Count your missed calls for one week, multiply by your average phone order, and compare that with the cost of fixing it. Options include another person on the phone, a text-to-order link, chat ordering and AI. Whichever you pick, ask for a confirm step and a way for a person to step in.
The missed call audit
For seven days, count three things: calls answered, calls that rang out or went to voicemail, and calls where the caller hung up while on hold. Your phone provider's log shows the first two. For the third, put a tally sheet by the phone.
Do it in a normal week. Not a holiday week, not one with an outage.
Put a value on it
Take the number of missed calls and estimate how many would have been orders. Be careful here: not every call is an order, as some ask for hours or directions. Look at the share of answered calls that became orders, and use that. Multiply by your average phone order. This is an estimate with your own numbers, and it is only as good as they are.
Options
Another person on the phone at rush. Simple, and the cost is a wage. It works when the phone volume is steady and you have the space.
A text-to-order link. You give callers a link by text or a recording that says to order online. It moves the order into your system but adds a step for the caller.
Chat and text ordering. The guest messages and an assistant builds the order from your live menu, then asks the guest to confirm. Zorveta One includes this. See chat and text ordering.
AI voice. An assistant answers the call and asks the caller to confirm. Zorveta One includes phone and WhatsApp ordering, and other vendors offer phone answering too. If you consider one, use the questions below.
Questions to ask about any AI ordering
- Does the order enter your real POS or a separate bridge?
- Does the caller confirm before it is placed?
- Can it change a price or give a discount?
- Who approves a refund it proposes?
- Can a person take over a call?
- Is every action logged?
Read is AI ordering safe for restaurants for a longer list.
What not to do
Do not let a system place orders without a confirm step. A wrong order costs a remake, a refund and sometimes a lost guest. And do not buy based on a demo with a perfect caller. Test with an accent, a noisy background and an odd request.
See the AI hub for what it covers.