TICKETING AND PAYMENT
How to keep your train catering service
on track with mobile technology Simon Pont, who has 20 years’ experience in the IT sector including 15 years dealing with electronic point of sale solutions, discusses on-board catering and payments.
onsumers have a right to expect great customer care when they buy products and services from any organisation. With social media allowing instant reprisal if people don’t get what they pay for, providing the best experience possible is paramount.
C Nowhere is this truer than
the rail sector. Even though good discounts are available if passengers buy their tickets at the right time, fares can still be a sizeable sum of money; not least on daily, rush-hour commuter routes. So in terms of adding value to their journey, what can train operating companies do to provide a fi rst-class service?
One of the requirements of any train franchise is the provision of an on-board catering function. In most cases, this means operating an at-seat trolley service on all
But running an at-seat catering service isn’t simple. There are many considerations: the best way to take payments; how to ensure the trolley stays stocked; feeding information back to headquarters. These and other complex operational issues all have a common requirement – mobile information management. And, for that, there is a single solution.
Mobile, hand-held terminals with functionality that will ensure a smooth ride for catering crew and customer alike are now in
routes. This is a real boon for the train passenger: stressed-out parents no longer need to take their children on a trek to the buffet car which may be several carriages away;
the business
traveller doesn’t have to abandon expensive computer equipment while they head off for a sandwich.
use. These devices include built-in software that uniquely has the dual capability of handling product sale as well as PCI-compliant Chip and PIN payment through the same unit. The technology gives complete compatibility with existing GPRS networks, and wi-fi where available, meaning payments can more often than not be taken online. Hand-held terminals must also be fully compliant with Rail Operations Standards.
Of course, many passengers – not least the hungry employee on their way back to head offi ce from a meeting – require a receipt for their transaction; that’s not a problem, as the terminals include a fast, silent thermal printer to issue receipts. Other features include a touch screen barcode scanner that makes product entry, and therefore stock control, fast and accurate. Retail transactions are logged on the system and all sales, stock, tender and operator information can then be sent back to a server at head offi ce.
All of these things help to keep at- seat catering on course, improving the passenger’s experience, increasing the likelihood of repeat purchase and boosting revenues. The UK Customer Satisfaction Index (January 2012) highlighted that there is a strong correlation between customer satisfaction and sales (with a score of .63 on the CSI). Better customer service drives sales. Other benefi ts of the system include:
• Monitoring on-board catering performance, enabling operators to tailor products to customers by journey and time of day • Cost reduction through management of stock fl ow • Tailored stock and sales reports • Real-time replenishment
prompts, reducing the need for manual completion of paperwork; catering bars can stay open longer during a journey
• Enhanced customer service with a professional image.
Because of the terminals’ ability to transfer
data electronically,
staff are less at risk of drowning in paperwork; information is also more timely and accurate, enabling more detailed management and decision making. The data can be analysed at the touch of a button, producing reports on seasonal, weekly and even single-journey sales, which means advance orders can be accurately placed.
The development of the handheld terminal for on-train catering was driven by a desire for providers and their staff to gain an accurate view of sales, and control revenue reporting and management.
The knock-on effect of this
technology is that a train should never be overstocked or undersupplied, meaning less food and drink is wasted, and fewer passengers are left with rumbling bellies.
That is important, because in this age of high-speed trains and time-poor passengers, the simple things are still vital. Create a good experience with perfect customer service and people will want more. Make life harder for them than it needs to be and your on-board catering operation could well hit the buffers.
Simon Pont is CEO of ECR Retail Systems.
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rail technology magazine Feb/Mar 13 | 35
Simon Pont
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