Each week, NRN editor-in-chief Sarah Lockyer gives you her take on the top restaurant industry news.
When a chain executive from the sixth-largest U.S. restaurant brand describes an initiative as “the biggest innovation since the drive thru,” you know it has to be big. And our audience thought so, too.
The most popular story this week was Taco Bell’s debut of its proprietary mobile ordering platform — and the breakdown of its bells and whistles and, most importantly, why it matters. Mobile ordering and pay platforms couldn’t be more important to restaurants today, with Apple Pay and numerous chains like Starbucks, Subway and Chipotle working with Apple or on their own to provide consumers with access to their brands and food in an easier way than ever before possible.
Taco Bell is one the first among the drive-thru-focused quick-service chains to offer the feature across its more than 6,000 locations. The app provides ingredient and nutrition information, the ability to customize orders and includes a GPS locator so the Taco Bell unit knows when the customer is close enough to begin preparing the food.
Brands that win with technology will win with customers. No question.
Take a look at NRN’s top 10 most popular stories:
1. Taco Bell launches mobile ordering, emphasizing customization
2. Restaurants can differentiate with free Wi-Fi
3. Report: Wingstop preparing $100M IPO
4. Sonic 4Q profit jumps despite POS system glitches
5. BJ's 3Q profit soars nearly 78%
6. Taylor Swift helps Subway grab Millennials’ attention
7. Denny's sees best SSS increase in more than 2 years
8. Outback leverages ‘Throwback Thursday’ for ‘Date Night’ promotion
9. Blog: Will Tim Hortons help Burger King's breakfast business?
10. J. Alexander’s files for IPO 2 years after going private