3 helpful stats for short-staffed restaurants

It’s no secret that managing call volume is a huge challenge, especially for short staffed restaurants. This recent New York Times article tells some personal stories that explain just how painful staffing phone is for restaurants these days. One restaurant we’ve worked with could only answer 4% of their phone calls with their staffing levels, and many restaurants are answering zero phone calls — choosing to not answer the phone all together.

Every restaurant is different, so you will have to explore the solve that’s right of you — whether that’s adjusting your staffing scheduling, hiring more staff, or exploring technology solutions that can help. That said, here are some trends, derived from real restaurant data, that might help you take the first step forward to dealing with your phone woes.

Saturdays get 3x the amount of phone calls as Mondays. Based on our data, call volume varies heavily based on day of the week, and Saturdays are when phone call volume peaks. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are also low volume days.
Holidays can increase your call volume by 20%. Two days before Valentine’s day, restaurants received around 20% higher call volume than on an average Saturday.
Top 3 reasons why people call. This of course depends on the type of restaurant, but on average most calls are about reservations. Making a reservation is the #1 reasons why guests call restaurants. The #2 reason is to place takeout orders. And the #3 reason why guests call is to modify existing reservations. Keep this in mind when deciding how to staff your phone!

Curious for more data?

Did you find this data helpful? Or are you considering how technology might be able to address helping you improve your customer experience? If so, check out Slang AI.

Authors

Alex Sambvani

Alex Sambvani is the co-founder and CEO of Slang AI, a phone answering solution that helps restaurants use voice AI to provide world-class guest experiences. With a rich background in the tech industry, Alex has expertise in software development, data science, machine learning, and natural language processing. He’s passionate about empowering restaurants to embrace modern technology to capture more revenue and find growth. When Alex was young, he dreamed about becoming a chef, but still makes a mean pasta carbonara for friends and family.