Here are a few ideas that I've heard of for use of QR codes in restaurants as well as some ideas I have to easily integrate QR codes into restaurant menus and advertisements:
- Daily specials QR codes. Instead of printing out a new sheet of specials every day or week, place a QR code on the menu that says “Scan for daily specials” next to it. This can link to a page of the restaurant's website that displays daily specials. Then all the website manager will have to do, is change the daily specials online, instead of having to print out new specials all the time.
- Coupons and promotions. Have a QR code that takes a customer to a coupon or to special promotions like happy hour specials. List the time of these specials, like when does happy hour occur and what promotions are available at that time, such as half price appetizers and drinks. Then list which drinks and food apply to that promotion.
- Events QR code. Many restaurants now have live music, or event such as trivia, or even magicians. Link the QR code to an events page on the restaurants website, or just have the phone open text that provides a list of dates of upcoming events. This makes is easy for a customer to add these events to the planner in their phone, and will help them remember to come back to the events they want to attend.
- Nutritional information. Let's face it -not everyone wants to see the calorie count on their menu when they eat. But some people need to see the nutritional information for ingredients in case they have food allergies, or simply for calorie information so they know how many calories they are taking in during their meal. In this way, the nutritional information I available to people who wish to scan the QR code, and hidden from people who don't care or don't want to know how the nutritional info about their meal. The QR codes can display all the ingredients of a dish, calorie information, fat content, sodium content, and anything else you wish to share with the customers.
- Pictures of the meals. Most menus only have enough space to display a few pictures of some meals, appetizers, and desserts. Why not give the customer a picture of every single menu item that the restaurant offers? This is possible by placing a small QR code next to the name of each dish. This can help a customer easily decide what to eat since they can preview each item they think they are interested in eating. I think this would also lead to the customer purchasing more food. You know how restaurants used to have their waiters and waitresses carry around that tray of fake deserts after people finished their meal? This will have a similar effect, as people will be tempted to scan a lot of the codes to see what all the menu items look like, and may be encouraged to order more food.
- History or information on the restaurant. Many restaurants use the front page or the back page of the menu to tell a little bit about their restaurant and its history. This can end up being to brief because of lack of space, or it can make the menu look crowded. This can be solved with a QR code that links to the restaurant's “About Us” webpage, or to a video that shows and tells the history of the restaurant. I think linking to a video is a great idea and can distract people from the waiting time it takes to get their food.
- A video of the kitchen. I think this is another great idea of a way to incorporate a video as a restaurant QR code. This can be placed in the menu or on the table in one of the advertisements for special food promotions or other restaurant information. Most customers never get to see the kitchen and the actual cooking process. This is a great way to show how the food is actually made (not the best idea if you are simply using a lot of frozen or microwavable food, which is a terrible idea in the first place). Customers are able to go behind the scenes, without actually being in the kitchen.
- Customers surveys. Most people never fill out those customer surveys, especially if they don't have a writing utensil to do it with, which waiters can forget to hand out. By making a QR code that links to a customer survey, customers will be more willing to fill this out, as it will be more convenient. They can enter the information at any time they want (they don't have to sit in the restaurant after their meal to fill it out), and they can easily submit it online. The restaurant can also offer coupons, like 10% off your next visit for filling out the survey, which can be sent to and stored in the customer's phone.
- Take out menu and information. I think this would be a great QR code to have printed on a customer's receipt. If they really loved the food, they will want more, and often people will leave without taking a takeout menu home with them, but they usually always take their receipt. Instead of having a hefty take out menu, customers can scan the QR code and have the menu saved in their phone for easy access to the restaurant's contact information, as well as information on menu items and ordering.
