5 Ways To Digitise Your Business In 2022

Since the 1980’s most industries have been disrupted by digital technology that has enabled businesses to do what they do better, faster and smarter. The early adopters of available tech gained a competitive advantage and the ones slowest to adopt fell behind, eg. Kodak went from being the market leader in the 90s to filing for bankruptcy in 2012 after failing to adopt opportunities in digital photography.

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The hospitality industry has been one of the slowest industries at adopting digital technology and is often referred to as being antiquated. The very manual processes either slow a business down or pose financial risk due to human error. However, in the last few years, the industry has seen an influx of technology and startups claiming to help venues reduce cost, enhance operational efficiency and improve service and customer experience. Most of these come at a cost and as venues are faced with decreasing margins (or even failing to make any profit at all), it leaves venue owners questioning what innovation is worth investing in and why.

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We’ve spoken to some of our valued venue partners to understand how they use technology to operate a more efficient business and have put together a list of must-haves that are effortless to integrate and bring about the most benefits in the current climate. This includes automating or optimising repetitive tasks which allows you to focus your team's effort on creating memorable experiences, providing great service and designing great menus that your customers will come back for again and again.

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1. Halve your ordering time with Foodbomb

Let’s get the obvious out of the way. If you haven’t already streamlined your ordering with our smart ordering solution then this is the best place to start when digitising your business.

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The last thing that venue owners have is time, so why spend it manually ordering from multiple suppliers with individual pesky processes involved for each. Ordering your produce on Foodbomb halves the time (and headaches) that you spend on ordering every single day - and we all know that a time saving is, in turn, a cost saving! Let us offer you transparent pricing and help you operate your kitchen in a smarter way, all on the one platform.

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"Dealing with 14 suppliers and each of their respective ordering and support resolution processes was both time consuming and confusing. It meant that the business had to manage a significant administrative workload. With Foodbomb, we save 1.5 hour in admin time per day, per venue." - James from Rusty Rabbit.

“Foodbomb saves me both time and money. Before Foodbomb, I was ordering directly from multiple suppliers so having it all streamlined is a massive time saving, which in turn, also saves money. Ordering was taking me at least double the amount of time that it takes me now with Foodbomb.” - Tim from St.Alma

2. Handle capacity issues and staff shortages with Mr.Yum & me&u

By letting customers order and pay at their table by scanning a QR code, Mr.Yum and me&u became relatively mainstream throughout the pandemic in order to facilitate a minimal touch process.

However, in the light of current staff shortages, giving customers control of their own experience not only helps venues with capacity (which takes pressure off of existing staff) but also helps with the logistics of ever-changing menus. The digital nature allows venues to easily accommodate for substitutions, which is the unfortunate reality that most are facing due to consistent food shortages.

Another bonus for venues has been a 20%-60% increase in the average order value (AOV) due to the ability to configure the order flow of digital menus to both upsell and cross-sell, as well as the ease of reordering high frequency items (such as drinks), where the constant attention of staff is usually required.

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3. Never worry about accounting again by integrating your Foodbomb with Xero

Whether you outsource your accounting or reconcile invoices in your own time, integrating your Xero with Foodbomb will revolutionise these archaic processes for your staff and venue.

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Venue owners typically handle their accounting by:

1. Managing the books themselves via an accounting platform which increases chances of human error and is likely to take up to 4 hours every week resulting in 170 hours of accounting a year.
2. Outsourcing to a bookkeeper/accountant to help with the input and classification of wholesale produce costs into the venue’s accounting platform. This still takes up the venue’s time due to having to collate and send out paper receipts and costs on average between $4,000 and $8,000 a year.

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“We use Xero and the integration with Foodbomb is super seamless; we really don’t have to worry about anything. It itemises everything for us and handles any refunds and credits, so we got rid of our bookkeeper and now do all of our bookkeeping in house!.” - Kirsty from A Plated Affair Catering

4. Save time on rostering with Deputy

Smart rostering is extremely time consuming. Deputy is the ultimate, all-in-one workforce management solution that simplifies employee scheduling, timesheets, tasking and communication.

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The software offers data-based insights into previous scheduling needs, workforce planning and seasonal demand. It’s especially helpful when planning staff requirements and shift lengths, making it simple to create rotas in minutes and effortlessly track employee hours and export to payroll. Managers know precisely when everyone can work, who is on shift and who is late, and can approve timesheets with a click of a button - allowing them to focus more time on the things that really matter.

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5. Manage reservations (and expectations!) with OpenTable

A booking system will limit the number of walk-ins and in turn, allow you to be better prepared and reduce pressure on staff to keep all guests happy while they wait for a table.

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OpenTable is a great bit of kit to implement, especially if you’re a larger venue. It gives venue owners the ability to pace the flow of guests during a service and allows for making adjustments on the fly to ensure every service runs smoothly, which is especially important in the current climate.

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Already using Foodbomb and want to discuss further options for your venue? Reach out to your Foodbomb Growth Manager. 

To learn more about Foodbomb click here or sign up today. 

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