Does Your Coffee Business Need a Mobile App?

In this day and age when the majority of us are turning to mobile technology and apps to order food, pay for our orders, and even book tables, it's hard to think of a reason why you wouldn't also have an app to help you run your food and beverage business more efficiently and effectively. 

 According to data released by Deloitte Digital, 40% of today’s consumers prefer to order their food online. Another 34% are interested in receiving personalised messages and another 40% said they wanted to hear updates from a food establishment at least once a month. Mobile apps can help you do all of this and more. They also give your business the digital presence it needs whilst helping you streamline both your ordering and delivery.

Here are three more reasons why your business needs a mobile app: 

1. A MOBILE APP CAN GIVE YOU MORE VISIBILITY TO MORE CUSTOMERS

According to the National Coffee Association of America (NCA), “the best way to reach the next generation of consumers is through their smartphone”. You would probably agree that the majority of your customers are spending a lot of time on their handheld devices. This means that mobile apps are the perfect tool to increase your reach and communicate with your customers in the way that works for them.

Now, you may think that having a website is just enough and you don't need to have presence on a mobile app to get more customers. But bear in mind that websites and mobile apps have their own distinct functions. Websites are great for discovery and customer decision making, but a mobile app will increase your sales, help you deliver excellent customer service, and help you improve your reach.

2. A MOBILE APP CAN IMPROVE YOUR CUSTOMERS’ ORDERING EXPERIENCE

Most food industry mobile apps include ordering features that make it easier for customers to pre-order and pay you in one simple transaction. 

But it's not just for cafes and restaurants, apps with an ordering feature work well for food and beverage wholesalers, too. With an app you are able to take retail orders outside of business hours and also eliminate data entry mistakes as well as other human errors. Rumble Coffee Roasters is one of the many wholesalers in Australia who’s using a third-party ordering and payments app to streamline their ordering process and cut down on admin work. According to them, the app has even helped them increase customer purchases.

“At the end of the day we’re roasters who love what we do,” says Rumble Coffee’s Matt Hampton.

“We didn’t get into this industry to chase payments and invoices and stress about collecting orders from clients who won’t answer the phone. We’d rather spend time serving our customers, sourcing better coffee and producing the best product we can. I actually think Ordermentum has put us in a better mood too because we’re less stressed," he says.

A MOBILE APP CAN HELP YOU SHOWCASE AND PROMOTE YOUR PRODUCTS

According to our Retailer Insights Survey 2017, retail customers want to hear about your new products and specials, learn from you, and enhance their product knowledge. A mobile app can help you here.

Push notifications are a mobile app feature that allows you to reach specific groups of customers in a very effective way. For example, if you’re a retail coffee shop, you can use this particular feature to blast time-based discounts or promotions to anyone who’s in neighbouring areas which means you can use it to help you increase your sales on any given day.

Mobile apps also have sections like “New Products”, “Favourites”, and “Special Deals”, too, so you can better promote your range. What's more with a digital catalogue feature you can easily and effectively update your product range whenever you need to without having to worry about design or print costs. 

Ordermentum, the ordering app that Rumble Coffee Roasters are using, has a feature like this. It lets you create a digital catalogue by uploading photos and descriptions of your products and then showcases them to your retail customers.

“The simple layout of the app gives our customers a clear display of the products and services we offer,” says Joe Molloy of Rumble Coffee Roasters. “We can already see an upwards spike in customers purchasing additional accessories at the same time as making their regular order.”

Having presence on a mobile app is just one of the things you can do to ensure the growth of your business. Whether you’re a retail venue or a wholesaler, a good mobile app can make you become more visible to customers, help you streamline your ordering process and showcase your products - what's not to like about that?!

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