Nearly half of operators say they’re likely to invest in things like loyalty programs this year, in part because they’re not happy with their existing tools, according to a new report from Restaurant Business and Nation’s Restaurant News.

For the third annual Restaurant Technology Outlook, Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Business teamed up to learn how restaurant operators are leveraging tech to drive growth in their businesses — straight from the operators themselves. We surveyed more than 550 restaurant operators of all sizes and segments to understand what technology they’re embracing (or not), as well as their business goals and, most importantly, where they’ll be directing their budgets and attention this year. The results reveal a restaurant industry that is still all-in on technology updates — nearly all respondents plan to make tech moves this year — with a greater understanding of how a digital-first business can drive results. But with that digital maturity comes more scrutiny on ROI and, in some cases, a clearer awareness of their growing pains. Operators in this year’s survey pointed to integration challenges, concerns about data management and pockets of discontent around certain areas of their tech stack. They’re also embracing AI, even as they reveal knowledge gaps and lack of clarity on its real-world use cases. Despite the challenges, operators in this year’s study were full speed ahead on investment and eager to digitize, measure and optimize as much of their businesses as possible in the year ahead.

Download the report here for a look at how they plan to do it.

Source: Restaurant Business, Nation’s Restaurant News