For Thomas Industry Insights
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Self-service Kiosks / Touchscreen Point of Sale Terminals
You may have seen freestanding self-service kiosks popping up in fast-food restaurants. While this concept may at first seem antithetical to casual dining restaurants because you’d expect to tell the wait staff your order, you may be pleasantly surprised to learn that you don’t have to queue up to use them.
Instead, at these restaurants, a mini self-service kiosk could be attached to your table — similar to the way a tabletop jukebox at a retro diner-like Johnny Rockets lets you personalize the music at your table. Alternatively, the host or wait staff may lend you an iPad that acts as a touchscreen point of sales terminal.
Depending on the individual self-service kiosk, you may be able to view and select menu items, customize your selection to meet your dietary needs and preferences, request refills, and pay. It apparently entices patrons to indulge more, as customers tend to order 20% more from a self-service kiosk than from wait staff.
Part of this may be the convenience this technology provides. It offers faster service than having to flag down a busy waiter, which means there’s more opportunity for impulse purchases and less time for you to change your mind. According to one study, 65% of customers of all ages say they would actually go to a restaurant more often if there were self-service kiosks available.