How Payment Technology Is Shifting Consumers’ Dining Experience

The New Age of Dining: How Payment Technology is Shifting Consumers’ Dining Experience

How has the restaurant industry evolved in the past year? When the pandemic emerged, restaurant owners scrambled to find creative and alternative ways to curate the perfect dining experience while making customers feel safe and at ease. Although COVID-19 has shaped much of the industry today, contactless dining was already rising prior to the pandemic. Our modern-day dining adventure has been elevated into the ultimate seamless and contact-free experience. Restaurant owners are determined to come up with advanced, reliable, and safe solutions for avid food enthusiasts and dining connoisseurs.

Rise of QR Codes

Recent data predicts that by 2025, QR codes will be used by 30% of all mobile users. A current trend over the last year is the installment of QR code ordering. Digital menus are readily available via QR codes displayed on tables for customers to scan.

Cardknox has recently integrated QR code capabilities into our payment software. Each point-of-sale transaction generates a unique QR code, which customers can quickly scan with their mobile device redirecting them to a custom online payment form with pre-filled fields. Not only does this facilitate instant payments, but it also eliminates the need for a bulky POS machine. Businesses now have the opportunity to leverage QR codes to reduce friction in many different ways.

Introducing Flexible Payment Options

Restaurateurs are adopting a digital approach as contactless solutions are becoming the new norm. The momentous shift began even before pandemic life. According to recent data, contactless credit cards and mobile payments have skyrocketed across the globe since 2019, growing 150% in the U.S from March 2019 to March 2020. These payment solutions have proven to be a massive success among small businesses and large corporations. Here are a few key benefits of contactless solutions:

• Faster processing and checkout times: Gone are the days of waiting to receive your receipt upon placing your card on the bill. Customers can quickly pay on the spot, in just seconds after finishing their meal without calling the wait staff to the table. This reduces the amount of time that customers spend in your restaurant, increasing the amount of turnover and revenue generated for the day.
• Secure and safe way to pay: Touchless solutions provide a seamless way to pay without compensating security. Every transaction is uniquely encrypted and tokenized to ensure that hackers don’t steal your card information. Point-to-point encryption (P2PE) ensures that card data is secure throughout the entire transaction process.
• Easy setup and integration: Many restaurant owners are opting for hand-held POS devices for servers to easily transport to the table for on-the-spot payments. Merchants can easily integrate payment software with a wide range of compatible POS hardware and devices.

The Growth of Online Ordering

Although the food service industry faced a massive shift, an area that presented a significant change was online ordering. According to recent data, digital ordering and delivery have grown 300% faster than dine-in traffic since 2014, and 60% of U.S. consumers order delivery or takeout once a week. The convenience and safety of adding items to your cart and having them delivered or readily packaged for pickup has been a gamechanger for consumers. Not only was this a great opportunity for restauranteurs to increase revenue and meet demands, but also a way to create a personalized experience for customers. With the surge of online ordering came the introduction of rewards programs, coupons, and pop-up recommendations. Since then, 45% of consumers say that offering mobile ordering or loyalty programs would encourage them to use online ordering services more often.

New and existing technologies are paving the way for how restaurants are streamlining their operations to create a safe, simple, and efficient environment for diners. Whether it’s with a payment terminal or online website, Cardknox is able to accommodate a wide array of payment methods— from credit and debit cards (magstripe, EMV, and contactless) to mobile wallets, and more.

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The pandemic has shifted the way we dine in the food service world. Restaurant owners are on the hunt to create the most convenient, seamless, and personalized dining experience that will deliver long-term success. The ever-changing demands of customers have spiked innovation in new dining technology. Contact us today to find out how we can help you design a payment solution that will take your business to the next level.