WaitBusters

In today’s app-driven landscape, it’s nearly impossible for restaurants to turn down the opportunity to generate additional revenue through third-party food delivery apps, aside from establishing their own online presence. However, the relative novelty attached to third-party apps has given rise to a lot of confusion and displeasure among restaurants. For starters, they aren’t particularly thrilled about shelling out exorbitant amounts of commission fees to third-party app vendors, and also believe their brand image is compromised by recurring app errors and “tablet turmoil.” And yet, the monetary potential associated with online ordering and delivery is too alluring for restaurants, compelling them to put up with prevailing concerns.

As it turns out, they no longer have to endure said challenges. WaitBusters, a FOH, food ordering, and delivery technology solution provider, is tackling these concerns in an unprecedented manner. Rather than asking clients to abandon third-party delivery apps, WaitBusters takes them through what it calls “the symbiotic circle” with the end objective to aid restaurants to regain control of their brand and experience. Determined to chart their course to the desired outcome—where restaurants no longer rely on third-party apps—WaitBusters offers its client a number of different routes. “In the beginning stages, we recommend that our clients (continue to) use third-party delivery apps as an acquisition tool to secure new customers. Once they have done that, we transition them to their own proprietary online ordering platform/ app. This way, they can market directly to their customers,” explains Shane Gau, EVP and CPO, WaitBusters.

WaitBusters facilitates this transition by developing striking restaurant menu cards, apps, portals, and all the necessary ingredients required to establish a prominent online presence. As part of its solution suite, WaitBusters provides robust application Delivery-as-a-Service (DAAS) that allows restaurants to eliminate the process of hiring an external delivery partner. “Through the DAAS route, they avoid paying commission fees (to a delivery partner) and only have to pay a delivery fee on a per-order basis,” says Gau, before revealing that WaitBusters has a partnership with Postmates, a logistics company that operates deliveries across hundreds of cities in the U.S.

To bolster a restaurant’s online delivery competence, WaitBusters also presents a Bring-your-own-Driver (BYOD) service model whereby restaurants can hire their own drivers. “In this scenario, we provide them the apps that their internal delivery staff can utilize. They also have the option of hiring on-demand drivers by leveraging our local network of delivery partners. Regardless of their requirement, we have a readymade solution,” stresses Gau. WaitBusters also takes pride in upgrading the legacy technology used by some of its clients. “If a client doesn’t have a modern POS system, we hand them a kitchen printer. We do everything possible to ensure restaurants sustain, stay open, and maximize their profits.” That’s not all; WaitBusters’ solutions also have the ability to integrate with all popular POS systems.

This ability to recognize the varying needs of different restaurants is WaitBusters’ ultimate market differentiator, according to Gau. Building solutions for restaurants that range from mom-and-pop establishments all the way to multi-chain franchises, WaitBusters is able to cater to every conceivable situation. On that front, WaitBusters also offers an omnichannel marketing experience to restaurants. “Our clients’ customers have the option of ordering food through web, SMS, Facebook Messenger, and Amazon Alexa, besides just their proprietary platform,” reveals Gau. By baking in the marketing element into its solutions, WaitBusters saves its clients large sums of money that would have otherwise been spent on online advertising. He adds, “Essentially, we allow restaurants to own their data, and market to customers rather than allowing third-party vendors to control everything.”

Some of the noteworthy use cases of WaitBusters’ solutions include a client leveraging a pre-ordering solution whereby customers can order food while waiting for a table. Also, a solution that gives customers the luxury of pool- or beachside delivery. “We have ensured a person sitting on a beach can have food delivered to them without moving a muscle,” says Gau.

Despite building a host of impressive solutions, WaitBusters is just beginning to chart its course to greater heights. In the coming years, WaitBusters intends to carve its niche as “an all-inclusive solution” that bundles various solutions into one ecosystem. “Right now, restaurants need different apps/solutions for online ordering, marketing, reservations, wait line, and so on. Our hospitality ecosystem performs all those tasks as a one-stop shop,” concludes Gau. The company plans to next venture into labor and inventory management of restaurants.