6 Pros and Cons of Contactless Ordering for Restaurant

The global pandemic of COVID-19 had a massive negative effect on so many industries in the world. People weren’t able to go to job, and the number of those who were able to work remotely wasn’t as high in some of these. Naturally, we can all agree that the hospitality industry is the one that got the biggest hit out of all of them.

One of the finest examples is the hospitality industry in the US. If you take a look at some studies done in 2024, you will see that thousands of restaurants were closed for at least six months.

Therefore, we can all agree that this was a massive hit, and the industry is yet to recover from it in the next couple of years.

Now that these businesses are finally open, we can see that some measures were introduced to prevent the spreading of COVID-19. Of course, these measures are numerous, but we can see that contactless ordering for restaurants is the most widespread one. Today, we want to talk about both pros and cons of this approach, and see whether it is worth it.

Pros

First, let’s take a look at the advantages.

1. Secure Transactions

Even though it wasn’t among the commonest scams out there, we can see that scams regarding copying someone’s credit card numbers were occurring from time to time. It goes without saying that this is among the most unpleasant thing that can happen since it can deduct more money from someone’s account.

Thankfully, we can see that contactless ordering reduced this possibility to a bare minimum. The reason for this happening is the chip technology used for these payments, which is far more secure than any other sort of payment out there. That’s probably the primary reason why this approach got so widespread so fast.

Not to mention that it looks like we will not see it ceasing to exist even when the measures introduced during the pandemic will not be needed any longer. Instead, you can see that this has become some sort of standard that will be introduced in many restaurants that were lucky enough to stay open during the pandemic.

2. Improved Customer Experience

The next advantage of this process we want to mention is an improved customer experience. For those who don’t know, customer experience can determine whether your business will succeed in the long run or not. Customers whose experience is not at a proper level will probably not return to be your guests in the future.

Naturally, that doesn’t mean that contactless ordering can improve your CX on its own. Instead, you would need to find a way to make it somewhat more effective and interesting than just a plan concept. We can see that this trend will become the predominant one in the future, and you should pay attention to it.

3. Customer Loyalty

The final advantage we want to point out is increased customer loyalty. What does this mean? Well, it means offering the chance for your customers to connect their credit cards to your app will make things much more convenient for them. They have a chance to order or book a table through their phone.

Not only that, but we would recommend you provide them with some discounts as a way to preserve them as loyal customers. By doing so, you’ll be able to preserve them as customers for quite a long time. Without any doubt, we can agree that customer loyalty is among the top priorities for restaurants in the future.

Cons

Now that we understand the positive side, let’s check the negative one.

1. The gap in Technology Adoption

The biggest problem older people encounter when they come across contactless ordering is the gap in technology adoption. When it comes down to the younger generation, this is not too big of an issue. They are well-versed in modern technologies, and you will have no problem reaching out to them with this technology.

The older generation is not used to paying their bills this way. Most of them are more interested in paying their bills through cash, as they used to do for a long time. Therefore, you would need to find a way to spark their interest in using this tech. That’s the only way to bridge the gap in technology adoption.

2. The Lack of a Social Component

Communication between the staff and customers is a major component of having the best possible customer experience. Some would say that this is not always the case. However, when you take a look at studies and surveys conducted on this topic, more than two-thirds of customers prefer it.

Contactless ordering doesn’t have any sort of social component as a part of it. When you think about it, it makes perfect sense, the approach originated during the pandemic of COVID-19, and it intends to prevent the virus from spreading. Therefore, we can all agree that the lack of a social component is a major downside to this concept.

3. Security Issues

Even though we’ve mentioned that contactless ordering is one of the strongest sides of this approach, that doesn’t mean you will not encounter some problems along the way. For instance, if the bank card is lost, or it got stolen, the devices cannot recognize this. Therefore, the person who has your card can use it to pay the bills quite easily.

However, this is not something that cannot be overcome. For instance, you can find many banks out there that offer a complete guarantee for customers who have been victims of this occurrence.

Therefore, it is something you should be prepared to encounter down the road, both as a business owner and a customer.

Summary

The hospitality industry has started to recover from a massive hit caused by the pandemic. Thankfully, governments from all over the globe offer programs to help them go through it. Here, we’ve provided you with the positive and negative sides of contactless ordering. Overall, we believe it is a good trend that will continue to exist in the future.