NEWTON, Mass., Nov. 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Paytronix, the leader in guest engagement for restaurants and convenience stores, today announced that it is launching “Additive Lead Times,” a group of new capabilities to its order throttling for Paytronix Online Ordering that help restaurants and c-stores manage the number of orders they receive and process during busy times. These improvements allow brands to set parameters around order timing, limits, and capacity, then define these parameters universally, regionally, by street or at a store-by-store level.
According to the 2024 Paytronix Online Ordering Report, online ordering represented 27% of all orders for restaurants and convenience stores in 2023, and operators in the top 25% of online ordering volume saw online orders jump to 62% of all their orders last year.
“Additive (Lead Times) helps brands manage the increasing amount of business generated by online orders,” said Tim Ridgely, Vice President of Online Ordering at Paytronix. “By ensuring that orders are distributed more evenly, throttling helps prevent kitchens from being inundated with orders all at once while simultaneously setting guest expectations as to when their orders will be ready.”
For first-party orders, guests will view the brand’s order demand capacity that will let them know when their order will be ready. Guests using a third-party app will not be able to see the demand capacity. However, the brand will be able to account for those orders in their capacity settings.
Paytronix made several enhancements with Additive Lead Times such as:
Timing (Prep/Lead Time) – Brands can set multiple timing constraints around orders, such as: order prep time and ASAP Lead Time Limit – which sets a threshold for when ASAP can no longer be an option for a guest; category-specific timing for such items as salads/sandwiches; adding time per item in order; and/or order size thresholds.
Limits (Throttling) – Brands can also set adjustable production times or limits to the number of orders at a time for the number of orders in queue (ASAP vs. advance), number of subtotal dollars, subtotal volume, or the number of minutes orders take to prepare.
Capacity Management – This setting will allow brands to determine how many items can be produced by 15-minute intervals in the kitchen, or the number of category-specific items, such as pizzas, that can be prepared in a 15-minute interval.
First-Party Delivery Time – Brands can set base timings for how long to allow for an order to be delivered configured for zones and zip codes. Brands can add delivery time by schedule, adding time based on day of the week or time of day; delivery by order or subtotal volume which adds time based on the size or total price of the order.
Furthermore, these parameters are fully adjustable on a per restaurant basis, meaning restaurants or franchisees with smaller kitchens or capacities can experiment with varying lead times.
Brands with Online Ordering capabilities enabled can activate or deactivate these new features with the click of their mouse on the box under “Enable New Timing Features”.
Paytronix aims to continue actively developing the tool throughout the rest of 2024 and into 2025, adding even more specificity and intelligence to their throttling capabilities. Kitchens will be more agile and organized while significantly improving the customer experience with more accurate delivery and prep times.
If you have questions about Additive Lead Times, review our comprehensive help article, or contact support@paytronix.com.
About Paytronix
Paytronix is the leader in Digital Customer Engagement for restaurants, convenience stores, and other retailers who seek to build lasting guest relationships. Paytronix continually advances digital guest engagement by developing technologies that uncover new insights about guest attitudes and behaviors that create brand preferences. For more information visit Paytronix.com.
