The expectation for today’s dining industry differs from how it was decades ago. Today’s customers now expect restaurants to have a strong online presence.
Most restaurant owners haven’t caught up with this reality. They believe serving great meals and rendering exceptional customer service is enough to keep generating massive orders. They don’t see the need for a mobile app.
If you own a restaurant and you are asking the big question: how do I get an app for my restaurant? You’re in the right place. Here, we discussed how you can get an app for your restaurant to boost your digital presence. Keep reading to learn more.
How Do I Get An App For My Restaurant?
Follow the steps below to create an application for your restaurant.
First, you can use an application to boost your restaurant’s online presence in two ways: hire a mobile app developer or let AI build your app.
The first option, which involves hiring a mobile app developer, is highly expensive. Most restaurants don’t have the budget to hire a mobile app developer just to create an app for their business.
The second option is to let AI build your restaurant’s mobile application to boost your online presence. With this method, you don’t need to hire a developer. Enter the required information, and let the app do the rest. It’s that simple.
While you can use both processes to build an app for your restaurant, apps built by artificial intelligence are much cheaper and faster. Apps built using AI also function similarly to the ones built by human mobile app developers. You can’t even tell the difference between the two apps.
In this post, we’ll focus on how you can build an app for your restaurant with the help of AI-powered platform. You don’t need to be an expert or know how to code to build an app with such platforms.
Step 1: Conduct market research:
The first step is to perform market research. The essence is to understand your target audience’s preferences, pain point and behaviors.
Step 2: Find the most affordable restaurant app creation platform:
Nowadays, you don’t need to spend a considerable sum of money to create a restaurant app. You can get the ideal restaurant reservation solution from a dedicated platform.
In times past, you would need to hire mobile app developers to build an app for your restaurant. While you can still hire app developers, you can create an app from scratch without one.
The benefit of using an AI-focused platform to build a mobile app for your restaurant is that you don’t need to know how to code or be tech-savvy. Just provide the necessary details of how you want your app to be, and you’ll get the results in a few seconds.
Step 2: Sign up:
Almost every app-building platform requires first-time users to sign up. You need to create an account by providing a valid email and password.
Step 3: App customization:
App customization is highly important. This section is where you need to provide key details about your restaurant app.
Provide your logo, branding, menu, and design preference. Enter all the necessary details on the platform to proceed with your restaurant app creation.
Step 4: App integration:
App integration is crucial. You need to integrate your restaurant mobile app with your POS or ordering system to ensure smooth operations.
Step 5: App testing:
It’s inappropriate to release an app you haven’t properly tested to confirm it’s working correctly or needs additional features. Testing is important.
Through testing, you can confirm if the newly created restaurant app will deliver a seamless experience to your customers. Testing should be done in-house.
Step 6: App launching:
Having tested your application, you can now launch it. Ensure iOS and Android device users can use the app. You should also consider releasing both versions at the same time, so that you don’t leave some of your customers disappointed.
Launch the app on the App Store and the Play Store.
Step 7: App promotion:
Customers won’t know you have an app if you fail to promote it. It’s important to promote your new app aggressively to reach existing, new, and prospective customers.
You can promote your restaurant app via different channels:
- Social media: Promote the app on your social media accounts. Encourage followers and subscribers to share the post.
- In-store posters: Every customer who walks through your restaurant’s door is a potential user of your new app. So, create in-store posters and distribute them to customers. Paste the posters on the entrance and on the walls of your restaurant.
- Email campaign: You can notify old and new customers about your new restaurant app and its beneficial features via an email campaign. Your email’s content should captivate your target audience and get them to check out your new app.
Step 8: Start receiving orders:
You have created your mobile application, and now, you can start receiving orders.
Reasons You Should Get A Restaurant App
Here are several reasons to build a restaurant app.
Encourage repeat patronage:
You can send promotions, discounts, loyalty rewards, and upcoming events to customers via a mobile app. With an organized mobile app, customers can grasp your promotional messages and take beneficial action.
A simple reminder during launch time can lead to repeat patronage, driving sales.
Build strong brand identity:
Having a mobile app for your restaurant is one way to build a strong brand identity. With your logo, colors, and restaurant name on the app, customers will start associating your restaurant with convenience.
The difference-maker is that you aren’t relying on third-party apps, but on your own.
Simplifies management:
Having a mobile app makes management a breeze. When orders come in, your staff can fulfill them without errors or wasted time.
Conclusion
The answer to the question, “How do I get an app for my restaurant?” is clear. You can do so in two ways: you can either hire a mobile app developer or use a platform that lets you build apps without coding skills.
Most restaurants can’t afford to hire a mobile app developer. Additionally, apps built on no-code platforms function the same way as those built by experts.
The most important thing is create a restaurant app that allows customers to place their orders or book reservations with ease.
