Innovative solution overcomes staffing challenges while increasing profits.

Sponsored by PizzaCloud 

The quick-service restaurant industry is rapidly growing, especially with the shift toward online ordering and delivery services. One way restaurants can seamlessly integrate online and phone orders to their customers is through the use of AI technology. Although many companies have failed at this, one has prevailed. 

PizzaCloud continues to advance its phone solution technology in the pizza industry. With 35 years of experience and over 2,000 customer locations across the U.S., PizzaCloud’s platform offers a unique IP phone solutions system. Pizzerias using PizzaCloud receive more orders and gain control over their call flow all while increasing their revenue by $500 to $750 a month, just from the core features of the phone system. 

Recognizing that staffing and labor cost issues in the pizza industry will be an ongoing problem, PizzaCloud opted to develop a virtual call center powered by AI to interact with customers, answer inquiries, and take orders. The goal was to increase efficiency and cut labor costs by enhancing its phone systems. PizzaCloud also operates 14 human-staffed call centers of varying sizes. 

Initial AI platforms revealed significant drawbacks, including high costs, poor understanding of natural language, inability to recognize repeat customers or handle promotions and errors, and a lack of upselling features. These issues stemmed from the developers’ lack of restaurant experience and inadequate integration with POS systems. 

Responding to these challenges, PizzaCloud collaborated with an AI services company and multiple POS providers to improve data integration, enabling better customer service and data utilization. The newly developed system is cost-effective, enhances the average sale through upselling, and efficiently manages coupons and specials, thus addressing the previous shortcomings and meeting both the company’s and its customers’ needs. 

Fielding 1.6 million calls per week, the innovative phone solutions provider is using AI-ordering digital assistants to seamlessly connect pizzerias with their customers. “If a pizza restaurant is looking to save money and make ordering easier for their customers, then they need PizzaCloud,” says Rich Bowman, president of Arrow POS. 

With the integration of AI digital assistants, PizzaCloud can offer pizzerias new and exciting features. For example, call recordings for quality assurance, caller ID allowing instant customer recognition and text messaging from the store phone number for delivery notifications, links to online ordering, and more.

Another feature offered by AI technology is the ability for customers to seamlessly transfer call orders to online orders. “If a customer is sitting on hold for too long an AI assistant will direct them to select a number that will instantly send them a link to the online ordering platform,” Bowman says. 

Currently, the AI technology used by PizzaCloud is far ahead of AI used within other industries. “PizzaCloud AI knows pizzeria customers,” Bowman says. “Right now, we’re perfecting placing orders, adding new customers, and working with couponing and reward systems. However, we hope to incorporate other features such as what a customer ordered last time which allows for easy repeat orders and text-to-pay options for secure order payment.” 

PizzaCloud can be a huge help to pizzerias struggling with staff shortages. “If AI can take 70 percent of restaurant calls, then operators can eliminate at least one spot that was originally filled by an employee solely based on the fact that they don’t need someone to answer the phone,” Bowman says. 

For restaurant owners and operators who are considering upgrading their POS and phone systems, choosing the correct company to partner with is vital. “One of the biggest things to look at in a POS or phone company is longevity,” Bowman says. When picking a company, operators should look for a company that has been in the industry for a long time. 

“Company longevity allows for the opportunity to speak with their previous clients about the company’s reputation and how good of a job they do,” Bowman says. “As far as technology, make sure the company will always stay up to date and have a strong development team. Make sure their software is forever evolving.” 

Many of these characteristics have been noticed by PizzaCloud’s customers. “It’s really like working with a partner,” says Ali Ghassabian, head of IT at Pizza Guys. “That’s what I’m looking for in a phone and technology company, a partner that’s willing to grow with Pizza Guys.” 

Another benefit noted by Ghassabian is PizzaCloud’s specificity and simplicity. “A great thing about this platform is it only works with pizzerias, so it knows the ins and outs of the pizza industry and what its store operators and customers need,” Ghassabian says. “The platform is also super straightforward and very easy to implement into existing systems.” 

The seamless integration of PizzaCloud with a POS system is extremely important and enables customers to experience all the benefits of working with PizzaCloud. “Pizza Guys needs seamless integration with our POS system and PizzaCloud is offering us that,” Ghassabian says. “Using this platform, we’re trying to achieve some top features such as knowing the history of the customer calling, their address, what they like, how many reward points they have, and what items we should sell to them.” 

Implementing PizzaCloud’s AI technology has allowed Pizza Guys to reduce the number of employees they have in store which ultimately reduces labor costs. “The platform has also allowed us to keep track of how many calls are dropped and other reporting features that analog phone lines can’t do,” Ghassabian says. “When I’m finding a vendor, I’m trying to find a partner and PizzaCloud has truly shown us they’re willing to do that.” 

PizzaCloud represents a forward-thinking solution in the pizzeria industry, leveraging advanced technology to enhance customer service and operational efficiency. By identifying and addressing the limitations of existing AI order-taking platforms, PizzaCloud has developed a platform that stands out for its affordability, high accuracy, and customer-friendly interface. 

This system not only alleviates the staffing challenges faced by pizzerias but also improves the ordering experience for customers through features like recognizing repeat orders, managing coupons and specials, and effective upselling. The collaboration with AI toolkit companies and POS providers has been crucial in achieving a seamless integration of technology and operations, making PizzaCloud a benchmark for innovation and efficiency in the food service sector. 

To learn more about PizzaCloud and its benefits to pizzerias, visit PizzaCloud.net.

By Abby Winterburn