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The Wall Street Journal Predicts A Bright Future For AI-Powered Phone Orders

Authored by: Matthew Dieden (Product Marketing Director)

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash


It won’t be long until your restaurant’s phones are answered by AI-powered voice bots. They’ll know your brand, your menu, and never forget to upsell. This near future was recently covered by The Wall Street Journal, who wrote about how phone AI bots are already becoming commonplace across the industry.

In the article, the WSJ explores how growth-oriented restaurants like Jet’s Pizza, BJ’s, and McDonalds are using phone order automation technology to solve a variety of problems, including:

  • Reducing the burden of calls on staff
  • Eliminating lost orders from missed calls or long wait times
  • Creating more consistent and pleasant ordering experiences for customers

From the WSJ article:

“The software, developed by restaurant-technology company HungerRush can detect if a customer sounds annoyed, confused, or like they are unable to get the bot to understand them, and will automatically put them through to their chosen restaurant.”

Let’s take an even deeper look at the phone AI opportunity. Specifically, how Jet’s Pizza leveraged OrderAI technology in 70+ stores to boost profits and reclaim staff labor. We’ll unpack extra detail, including:

  • How OrderAI helped Jet’s Pizza complete over 3 million success orders
  • Why your staff will thank you for getting OrderAI—especially during the Friday night rush
  • A step-by-step guide to how OrderAI Talk works 

By the end of this post, you’ll see what OrderAI did for Jet’s Pizza—and what it can do for you.
 

Jet’s Pizza Experienced 92% Order Completion With OrderAI Talk

Jet’s Pizza serves as a powerful example of what forward-thinking restaurateurs can accomplish with AI. Their guests have placed three million successful orders (and counting) with our AI software.

In 2022, Jet’s Pizza tested a new AI-technology pilot scheme in more than 70 stores. The results speak for themselves:

  • 92% order completion rate for phone bot customers
  • 14% more profit than from orders placed through third-party delivery services
  • 9% increase in annual transactions

OrderAI wasn’t just good for Jet’s revenue. It also allowed the chain to gain huge savings in labor efficiency. The technology freed up hundreds of hours for employees to do what they do best—make delicious Detroit-style pizza.
 

Watch the Jet's Pizza success story here:


6 Steps To Ordering With AI

Aaron Nilsson, CIO of Jet’s Pizza, told The Wall Street Journal that phone calls are the hardest part of the job for pizza store employees:

“When it’s 5 p.m. on a Friday and the phones are ringing off the hook? It’s a real challenge—dogs are barking, babies are crying, and phone connections can be poor. Plus with high staff turnover, you’re not going to get a 100% upsell rate. But with OrderAI, you do—computers are always pleasant, no matter the circumstances.”

How does OrderAI Talk actually work?

  1. You train OrderAI to understand your menu, prices, ingredients, and brand references.
  2. Customers call your restaurant and go through the ordering process with the AI bot.
  3. OrderAI confirms order details (crust, size, toppings) and repeats the order back to customers.
  4. It will also attempt to upsell: Would you like Coca-Cola on the side? 
  5. OrderAI then takes payment details and ends the call.
  6. Customers receive a confirmation text with delivery time or collection ETA.

Throughout this process, customers can choose to engage with the AI or transfer to a person in-store. The AI will automatically transfer the call if it detects frustration or has difficulty understanding the customer.

So far, Jet’s Pizza has seen a 35% adoption rate. But in the future, Aaron says, all their calls will be answered by AI.
 

Here’s Why Your Staff Will Thank You For Getting OrderAI

Staff shortages aren’t going away anytime soon. Good employees are hard to find and making the most of those you do have is priority number one. This is where OrderAI comes in.

“We like seeing happy employees in stores and this is part of our strategy.” —Aaron Nilsson

The busiest time for restaurants is traditionally between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. on a Friday. Phones ring constantly and if a customer ends up on hold? They probably won’t wait, which means you’ve lost an order.

But AI is never too busy to take a call.

Stores have a much calmer atmosphere when OrderAI is switched on. Instead of dashing to answer endless phone calls, staff can focus on cooking and great service.

“It just feels different in stores when the phone bot system is on. The tension is lower … the crew feels more like a well-oiled machine. You get a better overall experience.”

—Aaron Nilsson

Jet’s Pizza isn’t the only company seeing success experimenting with AI. Big-name quick-service restaurants (QSRs) are following suit, and experts predict widespread AI adoption is just around the corner:

  • McDonald’s is testing out voice ordering in drive-thrus with an 85% success rate.
  • Restaurant industry experts predict the value of AI in the restaurant industry will soar to $29.94 billion by 2026 at 45.77% CAGR (compound annual growth rate).
  • A study by Lightspeed shows 50% of QSRs plan to use some form of automation in the next few years.

It’s clear AI has reached a turning point in its development. Restaurant owners who adopt AI technology into their businesses will realize significant gains—just like Jet’s Pizza did.
 

Beat The Friday Night Rush With OrderAI Talk

At HungerRush, we created OrderAI because we understand the pressures restaurateurs are facing. That’s because we’ve been there ourselves—our team has decades of experience in the restaurant industry.

OrderAI Talk is a machine-learning-backed voice bot that never calls in sick, never forgets to upsell, and allows you to reposition staff where they’re needed—especially during the Friday night rush.

 Get A Personalized Demo Today.


The post The Wall Street Journal Predicts A Bright Future For AI-Powered Phone Orders appeared first on HungerRush.