Two weeks into the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants have struggled to make decisions on whether to stay open or temporarily close. Mandates have made it incredibly difficult for businesses to maintain any type of normalcy in their establishments. Normally, on average, restaurants only generate about 10 percent of their business from to-go orders.
According to a survey by National Restaurant Association:
- 3% of restaurants had permanently closed
- 44% were temporarily shut down
- 11% anticipated closing within the next month
Many businesses are struggling to make this abrupt transition from physical to digital. Not knowing how much staff to keep at hand can be fear-provoking, as it is something they’ve never done before.
Here are seven tips to help make this process as seamless and profitable as possible for restaurants:
- Create a takeout-specific menu
- Containing most popular items
- Must be able to travel well
- An efficient ordering system
- Order by phone/email/text
- Orders from website
- Curbside pickup is worth another look
- Set pick-up times with customers
- Consider grab-and-go products
- Giving people fast healthy choices is important
- Pizza is a great option
- Determine a delivery service
- Either self or third-party
- Self is better during this time due to controlling sanitation
- Continue to prioritize sanitation
- Require staff to wash hands more than usual
- Add sanitary wipes to to-go bags so they can wipe down boxes before eating
- Announce takeout service through all mediums
- Social media, emails, website, signs on doors, on menu
- Communication is key.
To read more about what restaurants can do to get through this uncertain time, visit FSR Magazine here.
