Digital Pre-Ordering for Your Revenue: Part Two

In last month’s blog Digital Pre-Ordering for your Revenue: Part 1 we took a step back to see what many school nutrition programs have been faced with and what they are looking like today: under stress, under-financed, and unable to plan with this pandemic at hand. Everything we know about school is on the verge of being completely restructured for the foreseeable future, especially the cafeteria. But schools must find ways to continue operating their cafeteria and bring back their lost revenue while still keeping students safe.  A digital pre-ordering tool can be a great solution for this. 

So, how does digital pre-ordering help districts increase revenue for schools? 

In a digital pre-ordering solution, school districts can take orders in advance, offer both reimbursable and non-reimbursable menu items, and reach students on or off campus:

You can take orders in advanced

• Setting up all of your meals orders to come through the digital ordering software can streamline your production process by allowing you to plan ahead.
• Advanced orders can also help staff prepare efficiently by using the tool to receive, batch and label meals within the kitchen.
• With orders placed ahead of time instead of served as they come in the typical  lunch line, your nutrition department can manage waste and leftovers with more accuracy, helping you to stay on budget.

You can offer more menu items

• With curbside, menu items were completely limited in order to serve at maximum efficiency. In a digital pre-ordering tool you can add more menu items, including a la carte options, to bring in additional revenue. 
• Increased options on the menu can also increase participation if more students’ preferences can be met.
• When publishing menu items you can even consider offering some seasonal specials to increase interest and participation (P.S. Great images are key! Tantalize their taste buds. Get the free e-book to learn how)

You can reach students on or off campus

•  If you can make school meals more accessible to students, whether eating in the classroom or picking up curbside, you can increase participation in your meal program (which brings more reimbursable funds to your district).
• Set your designating serving methods such as Classroom delivery, Zone Pick up, Cafeteria Pick Up, Curbside, and whatever else your district utilizes to maintain social distancing and remove all barriers to school meals.
• Giving teachers and parents the ability to order through an digital ordering tool also means that students can still get a meal even if they don’t have a phone or device of their own to order from.

Overall a digital solution in your cafeteria will provide a more hands-free experience, allow multiple avenues for getting a meal, and allow you to customize your offerings in a way that can bring you some additional revenue. Think outside of standard packed lunches and see what a digital pre-ordering tool can do for you. Happy Serving!