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Eating Out: The Digital Consumer - UK - April 2015

INTRODUCTION
Definition
Abbreviations
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Market factors
Companies, brands and innovation
The consumer
Frequency of eating out
Figure 1: Frequency of eating out in the last three months, February 2015
Factors influencing venue choice
Figure 2: Factors influencing venue choice, February 2015
Online restaurant/takeaway research habits
Figure 3: Online restaurant/takeaway research habits, February 2015
Interest in smartphone services for restaurant apps
Figure 4: Interest in smartphone services for restaurant apps, February 2015
Interest in restaurant website features
Figure 5: Interest in restaurant website features/content, February 2015
Attitudes towards restaurant/takeaway websites
Figure 6: Attitudes towards restaurant/takeaway websites, February 2015
What we think
ISSUES AND INSIGHTS
Digital discounting opportunities
The facts
The implications
Restaurant apps must fit into customers’ lifestyles
The facts
The implications
Using digital services to tap into consumer demand for immediacy
The facts
The implications
Trends towards more digital dining rooms
The facts
The implications
TREND APPLICATION
Immaterial World
Influentials
Life Hacking
MARKET DRIVERS
Key points
Demographic challenges and opportunities
Figure 7: Trends in the age structure of the UK population, 2009-19
Social media usage
Consumers’ usage of social media in regards to restaurants remains underdeveloped
More reasons to visit restaurants’ social media pages needed
Smartphone usage
Mobile apps
‘Push’ marketing techniques
Encouraging diners to ‘check in’
Connecting with a ‘captive audience’ on the go
Payment methods
A ‘cashless’ society?
Figure 8: Use of payment methods, by selected types of transactions, September 2014
Usage of mobile apps
WHO’S INNOVATING?
Key points
Online sales and bookings
New app developments
Engaging loyalty features
Frictionless mobile experiences
Mobile payment technology
Other convenient payment opportunities
Incentivising usage of new technology
Streamlining the process
One-stop shop apps
Digital dining options
Prepaid tables coming to the UK
In-store developments
Wi-Fi
Charging stations
Digital signage and ordering
Queue-busting apps
MyCheck
Orderella
Q App
QikServe
SwipeStation
THE CONSUMER – FREQUENCY OF EATING OUT
Key points
Frequency of eating out
Figure 9: Frequency of eating out in the last three months, February 2015
Digitally catering to consumers’ bargain-hunting mentality
Fostering impulsiveness
Opportunities for social media sites to be used as another purchasing platform
Figure 10: Diners who eat out more than once a week, by frequency of visiting Twitter, February 2015
THE CONSUMER – FACTORS INFLUENCING VENUE CHOICE
Key points
Factors influencing venue choice
Figure 11: Factors influencing venue choice, February 2015
Direct mail is still relevant in the digital age
Price promotions
THE CONSUMER – ONLINE RESTAURANT/TAKEAWAY RESEARCH HABITS
Key points
Online restaurant/takeaway research habits
Figure 12: Online restaurant/takeaway research habits, February 2015
Jumping on the selfie bandwagon
Gamification
Rewarding customers for sharing with cashback
Collective intelligence
Recommendations via social media
THE CONSUMER – INTEREST IN SMARTPHONE SERVICES FOR RESTAURANT APPS
Key points
Increasing the usefulness of restaurant apps
Figure 13: Interest in smartphone services for restaurant apps, February 2015
Deals applied through apps appeal to more than a quarter of diners
Digital loyalty schemes provide opportunities for further prompts
Gamification techniques can help improve engagement with apps
Student venues play on youths’ interest in apps
Using apps to garner useful feedback
THE CONSUMER – INTEREST IN RESTAURANT WEBSITE FEATURES
Key points
Interest in restaurant website design features
Figure 14: Interest in restaurant website features/content, February 2015
Using food imagery online to build transparency and create buzz
Video content can also help build familiarity and authenticity
It’s not just about the food as marketing the atmosphere comes to the fore with video content online
Creating more emotive connections with consumers through digital marketing
Guiding choice to create upselling opportunities
Attitudes towards restaurant/takeaway websites
Figure 15: Attitudes towards restaurant/takeaway websites, February 2015
A third of diners like to browse restaurant websites in their leisure time
Video content is helping make the research process more engaging

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