If you’re a restaurant owner or manager, staying on top of phone orders and reservations is vital. When your staff is swamped with dine-in customers and a flood of phone orders, tempers flare and mistakes are bound to happen.
As your business grows, managing inbound calls can quickly become overwhelming. This is where a flexible call center software comes into play. These are valuable business and communication tools that can streamline your operations and enhance your customer experience.
Advantages of Call Center Software for Restaurants
Centralized call handling
With a solution ready for restaurant operators, you can manage incoming calls, such as orders, reservations, and inquiries, from all your restaurant chains and locations through a single, centralized hub. This streamlined approach reduces the workload on individual restaurants and ensures a consistent level of service across the board.
POS integration
Miscommunication when taking phone orders leads to frustration and potential lost business. But when you integrate a virtual call center with your point of sale (POS) system, it sends orders directly and accurately to the appropriate location’s POS. So, no more mix-ups or delays — just smooth, efficient order processing.
This integration eliminates the risk of errors that can occur when your staff has to manually enter orders into the POS after taking them over the phone. Every detail is precisely captured as the customer states it, ensuring their order is exactly what they wanted. It’s a simple but powerful way to improve order accuracy and customer satisfaction.
Customer automation
Interactive voice response
An interactive voice response (IVR) system allows your customers to self-serve their basic needs 24/7. They can place orders, check delivery statuses, or make reservations without ever speaking to an agent. For more complex requests, the IVR routes incoming calls to the right department or location, significantly reducing wait times.
Don’t underestimate the convenience factor here.
Customers appreciate getting the information or service they need without being put on hold. With smarter call routing, more complex inquiries get to the right person much faster.
Online ordering integration
Modern customers expect a seamless experience across all channels. Integrating your online ordering platforms with your call center software creates a cohesive omnichannel experience. Whether ordering online, through an app, or over the phone, the customer experience remains consistent and hassle-free.
This omnichannel approach gives customers the freedom to place orders in whichever way is most convenient for them, without differences in menu options, pricing, or order processes. A unified ordering experience also helps reinforce your brand and keeps customers coming back.
Toll-free phone numbers
A toll-free number projects a professional image and removes barriers to customers calling in, potentially increasing order volume and revenue.
Think about it. If you’re a customer considering two similar restaurants, aren’t you more likely to call the one with a toll-free number? Those extra cents-per-minute fees can add up, especially for longer calls to place complicated orders. By providing a toll-free line, you’re signaling to customers that you value their business and their call.
Real-time reporting & analytics
Call center software provides valuable data and insights on call volume, peak times, agent performance, and customer behavior. Use this information to optimize staffing, tailor marketing campaigns, and continually enhance call center efficiency.
This data contributes toward a smarter, more profitable restaurant operation. You can:
- Know exactly when your busiest call periods occur so you can staff up accordingly.
- Identify underperforming call center agents who may need more training.
- Discover unexpected ordering trends that could inspire new menu items, upselling opportunities, or promotions.
Improved customer experience
Your ultimate goal as a restauranteur is to keep your customers happy and ensure they return. Call center software helps restaurant brands achieve outstanding customer service experience in key ways:
Reduced wait times
Streamlined call routing and efficient order-taking mean customers spend less time on hold and more time enjoying their meal or planning their next visit.
Long hold times are one of the biggest frustrations for customers, as it shows a lack of respect for their time. With a well-run call center, you can minimize such delays and promptly address callers’ needs. Happier customers are more likely to come back and are more inclined to recommend your restaurant to others.
Personalized interactions
With access to customer history and preferences, agents can build loyalty by providing a tailored service that makes each interaction feel special — like remembering favorite dishes or dietary restrictions. By giving your agents the tools to personalize each call with relevant details, you can create a warm, welcoming experience that encourages customers to return again and again. It’s these little touches that help you to stand out from your competitors.
Virtual Phone Systems: An Alternative to Call Centers
Not ready for a full call center platform? A virtual phone system is a cost-effective alternative that offers significant benefits.
Professional call handling
When customers call your restaurant, you only get one chance to make a first impression. A virtual system ensures that your staff answers every call promptly in a professional manner, immediately setting the right tone.
Improved accessibility
Frustrated customers often hang up when their call isn’t routed correctly on the first try. Improve accessibility by providing clearly defined phone numbers and extensions for different needs, such as reservations or takeout orders, and eliminate those pain points.
Enhanced mobility
Work frequently extends beyond the four walls of your establishment. With a virtual system, you and your team can stay connected and responsive, whether you’re off-site making deliveries, at a catering event, or even just traveling between locations. Never miss an important call again.
Scalability
As your business grows, so do your communications needs. The scalability of virtual phone solutions allows you to adapt and expand services over time without overpaying for features you don’t need yet. Later, when you’re ready to level up to having a full call center, you’ll already have laid the foundations.
When Choosing a Vendor, Look For…
Not all call center or virtual phone system providers cater to the restaurant industry’s unique needs. Consider these key factors:
- Restaurant industry expertise: You wouldn’t trust just anyone to handle the intricate tasks of running your kitchen, and the same level of specialized knowledge is required for restaurant communications solutions. An industry-savvy vendor can provide tailored advice to meet your exact operational requirements.
- Scalability: Whether you’re envisioning growing from a mom-and-pop shop to a regional chain or are already a well-established national brand, you need a communications platform that can scale seamlessly. Look for a partner that can support your ambitions and adapt solutions as your needs evolve.
- Integrations: The ability to integrate all your restaurant technologies into one cohesive system is key to efficiency and data visibility. By prioritizing integration capabilities, you can avoid the business disruptions of disparate systems that can’t share information.
- 24/7 support: Unlike most businesses, restaurants keep varied hours — early mornings for breakfast crowds, late nights for dinner rushes, and everything in between. You need a vendor that can provide support and troubleshoot issues no matter the time of day (or night).
- Training and onboarding: The introduction of new technology is always an adjustment. Stellar training resources and hands-on onboarding from your vendor can drastically smooth that transition and ensure your staff is up and running quickly on the new communications system. The faster everyone is comfortable, the sooner you’ll start seeing benefits.
- Transparent pricing: Nobody likes surprise costs or hidden fees buried in the fine print. When evaluating vendors, look for transparent, all-inclusive pricing so you can accurately budget and compare apples to apples. The last thing you need is unpredictable communications expenses wreaking havoc on your bottom line.
Nextiva: Your Restaurant Communications Partner
When choosing a call center, a virtual phone system, or a unified communications provider, Nextiva stands out for its industry expertise and innovative, easy solutions that can be tailored to restaurants.With more than 30 well-known restaurants under its management, Northland Investments Inc. upgraded their phone system to boost their customer experience. See their success story.
“We are all happy overall with Nextiva. Migration and onboarding were taken care of easily, custom billing was set up without issues, and the service is great. I’m never told, ‘we can’t do that.’ With Nextiva, they are always trying to accommodate our needs and improve our experience.”
~Chad Weiss, Director of IT
Nextiva understands what it takes to drive restaurant success in the modern age — from meeting demanding customer expectations to keeping operations running efficiently across multiple locations. That’s why their solutions are purpose-built to address the unique needs and pain points of the restaurant world.
Nextiva offers:
- POS and online ordering integrations: Keep customers happy and orders accurate by seamlessly connecting your communication platforms with restaurant tech like POS systems and digital ordering.
- Intelligent call routing and queue management: Ensure that phone calls get to the right person or location every time, minimizing customer wait times, even during peak rushes.
- Customizable IVR and auto-attendant: Provide professional 24/7 self-service and auto-attendant capabilities, allowing customers to place orders quickly or make reservations without agent assistance.
- Robust analytics and reporting: Gain 360-degree visibility into call volumes, ordering behavior, staff performance, and other key metrics to continually optimize your operations.
- Scalable, cloud-based architecture: Expand your business, and Nextiva will grow alongside it, providing you with an easily expandable platform for adding locations, staff, and new features.
- 24/7 support and comprehensive training: Get your setup right from the start and keep things running smoothly with expert onboarding, training resources, and around-the-clock technical support.
Nextiva provides transparent, straightforward pricing and unparalleled customer support for restaurants, so there are no hidden fees or complex contracts to worry about. You’ll get reliable, affordable solutions backed by a team of experts committed to your success.
Unlock new levels of service, productivity, and profitability by taking control of your communications and outsourcing them to Nextiva. It’s time to make your restaurant stand out from the competition — one satisfied caller at a time.
