Restaurants are among the many businesses that embraced the use of QR Codes. Especially during the pandemic, restaurants – a business that traditionally is about human interactions – had to find innovative ways to provide services without sacrificing the health and safety of staff and customers alike.
Now, as the world reopens, the benefits of using QR Codes to both customers and businesses remain stronger than ever. Delight your safety-conscious, tech-savvy customers with QR Code and QR Page for restaurants.
Benefits of Using QR Code and QR Page for Restaurants
A restaurant QR (quick response) Code directs your customers to your mobile-friendly restaurant menu. Dining visitors can see your delectable dishes just using their smartphone camera.
But how exactly can your restaurant benefit from using QR Code?
Contactless
Yes, some customers go to restaurants to see people. But there definitely are customers who still prefer to practice physical distancing and contactless transactions. The usher can ask customers whether they prefer a physical menu or scan the QR Code.
Less printing costs for hardcopies of the menu
With more customers choosing to scan the QR Code, there is less need to provide hardcopies of the menu. As you know, menu hardcopies can be pricey. After all, printing them on a good parchment paper is just the first step, since you also need to make them spill-proof.
Dynamic QR Codes are editable
Have you ever experienced craving for a specific item on the menu, only to be told by the wait staff that it is not available? If you use a dynamic QR Code for your menu, you can easily update your offerings and prices. You’ve run out of quinoa sushi? Simply delete it on your landing page.
No more waiting for the menu
Save both your customers and wait staff’s type by putting QR Codes on the table especially during busy hours. Your customers don’t have to wait for the other table to finish looking at the menu to start deciding on their order. Plus, if you go the extra mile and enable online ordering, they won’t have to wait for the wait staff to finish entertaining the other customers before they can place their order.
Creating a QR Page for Restaurants
QR Page for Homepage
Did know that you can make your restaurant’s mobile-friendly homepage without purchasing a domain? Let us show you how.
- Login to your QR Cloud account. Click the “Create Link” button and choose QR Page from the dropdown menu.
- On the pop-up, you may type in a custom URL for your landing page. You may also leave this blank for a system-generated URL. Click “Create QR Page”.
- On the QR Page Settings, you can customize the appearance of your landing page. You can change the background color and even upload a nice image of your restaurant for the background.
- Personalize according to your liking! Once satisfied, click “Update”.
- Now, click Blocks. This is where you arrange the elements of your landing page. Add which ever elements you need.
Here are sample blocks you can choose from:
- For the name of your restaurant, choose the Header block.
- For your location and service hours, use the Paragraph block.
- For your menu, select the URL Block and paste the link of your uploaded PDF.
- To collect email addresses for your newsletter, include the Email Collector block.
To ask your customers to send a review or get in touch on social media, add another URL block.
QR Page for Standalone Landing Page
Yes, you can take the turn-to-PDF-and-upload route for your restaurant menu. But wouldn’t it be better to have a mobile-optimized landing page for your menu? Eliminate the need for your customers to zoom in and zoom out to see the scrumptious offerings of your restaurant.
If you don’t have a menu landing page yet, no worries! Our step-by-step guide is here to help.
- Follow the first three steps in the subsection above.
- Instead of a downloadable PDF, you can add photos of your dishes using multiple Image Grid blocks. This way, your customers can see which items are available without having to download your PDF.
- Follow the rest of the steps above.
The greatest thing about your QR Page is that it is editable. You can add a new menu item or update the price without having to upload a new PDF daily or generate a new QR Code. Quinoa sushi not available today? Simply disable it on your QR Page.
Creating a QR Code for Restaurants’ Homepage or Landing Page
Now that you have mobile-optimized homepage or landing page for your restaurant menu, you can now create the QR Code to go with it.
- Copy the QR Page URL.
- On your Dashboard, go to Total QR Codes and click “Create QR”.
- Encode the name of your QR Code and choose “URL” for QR Type. Paste the QR Page URL.
- Customize according to your preferences. Once done, click “Create”.
You now have a QR Code for your restaurant menu’s landing page! Download and incorporate it into your design. You can put the QR Code outside of your restaurant, on individual tables, or on small printed flyers.
Other Ways to Use QR Code and QR Page for Restaurants
Now that you have a homepage or landing page, how else can you integrate QR Codes in your restaurant? Well, you came to the right place. Pick one or two from the following to complement your new QR Code menu. Remember, do not overdo it!
Service Hours
If you’ve been a first-time tourist with a preference for the spontaneous, you probably experienced going out to eat way before local restaurants were open. Tourists will appreciate having information about your service hours posted outside of your restaurant.
Reservations
Now that you have informed them of your service hours, you can go a step further by inviting them to make a reservation. This could be in the form of a Google form that includes the name under which the reservation was made, a mobile number, number of seats, time of arrival, and, if applicable, if they prefer to eat inside the restaurant or al fresco. Make sure to follow up with the reservation by texting or calling the registered mobile number a few hours before the scheduled time.
Order Form
Many would still prefer the traditional human-to-human interaction between customers and the wait staff. But there’s no doubt that you will also have customers who would love not having to wait for someone to take their order, or not causing inconvenience to staff while taking their time to order. Once the order has been placed, the ticket goes to the kitchen.
You can serve both of these types of customers by retaining your wait staff while also providing an alternative way using a QR Code that leads to your ordering form. Send them to your Google Form or your ecommerce store that allows them to add their orders to their cart.
Payment Option
QR Code payments are now a fixture in many business establishments. Include it as a payment option for your clients who prefer cashless transactions. You can place it on the counter for pay-as-you-order settings, or on the table where they can pay on their own convenience.
Reviews
Customer feedback is the soul of any business. Invite them to post a review of your restaurant on TripAdvisor, Yelp, or even your Facebook page. A QR Code that directs them to your page on these sites eliminates the need to type and look for your business on these platforms. With these ease and convenience, they might even give you a higher rating!
Link to Your Social Media
Social media is an awesome way to build a relationship with your customers. Put QR Codes to your Instagram or Facebook pages on the tables or on your printed menu for a hassle-free way to connect with you.
Coupons
Want to give out discounts or free upsize to your social media followers? Upload your single-use QR Code discount coupons on Instagram! Your customers can take a screenshot of it and present it upon ordering or billing to avail of your discount or freebie.
A Secret Menu
Gift your dining customers with a secret menu that is only available for those eating on location. A special treat will be a fun incentive for your customers who went out of their way to eat at your restaurant. You don’t even have to put a caption to accompany your QR Code to turn it into a surprise for your curious guests.
Final Thoughts
Many restaurants are now enjoying the countless benefits of using QR Codes and QR Pages. Be it sharing the menu, enabling reservations and online ordering, or linking your visitors to your online presence, QR Codes and QR Pages provide convenience to your customers and wait staff alike. With QR Cloud, delicious is just a scan away.