Below you will find some additional information about the trends within the restaurant industries online ordering sector as well as some FAQ concerning our APP development process for restaurant owners.
CONSUMER RESTAURANT ONLINE ORDERING TRENDS
- 67% of consumers prefer to use a restaurant’s own website or app for takeout or food delivery. Of that group, 61% said it’s because they want to better support the restaurant. (Square)
- Only 18% of restaurant operators offer mobile ordering via their own app. (National Restaurant Association)
- Online food and beverage transactions have grown by 93% since the beginning of the COVID 19 pandemic. (Forter)
- 72% of consumers said they will make more of an effort to support small businesses in 2021. (Constant Contact)
- 51% of adults have downloaded at least one food-related app amid COVID-19. 45% have downloaded two or more. (Bluedot)
- 53% of consumers say that takeout and delivery are essential to their way of life. (National Restaurant Association)
- 77% of customers will visit your website before deciding to patronize your restaurant. (MGH)
- 43% of users place orders via a restaurant app. (National Restaurant Association)
- Diners who download restaurant mobile apps order twice as often as diners who don’t. (ChowNow)
RESTCOM APP DEVELOPMENT FAQ’S
How long does it usually take for your team to develop an app for my business?
Can you create an APP to match the look and feel of my current website?
Can you create a new website and or redesign my current WordPress website?
Do I need to reserve a domain name for the APP?
If you have a domain name such as www.myrestaurant.com already for your restaurant, you will keep and retain ownership. If you do not have a website, you will need to create a domain name for your business using an online domain registrar like GoDaddy, Namecheap or Domain.com After you create a domain or if you have a website, we will create the pages that will function as the “APP” pages within your existing website or a new website that we will build for you. Your APP will be hosted within your own hosting account by your chosen hosting service such as Bluehost, GoDaddy, Host Gator etc.
Do I need a web hosting account?
Whether you have an existing hosting provider for your current website or are in need of a new website, the files associated with your new APP will reside and be hosted on web servers. In addition, if you currently have a website, we will transfer the files of your website to our servers as our APP development is provided as a monthly service with the files of the APP remaining in our possession. During the duration of your contract with us, the files of your WEBSITE will reside on our servers. When and if you decide to end your contract with us, your website files will be returned to you via a secure online folder for you or your developer to upload to your web hosting account. However, you will no longer have access to your APP files. So in summary, your website and its files are yours, the APP files remain in our control.
Can I purchase the files for my APP from you at the end of my contract for me to own?
We do not offer this option as we have our own proprietary software for integration of your website with the app and this software remains in our possessions and resides on our servers at all times.
Can I offer delivery services for customers from the APP?
Yes you can. Based on your requirements we can create the ability for you to offer delivery services to your customers.
How can my customers download my APP?
In order for your customers to download your APP on their smartphone, there will be a button located at the bottom of your website when someone views your website from their smartphone or tablet. Once the user clicks on the button, an app icon associated with your website will download to their phone. The user will then need to complete a one-time registration process in order to give them total access to their profile, dashboard and the ability to place food orders from within the app from their mobile device. This process will work for Android and IOS mobile operating systems
Do I need to register and submit my APP with Google Play or the Apple Store?
No you do not. Our process allows the restaurant owners to offer an APP that does not require your users to go through any additional steps other than clicking on a button on your website. In this way as well, you will control all of your data and client information. Unlike some other developers who create APPS for business owners and submit your APP to Google or Apple, we do not try to make money from advertising so your users WILL NEVER receive any annoying ads or other promotions from anyone other than you, the restaurant owner!
What payment options can I offer my customers when ordering?
We can set you up to take all major US credit cards & Paypal. For an additional fee, we can also offer you the ability to accept CashApp as a payment option. This requires a few simple extra steps when receiving orders from your APP subscribers.
How will I be notified when new food orders have been made from the APP?
You can be notified by either email, or Push Notification. When logged into your dashboard, you will see a tab called “Online Orders”. When clicking on this tab, you will see all current orders and their current status for the day. When clicking on an order, you will see an option to “Notify Customer” that allows you to notify the customer that their order is ready and or send them messages and status updates about their order. We recommend that you use a tablet that will allow you and or employees to see new orders and notify customers as they come in from the APP. when logged into your dashboard.
How do I gain access to see my subscriber contact list, see my online orders, create QR code mobile coupons and other information related to subscribers
You will be assigned access to your dashboard once we have completed development of your APP. You will be assigned a username and password that you can change upon your initial login. From here you will have access to all admin related features of the app. You as the site owner can also give your employees access to certain features of the admin such as creating coupons, messaging customers etc.
How can I send messages to my subscribers?
You can send messages to your subscribers via SMS/MMS or email. For email messages, you must create a Mailchimp account for which you will need to add your username and password for this feature to work.
How many messages can I send per month?
You can send as many emails per month as you like. You can also send as many text messages as you want as well. As part of your monthly fee, you are allowed to send up to 300 messages at no charge, However, every message you send above this number you will be charged a fee of .15 cents per message sent. So for example, if you send 500 additional messages, you will be charged a fee of $7.50.
Will my APP’s customer information as well as access to my dashboard be kept safe and secure?
We make every effort to ensure that your customers’ information is kept safe within our company servers with the latest security protocols. However, a determined hacker and or other individual who has a reason or purpose to target your business may be able to find a backdoor into our system and or any system. While we can’t promise to stop everyone, we promise we will take our best efforts to prevent this from happening.
How do I contact technical support if I’m having any issues with my APP or dashboard?
You can contact us by sending a support ticket from within your dashboard and following the directions.
What is the cost for development and monthly services?
The monthly fee is $95 per month for each location to host the APP for your subscribers, access to your dashboard and 300 initial text messages.
APP Development – A one time average fee of $250-$550 is charged for the initial app development. The cost depends on the requirements of the client including additional pages, features, payment gateway integrations etc.
Website Development – New websites and redesigns usually cost on average between $275-$575. The cost depends on the requirements of the client including additional pages, features, payment gateway integrations etc.
Depending on the cost for development, at our discretion, we offer some owners the ability to pay the balance in installments for 4 months. For example if APP and or website development cost totaled $800 you would pay $200 for 4 months.
$125 Development Cost
$75 Monthly Service Fees
After 4 months, you would pay $95 per month.
All fees will be charged to your credit card on file on a monthly basis from the time you start your contract. We only accept credit card payments for our services.
How can I end my contract for services?
From within your dashboard you can send a request to end your contract by sending an email to admin@african-marketing-online-systems.com It usually takes 3-5 business days for us to deactivate your account and send you access to your website files.
What if I have other questions or concerns not shown here?
You can send your inquiries to info@african-marketing-online-systems.com
Restcom APP Proposal Questionnaire
Please Note: ALL questions must be answered in order to submit this questionnaire.