How Voice AI-Powered Phone Ordering is Revolutionizing To-Go Ordering

The benefits of personalized experiences extend beyond good customer service and also affect revenue and brand loyalty. A study by Single Grain discovered that 80% of respondents were more likely to do business with a company if it offers personalized experiences. By answering every call promptly and personally, voice-enabled phone ordering systems can elevate customer service standards and eliminate the frustration of being put on hold while the restaurant employee attends to customers in the store or other tasks, such as preparing food. 

Each order is recorded accurately

While most people know voice assistants for playing music, reporting the weather, telling the time, or answering questions like how many ounces are in a cup, voice AI is actually capable of tasks far beyond the most commonly asked questions and can exceed human capabilities. Voice assistants have the ability to analyze, cross-reference, and record vast amounts of information. For restaurateurs, this means that every order will be recorded accurately, ensuring customer satisfaction and reducing wasted food and time on misplaced orders.

Customers are also interested in the speed and accuracy of voice assistants. According to a study by Voicebot.ai, 64% of adults are interested in using voice AI to order food. Using a conversational voice interface, restaurant owners can take advantage of the growing familiarity and comfort with using voice assistants and avoid the food waste and cost of inaccurate order taking that often occurs in noisy restaurant environments or when employees are trying to multitask while taking orders.

A natural, conversational voice user interface

Voice assistants have come a long way from the early days of command and control use cases where users would have to memorize scripted responses in order to be understood. Platforms that provide advanced voice AI technology are creating natural, conversational interfaces that allow customers to interact with voice assistants just as they would with another human. The desire for alternative ordering methods is on the rise too, with PYMNTS.com reporting that 55% of customers prefer to place orders without interacting with a person.

The most advanced voice-enabled phone ordering systems are context-aware, meaning they can remember information stated earlier in the conversation, so customers don’t need to repeat themselves. With advanced technology, such as Natural Language Understanding (NLU), customers can also ask voice assistants for what they want, even if they don’t know what it is called on the menu.

Interested in learning more about the capabilities of a voice-powered phone ordering system for fast-casual restaurants? Check out the video below for an example of a voice assistant taking a phone order.  

Operational efficiencies

With voice assistants answering phone calls, employees can be freed up to focus on meal prep, seating customers, serving customers, or any other duties they may have in a restaurant offering take-out services. Redistributing the workload can also help with labor shortages and training. According to a poll by Business Insider and Alignable, 85% of restaurant owners said it was very difficult to find staff, even with 43% raising wages to recruit new workers.

Whether these restaurant labor shortages are due to the COVID-19 pandemic, wages, or other reasons remains unclear. Regardless of the reason, shortages remain a major challenge for the foodservice industry. In addition, a study by Voix.ai revealed that restaurants experience a $2,000 per month human cost of answering phone calls. With a voice assistant answering take-out orders, restaurants can save money while available staff can focus on other duties and have the time to provide the kind of exceptional customer service that fosters brand loyalty and encourages returning customers.

Simple and easy setup

With the existing complexities of training employees to answer phone orders, restaurateurs don’t have the time or the resources to find their own voice AI solution. Voice AI solutions designed with small restaurant needs in mind make it easy to uplevel customer support and improve phone ordering outcomes. Solutions that integrate with existing POS systems make installation easy and immediate—with instant payment systems built-in.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created an influx in take-out and delivery orders—a trend that will continue even after the pandemic. A study by JD Power revealed that 71% of consumers said they would continue to order delivery as much as or more than they had during the pandemic.