New algorithm enhances average check size and cross-sell conversions.
Koala, an industry-leading platform that unites the customer experience across multiple digital channels, both on-premise and off-premise, with a single cloud-based system and easily customizable front-end interfaces, announced the inclusion of machine learning for all of its restaurant brands. The latest launch raises the bar on what’s possible with digital ordering integration. The new feature is designed to increase check size and guest satisfaction by utilizing machine learning to make tailor-made recommendations for cross-sell suggestions.
The brand piloted the new tool with WaBa Grill, the fast-growing Southern California-based brand specializing in health-conscious grilled protein bowls, with dozens of options for customers to build unique combinations. The machine-learning algorithm has analyzed more than 115,000 orders, collecting approximately 260,000 individual data points and that data was then used to make smart, informed recommendations on future orders. The Koala platform successfully doubled the revenue generated by cross-sells.
“The platform continuously updates as data is collected in real time, and its recommendations provide even more detailed insight, analysis and successful conversions from suggestion to sale,” explains Walter Beller-Morales, the Head of Engineering at Koala.
At the core of the feature is an affinity mapping engine that tracks sales of popular items then cross-references it against specific menu items that are most often purchased together. The recommendations are then applied to everyone’s existing order experience, resulting in a digital recommendation tool that outperforms traditional if/then ordering systems by a ratio of 2 to 1.
“What’s important to today’s restaurant industry is insight,” explains Brett Spiegel, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer at Koala. “The Koala Platform is designed to create opportunities to collect meaningful data while also maximizing transactional efficiency and profitability. It’s the next generation of smart ordering and customer satisfaction.”
Koala’s key features, such as premium online ordering with built-in analytics and real-time optimization, have made a measurable difference for major restaurant brands, including MOD Pizza, Pei Wei, and TGI Fridays to name a few.
“This is a game-changer for the digital ordering experience,” added Spiegel. “And it’s not simply limited to app or web orders. If Koala-powered digital menus are used on-premise, restaurants gain the same increased revenue benefit.”
Founded in 2019, Koala is an industry-leading platform that creates premium, customizable apps for restaurants to offer digital ordering. Every restaurant deserves a premium experience, and Koala provides that experience for more than 4,000 restaurant locations nationwide. Digital orders with Koala lead to higher conversion rates than a white-label solution and an increase of up to 20% in average order value. For more information, visit www.Koala.io or follow Koala on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/koala-io/.
