We all know why Group Ordering became such an important element of catering in the last 2 years - shared platters were off the menu during restrictions. Giving meeting facilitators the ability to send attendees a link so they could pick their own separate order was well received by everyone.
It’s increasingly popular! Who with and why?
The pandemic Cloud has lifted but the silver lining of the Group Ordering enhanced software remains. The opportunity for individuals to select their own lunch, rather than to see what might be left on a shared platter, is something which continues to be appreciated by many. So, an obvious win for the caterer having the tech solutions to process corporate orders - for individuals - really efficiently.
‘It’s all about me!’
Yes, secondly, individuals expect, now more than ever, to be able to order food online…however, what has changed significantly is the choice they will make!
- Flexitarians are now living amongst us! The issue for caterers is that if you look up any web page describing flexitarianism it’s likely to have the word ‘depends’ in the first paragraph. If you are aiming for top marks in feedback from your B2B menus, life has just become that little bit harder.
- Companies who, having committed to the wellbeing of their staff and customers, will want to empower them when it comes to making healthy choices. Having worked hard to increase the number of plant based menu items on offer it makes sense to present these options and to encourage healthier lifestyles.
- And let’s not forget those who are trying to place an order for their teams and/or visitors at meetings and events. Second guessing who is a card-carrying vegan or casual vegetarian this week is a thankless task - Group Ordering is the clear solution, allowing them to send a link for individuals to make their own selection.
Now, as we hinted in the title, Group Ordering is wide ranging in the positive impact it can have on your business and the next reason takes us into the area of sustainability - let’s call it,
‘Waste Not - Want Not’
For all the reasons laid out above, having the ability to pinpoint what customers are looking for will not just avoid disappointment but crucially, there is no doubt that this will avoid food waste. If food service operations typically throw away 4-10% of the food they purchase before it reaches a customer’s plate, due to overproduction, expiration, spoilage and trimmings, then anything we can do to challenge that makes sense.
Mark Crilly, Director of Strategic Initiatives at Guckenheimer, who led their initiative to reduce food waste, didn’t take long to get to the heart of the matter: “We wanted to learn about opportunities to improve our practices because wasted food also means wasted money,”.
With ‘planet priorities’ (and ‘purse’ priorities too it would seem) waste is a key issue which can be directly tackled by having a system which makes the basics possible, ie that the food being produced is what people are wanting to eat.
- It’s all about me! - getting it right for individuals every time and making life easier for those organising catering orders…increase the scores on the feedback.
- Waste not, want not - responsible and sensible business practices…increase the revenue!
Group Ordering is covering a lot of bases - speak to one of the Spoonfed team about making this part of your catering operation.
