Technology, Culture, Commentary on the Internet Revolution

Mass Customization at the Drive-Thru

by Jason on December 15th, 2006

I was talking with a couple of friends the other day over a great Thai food lunch. When we eat at this local establishment, we normally always get the following items:

• 3 orders of Pad Thai Chicken Hot w/ spring rolls
• 1 order of Massaman Curry Chicken Hot w/ soup
• 1 order of Pa Gra Pow Chicken Hot
• 1 water, 1 Diet Pepsi, 1 Pepsi

Lately, instead of meeting at the restuarant, we’ll order it and one of us will pick it up and bring it back to the office. Although we’re regulars at this location (the owner’s know us well), when we call in our order sometimes it’s a challenge to get everything straight with the strong accent of language barrier.

The idea then occurred to us, what if we setup up our “3 Hungry Guys Combo” with the owners and whenever we called in, they’d know it was us and just duplicate our order. After that thought, we then expanded it to ask why we can’t do that at any major restaurant change.

National pizza chains like Dominos, Papa John’s and Pizza Hut are doing a pretty good job of this now with their websites. When you logon, some of them remember your last order and give you the option of repeating it. They remember your delivery location and payment information, etc. I can go online now and order a pizza, pay for it and be off the site in a matter of seconds and choose my delivery location of home or office.

What if you could do this type of thing in the drive-thru? You could use existing RFID technology or even the SpeedPass dongles that McDonald’s is already accepting for payment. Imagine this scenario, I’m sure it’s familiar in your family.

When my family goes to Wendy’s, here’s our order pretty much every time:

• Me: Spicy Chicken, large chocolate Frosty
• Wife: Combo #6, large Diet Pepsi
• Son: 4-piece nuggets, fries, chocolate milk
• Daughter: 4-piece nuggets, mandarin oranges, Sprite

What if instead of having to turn down the radio, get the kids to be quiet and try and remember the details everytime, you could just wave your little key fob thing at the sensor and it ordered exactly what you wanted. You could make it more flexible as well. What if you had a couple of different “Family Combos” that were identified by number from your RFID fob. You then clearly stated you “Family Combo #4″ into the speaker, the LCD screen quickly displayed the details of your order and you pull up to pick-up your order. Your account would have your form of payment known and you pull up and drive away with your food. Gives a whole new meaning to “FAST” food don’t you think?

What if instead of a FOB, you dialed a number posted at the drive-thru with your cellphone. It used the caller ID information to pull up your profile and then offer your preferred meal combinations.

What if you had a network of restaurants that let you do this? You could manage all your favorite combinations with an online customer profile management system and be on your way with a nice, quick meal the next time your out running yourself ragged with Christmas shopping or running errands.

Photo Credit: The Consumerist

Share This

POSTED IN: Business, Economy, Emerging Earth, Emerging Tech, Mobile, RFID, Transportation