How to make a free QR code menu

Whether you own a restaurant, cafe or other hospitality establishment, you're always looking for new ways to boost sales and encourage customers to explore your menu in detail. You can learn how to make a QR code menu for free and offer your customers a new way to discover the hidden gems that your venue provides. 

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants and their customers are hypersensitive about transferring germs. Paper and plastic menus are havens for germs of all sorts, and this is fuelling the rise of QR code menus. In fact, there's been an 750% increase in the download of QR codes in the restaurant industry. 

If you haven't used a web-based QR code menu to promote your food and increase revenue, you might worry about its effectiveness and the difficulty of creating a QR code menu, but it's a breeze once you know how to do it. You'll also discover there are many benefits in offering this to customers.

This guide provides you with all the information you need to create your new QR code menu for free. It also outlines the benefits and essential information to include on your new menu. Look at it as a comprehensive guide to making your future sales easier! 

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What is a QR code menu?

A Quick Response (QR) code menu is a menu that your customers can access after they scan a QR code using their personal phones or a tablet. In essence, a QR code is similar to a bar code.

The QR code that you offer is unique to your business. In this case, the data stored on the QR code will take customers to your establishment’s menu. 

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Learn how to make a QR code menu for free

Researching how to make a QR code menu for free is a great start to levelling up your business. A QR code visual menu integrated with a mobile payment system, and even a CRM, will take your venue to the next level.  

The process of how to make a QR code menu for free can vary from one platform to the next. However, it should be straightforward and the most time you’ll spend will be uploading photos and information about the items on your menus. Here's a look at a few of the benefits:

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Easily adjust and update your menu 

On busy nights, it's not unusual to run out of popular items. A QR code menu makes it easy to pivot and tell your customers a dish isn't available and recommend similar items.

Some restaurants, cafes, and even room service menus feature daily specials or seasonal items, and your new QR code menu makes it easy to update your menu and direct customers to these fresh offerings. 

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Build brand loyalty

Customers want to buy and order from companies and restaurants that offer great products, but it's more than that. They want a seamless, convenient experience and an easy way to browse.

Your new QR code menu gives customers the magical experience they are looking for, making it easier for them to see your menu and find the dishes they want. In addition, you can integrate a CRM system with your QR code menu. This will allow you to establish campaigns and manage customer relationships, such as marketing a loyalty reward program that encourages brand loyalty and increases sales by rewarding repeat customers. 

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Reduces demand on your staff

From cleaning dirty menus to describing menu items without pictures, your staff devotes a lot of time to helping your customers find a new favourite order. This is time that your staff could use on a variety of other tasks, including more meaningful interactions with your customers.

A QR code menu reduces demand on your staff, whether you're running a restaurant or cafe with waitstaff, a food truck, or hotel room service – you want your staff energised and happy, not stressed out by demands from customers about the details of your menu. 

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Tips on how to create a QR code menu that excites customers

To take advantage of your new QR code menu and its benefits, you need to develop a menu that wows your customers and encourages them to place an order. There are many options that will add value to your menu. Distinguish between the essentials and invest time in prepping your new QR menu to get the results you want. Here's a few tips to make your new menu a winner. 

Highlight popular menu items

When you're creating a QR code menu, you get to customise the order in which information appears and create sections, such as daily specials and appetisers. 

An easy way to highlight your most popular menu items is to make them visible as soon as the menu opens. It's also a good idea to create a section dedicated to your top sellers. New customers will check there first while existing customers will be able to easily find and order their favourite menu items. 

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Use mouth watering descriptions 

A description of a menu item in conjunction with a photo can make all the difference between a customer placing an order and one closing the menu without making a purchase. For example, consider these two descriptions:

Option 1: Pizza with cheese and pepperoni.

Option 2: Our pizzas start with dough made daily in our kitchen. We lovingly hand-stretch the base when you order and cover it with rich tomato sauce. Next, we pile on the freshest mozzarella and premium Italian cheeses that melt to perfection. Add your favourite toppings from our choice of high-quality options. 

Which one sounds better? You'll likely agree that option #2 is more descriptive, interesting, and appealing. Highlight what makes your pizza, burger, or chicken dish amazing.

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Use a QR code menu to upsell and cross-sell

One of the best ways to increase revenue is through upselling and cross-selling. You want all of your customers to order dessert or an appetiser. Why would anyone order a pasta dish and not order a salad or garlic bread to go with it? After you learn how to make a QR code menu for free, take it to the next level by including cross-selling and upselling to help customers explore more than their old favourites.

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Invest in professional food photography

The old saying, "A picture is worth a thousand words" is never more true than when you're creating your new QR code menu. It's a good idea to invest in a professional photographer to take the photos or find a provider that offers this service alongside advanced QR code menu integrations. 

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Move beyond a free QR code menu

As the manager or owner of a restaurant or food service business, you're always looking for innovative ways to boost sales, provide your customers with a seamless experience, and utilise your staff to their full potential. Creating a free QR code menu can help you meet these goals.

To make the most of your new QR code menu, pair it with effective technology that ups the wow factor of your customer experience. Look for an option that offers advanced technology like mobile payments, a CRM platform, loyalty program integration, and more to maximise the experience for both you and your customers. 

The benefits of using a QR code menu are many and can help your business soar.  

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