With the now ubiquitous QR codes promoting online ordering across the hospitality industry - seen everywhere from street food outlets to global hotel chains - it’s clear the phenomenal rise in mobile Order & Pay technology has shifted consumer expectations around technology.

But compared to the retail industry, hospitality is still on the start line in the race to digitisation. Beyond offering a simple way for customers to order, most businesses are yet to scratch the surface of the benefits that a shift to digital can bring.

There’s now a wide range of mobile ordering solutions on the market, many of which are limited to basic ordering software. However, a strong mobile Order & Pay platform can offer so much more, using technology to improve guest engagement, optimise menus and improve efficiency.

Onvi, for example, which provides mobile Order & Pay for the likes of Vagabond wine bars and Hidden Talents (the team behind the renowned Byfords and The Pigs), now provides advanced real-time analytics, giving operators instant access to the data needed to understand key sales and revenue drivers. Through allowing operators to review performance against historical trends, identify categories or items within their menus that have a real impact on revenue, and monitor peak trading times to optimise resource scheduling, Onvi plays a key role in helping operators grow revenues.

Raoul Bostrom, Chief Product Officer at Onvi, explains, "Operators we work with were already seeing increases in revenues of 30% and more compared to traditional orders, due to the ease and speed of ordering and reordering, and smart upselling.  But that was only the beginning of the digitisation of hospitality. As our back-of-house technology evolves, operators are now getting invaluable insights about their customers - meaning they can continually optimise their menus and target their offers and promotions."

Applying its technology to Order to Table, Order to Room, Pickup and Delivery, Analytics is the latest in a series of Onvi product updates - including Promotions and Capacity Management. All engineered to give control back into the hands of hospitality operators.

"Understanding factors which impact revenue generation and capitalising the behavioural trends of customers is key to making solid business decisions." Raoul continues. "We believe every operator should have this level of detail to be able to better understand their trading patterns and sales performance at no additional cost."

With technology continuing to evolve at an astonishing rate, it’s clear that high-quality Order & Pay solutions can offer operators a lot more than a means to just receive orders in a different way.  More than ever before, all operators - not just those with technology  teams and budgets - now have the tools to connect and serve their customers, streamline operations to improve resource efficiencies, and ultimately increase sales and reduce costs.