the pandemic. Independent restaurants must take active measures to mitigate this decrease in customer engagement by adopting the digital ordering options that their customers want," according to the report. "The two-pronged approach of providing these digital options, in addition to offering loyalty and rewards programs, will not only help them reach more customers, but also encourage loyal customers to increase their food order spend and keep independent restaurants in the green."