The one simple change that enabled Solotel to boost customer spend by 30%
Tapping into tech to streamline service and elevate in-venue experiences for every guest.
21
75%
91%
30%
About
Solotel Group
The story of the Solotel begins way back in 1986. Founded by Director Bruce Solomon, the group has been setting the standard for great hospitality and world-class venues for three generations.
Now, you’ll find Bruce joined by his children Anna and Elliot, with the group responsible for creating Australia’s top restaurants, pubs, bars, bistros and event spaces.
Designing venues that deliver authentic experiences have been on the Solotel agenda for over 30 years. To date, they’ve provided top-notch service and unforgettable moments to the over 5 million customers they serve each year.
Inside their portfolio of venue’s you'll find eclectic and vibrant staff as well as the top talent across the hospitality industry (from awarded chefs to celebrated bartenders).
Solotel’s venues include the likes of the Golden Sheaf, Barangaroo House, North Bondi Fish, Paddo Inn, Public House Petersham, Goros, Riverbar & Kitchen, The Sackville, The Erko and more.
The challenge
As Sydney’s most iconic waterfront bar, Opera Bar is an unmissable Solotel venue. But this sprawling open air destination faced a major challenge (like many of Solotel’s venues): navigating the bar queue.
Ordering another round meant breaking away from the group guests came to connect with to join a lengthy queue. Not only did this break up the in-venue experience but also deterred punters from reordering altogether.
So, the Solotel team knew they needed to rethink their ordering and payment processes to give customers a smoother experience. Plus, a tech-driven solution would enable their team to spend less time behind the till and more time connecting with customers at the table.
But redesigning every venue’s sequence of service was going to be a challenge. Each Solotel venue was a well-oiled machine and the team needed to be convinced that making adjustments was worth their while, too.
“me&u average per head spend at Opera Bar is normally 30% higher than non-me&u transactions.”
The solution
Opera Bar was the first Solotel venue to add me&u to their tables. And it was an instant success for both guests and staff.
Harnessing visuals to inspire sales
With me&u’s smart menu on every table, guests could tap, order and pay in seconds (all without leaving their table, too). This meant staff could focus on crafting and delivering drinks to guests in record time, rather than processing payments and orders.
For customers, engaging with a visual-first digital menu has made ordering a fun, interactive experience. And Solotel’s venues are reaping the benefits, with high-quality imagery of cocktails and signature dishes helping to drive the strongest sales.
Giving teams the tools to deliver great hospitality
me&u’s flexible, easy-to-use design has radically improved efficiencies for Solotels’ teams. By streamlining ordering and payments with world-class tech, staff are more engaged with the customer experience at the table, not behind the bar.
This boost in team efficiency is what convinced some skeptics to embrace me&u, with 21 venue managers quickly seeing the positive impact of this tech on their bottom line (with venues seeing a +30% higher spend on me&u orders).
Easy, customisable menus to suit each venue
With transparent, real-time data at their fingertips, Solotel’s venues could also make smarter decisions about staffing, menus and specials, too. By checking what items customers were ordering at certain trade times, each venue could customise their offering to deliver a different menu at different times of the day.
By gaining a better understanding of their customers, Solotel’s venues have been able to tailor their menus to exact what punters want. In just a few taps, each venue could customise their venue’s menu on me&u to highlight in-demand items and popular dishes.
Now, the Solotel Group is making data-driven decisions in every venue to take the guesswork out of delivering the best experience possible to each and every guest.
