Ever had a bad tech day? You know the sort, when your phone isn’t connecting to the Wifi, the zoom link is broken, or when the spinning spiral of death is deciding if your page will load today – or ever. We’ve all had them and as frustrating as they are in our day-to-day lives, we recover. But a bad tech day in a restaurant? The recovery is not so easy.  

Guests today are technologically savvy, connected, and expect a high level of service in every moment of their experience. Technology has become an essential part of the guest journey and is more often being used to enhance the guest service experience. Various data sources point to technology being a catalyst for more personalized, accurate, and efficient operations. However, slapping on a QR code or installing self-service kiosks alone won’t do the trick. The flow between the staff, guests, and technology should be seamless by minimizing any possible pain points. According to Restaurant Engine, the number one reason guests will not return to a restaurant is poor customer service.  

So how can you be sure you’re providing a good guest experience? We tapped into our Livit team of experts to identify our  top 4 attributes  that will make or break the guest experience when it comes to navigating technology:

4 attributes

  • Ease of Interactions
  • Care and Personalization
  • Guest in control
  • Efficient

As simple as it sounds, you’d be surprised how many times brands get this wrong. Don’t let a mishap with tech be the reason your service experience is downgraded. Here are a couple guest journeys that can bring a negative experience and how simple touch points can make a big impact.  

The Guest Experience 1

Clara is getting ready to go out with her friends for drinks and dinner for her birthday.  Her best friend made reservations for the group online and under “special requests” included a note about the special occasion to set up something special.  The group can’t wait to get together.  When they arrive at the restaurant they are seated and directed to place their orders at the table. 

The Guest Experience 2

Albert is preparing a lunch order for his office. With so many orders and lots of dietary preferences mixed in, ordering online seems the easiest way to ensure nothing is missed.  After taking everyone’s order in the office, he starts plugging in requests into the app for a specific pick-up time.  After his initial order, he makes a call to the restaurant to add a few more things on the same bill. 

Can you relate to any of these? But let’s face it, a technological mishap can happen – be it a system-wide problem or a guest’s individual connection. Regardless, a network interruption doesn’t mean a service interruption, as both must work together in sync. Be prepared to maintain equal quality standards for the entire experience.

When we went back to our Livit team’s definition of a  “seamless experience”  we can sum it up as follows: 

A seamless guest experience is fluid. There is no fixed shape or template that can guarantee a perfect or uninterrupted experience day in and day out. The key is to be prepared and have the agility to adapt to the rhythm of your guests by anticipating any friction points. A pain point turns painless and the moment of interruption is immediately out of mind allowing your guests to focus on what matters.

With so many different types of guests coming through the doors, this can sound like an endless task.  We’re here to help.