Many restaurants continue to leverage QR code menus to bring more efficiency to the dining experience, but by doing so, they risk alienating consumers of nearly all ages.
By the Numbers
Research from the June edition of PYMNTS’ Digital Divide study, “The Digital Divide: Technology, Customer Service and Innovation in the Restaurant Industry,” found that millennials were the only age group for which more than half agreed that viewing a menu with a QR code contributed positively to the experience. Fifty-one percent agreed, compared to 44% of Generation Z, 47% of bridge millennials, 35% of Generation X and just 16% of baby boomers and seniors.
Read more: How the Metaverse Is Shaping the Consumer Restaurant Experience
What Insiders Are Saying
For older consumers especially, QR codes can be alienating.
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“People are frustrated, especially people 40 years and older,” Michele Baker Benesch, president of Menu Men, a company that makes print and digital menus, told PYMNTS in an interview earlier this year. “Sometimes their phones don’t work. They don’t know how to access the QR code. So, before they even get to order a beverage … they’re already upset, and that hampers the entire customer experience.”
See more: Many Restaurant Customers Feel Alienated by QR Code Menus
