opinion
"Before you rollout
order and pay
technology, you need
to know the problems
you want solutions for"
Before implementing a digital order and
pay system it’s important to make sure
your business is ready for the technology.
Ensure your set-up is streamlined and
prevent rollout roadblocks by adhering to
our five golden rules...
1. Understand your problems
Get to know your problems and
understand how they interrelate. If
you don’t know what is causing your
bottlenecks or long wait times, and how
each issue depends upon the other, you
won’t be able to use technology to offer
an effective solution.
Panera Bread is one of the best
examples of getting it right when it
comes to comprehensive order and pay
pre-planning. The fast-casual chain is on
track to surpass $1 billion in digital sales
for 2017 – kiosks, mobile and web – and
much of its success can be attributed
to the 100 hours a week the company’s
CEO and President spent observing,
documenting and pinpointing issues,
prior to rolling out the technology.
Panera’s main technology changes were
coupled with behind the scenes adjust-
ments based on the research carried
out by the C-level duo. The company is
currently closing in on 33% of its sales
coming from digital orders, so it’s safe to
say the time and effort was well worth it in
this respect alone.
2. Know your customer
Compile a customer profile showcasing
who your target customer is and what
they look for in terms of payment
channels, loyalty and flexibility. Your
answers will inform what and how many
different order and pay channels you
utilise – what’s likely to work, what’s
likely to flop, and what channel has the
potential to really