The Power of Data: How Data Can Help You Get Smart About Running Your Restaurant

Data. With today’s technology, it’s easier than ever for business owners to gather and compare statistics about their restaurant and their customers. With the right understanding of that data, it will have a transformative impact on your operations, as a whole.  

Being able to understand data is half the battle. Once you learn more about the data behind your customers and business, it will help your operations become more efficient and profitable! 

Let’s take a look at three key ways businesses can leverage data. 

1 | Better Understanding of Your Customers 

No matter the size of your business, understanding your customers, and what does and doesn’t appeal to them, is key to your growth. Good data reveals who your target audience is and how they respond to your messaging. In fact, the right data can play a role in almost every facet of how you engage with your customers. 

Customer relationship management (CRM) software makes it easy to track each interaction a prospect has with your business, helping your entire team set goals and prioritize their efforts.  

Beyond targeting new customers, data provides you with an understanding of your current customers so that you can improve customer loyalty and understand what people are buying and how much. For example, your data could show you that a group of lunch customers at your fast-casual restaurant ordered several appetizers for their meal. Or it could show you that there is a group of diners who always order chocolate cake for dessert. Knowing this information makes it easier to segment your customers into similar groups to improve your marketing efforts and ultimately increase your cash flow.  

2 | Understand your profitability  

Not all of your transactions provide the same operational and cash flow benefits to your  profitability. Is that two for $6 promotion really profitable, or is it just causing extra work for your teams? It’s important to be able to look at an analysis of each menu item and promotion to determine if it is priced appropriately and if the promotion is positively impacting your business. A good analytics tool will allow you to select a menu item at a certain price point and then provide the related analysis: what usually was sold with that item, what the average transaction amount was, and how profitable those transactions were. Understanding these data points will help you properly price your menu items and allow you to focus on the correct promotions for your business.  

3 | ID and Eliminate Supply Chain Inefficiencies 

For any business that sells a physical product, optimizing your supply chain can be a major challenge. It’s not uncommon for a logistics issue to pop up when placing an order for food or supplies, especially if it is coming from across the country. Issues like this can lead to serious food spoilage and waste, hurting your bottom line and costing you a fortune.  

Data collection on shipments gives you the information you need in order to know where problems or inefficiencies lie in your supply chain. When you better understand problems in your supply chain, you can more easily identify waste and deal with temperature-sensitive items in a way that saves you money. It can also help you manage more uncertain times of the year when it comes to seasons, helping you make better decisions about managing your own inventory.  

4 | Make Faster, Smarter Decisions 

Real-time data has become a major benefit for many businesses and for good reason! With live insights, you can go beyond analyzing past trends and identify key trends that will help you make better decisions now. When your decisions are backed by good data, you aren’t just relying on gut instinct or a best guess. Instead, you are able to take proactive steps based on known information, making it simple to improve your output and your bottom line. 

QsrReports for the Win 

Are you in need of powerful analytics to propel your business forward? Look no further than QSRSoft Reports! This cloud-based solution gives you easy access to critical data at any time and from anywhere. It also seamlessly integrates with your point of sale and other data sources to aggregate your key data into easy-to-analyze views, so you can better measure performance and identify opportunities to grow your business.  

QSRSoft Reports gives you real-time streaming data so you can react and make important decisions on the fly to ensure the best customer experience. You can even set alert thresholds so you can stay on top of the most important performance metrics for your business! Learn more about just how powerful QSRSoft Reports is as well as how you can customize it for your needs.