Contactless service is proving to be more than just a stopgap tool during the pandemic. Now, many restaurants are seeing contactless and curbside pickup as a lasting trend in off-premises sales. It\u2019s a welcome approach to restaurants and other businesses, offering new ways to cater to customers in a time when every sale counts. It\u2019s vital to explore curbside pickup\u2019s growth going into 2021 and beyond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Curbside pickup<\/a> has allowed restaurants to serve off-premises customers during the pandemic even if they didn\u2019t have the right setup for pickup and delivery. Most restaurants don\u2019t have pickup areas, drive-thrus, or in-house delivery systems and needed to adopt off-premises ordering on the fly. Curbside can be accomplished with any restaurant that can send employees to bring their order to the customers outside or in their car. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Even after the pandemic\u2019s limitations are lifted, curbside is expected to be valuable to stores. In the US, 40% of those who purchased takeout during the pandemic chose curbside delivery, and about two-thirds of them said they would keep doing so even after they can dine inside again, according to Technomic<\/a>. Restaurant Business reported that Applebee\u2019s earned 68% of its to-go business through curbside sales. In addition, the Buffalo Wings & Rings chain has stepped up its \u2018valet\u2019 service where employees bring food to the customer\u2019s vehicle in a specialized parking space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The flexibility of curbside makes it more widely available to full-service and other restaurants lacking drive-thrus. Implementing it only takes a few days of planning, and with large properties with parking space, they can designate specific parking spots for curbside only, making it easier to reach customers quickly and fulfill more orders. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Read also:<\/strong>Step up to improve Customer Curbside Pick-up Experience<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Similar trends are showing up throughout food and other retail industries. WalMart\u2019s grocery ordering recently expanded its plans for curbside pickup to replace its in-store automated pickup areas. A survey of 1000 US customers from Raydiant in April found that 75% used curbside pickup in the last 12 months and 34% of all customers who have bought items online and picked up in-store said they would use the service more often if items were brought to them in their vehicle. <\/p>\n\n\n\nCompanies Invest in More Curbside Resources<\/h2>\n\n\n\n