McDonald's Tests Mobile App Ordering That Uses Geo-Fencing to Optimize Food Prep Time

[MacRumors]

Although it's late to the mobile ordering trend, McDonald's today has begun testing an update to its smartphone app that will allow customers to create an order anywhere and pay for it through the app when they arrive at their local McDonald's. In a bid to avoid customer congestion, long wait lines, and cold food, the app will use geo-fencing to detect when each customer is getting closer to the McDonald's and alert staff to begin preparing their meal accordingly (via Reuters).

The tests have begun today at 29 McDonald's locations in Monterey and Salinas, California, and will expand to 51 new locations in Spokane, Washington on March 20. Jim Sappington, McDonald's executive vice president of operations, said that the tests are intended to work out any kinks in the mobile order and pay update before a wide rollout in almost all of the 14,000 U.S. McDonald's locations by the end of 2017. Around 6,000 others will also get the update in Canada, the U.K., France, Germany, Australia, and China.

In the current state of the McDonald's app [Direct Link] users can browse the menu, get deals, and find nearby locations. Sappington hopes that the update results in an overall experience that's "clearly better" to use.

If its famous french fries are served cold or if mobile customers have to wait for orders, "you get a question of 'Why did I use the app?'," Sappington said. "Our focus is to make the overall experience clearly better."

McDonald's said that automating more orders should cut transaction times, reduce errors and free up workers to do things like deliver food to tables or cars in spots designated for mobile orders.

"It's better to be right than to be first to market," McDonald's Chief Executive Steve Easterbrook said recently.

While customers will browse the menu and place their order outside of the local McDonald's, the app is said to ask for an order confirmation and payment "when the customer arrives at the restaurant," seemingly when the geo-fencing feature kicks in. After that, the kitchen will begin preparing the order. Janna Sampson, a McDonald's investor, questioned the utility of this process: "If they don't start your order until you pull in the lot, are you really gaining that much time?"

In the final version of the app, customers will also be able to pick table dining, drive-through, or curb-side delivery when they place their meal orders. McDonald's competitors like Chick-fil-A include mobile ordering with counter pick-up as well as a QR code-based checkout option. McDonald's didn't detail how payments work with its new mobile order update, but traditional credit cards tied to user accounts are expected. Given McDonald's early embrace of mobile wallets like Apple Pay, those could be included as well.

Article Link: McDonald's Tests Mobile App Ordering That Uses Geo-Fencing to Optimize Food Prep Time

 

[itsmilo]

Mc Donalds in the US is sooooo nasty, granted I have only tried it out of curiosity in NY and CA but each time the tables and the floors were sticky and the whole restaurant design looks dated like out of a 90s movie filled with homeless people.

Over here they look a lot cleaner and usually very comfy with sofas and whatnot. however you guys got In N Out and Shake Shack so it evens it out

 

[now i see it]

I don't think the oleophobic coating was designed for this...

 

[BlandUsername]

The food quality has gone up, depends on the franchise holder. The app I use a lot, but the quality coupons have not been in the app lately , thus limiting my purchases. Apple pay always works, so if they tie to apple pay, I will give it a shot when it comes to town.

 

[tmiw]

Why not ask for payment at the time of the order instead of when the customer arrives? Seems like it'd be more hassle for the customer to have to open the app twice.

 

[AManInACan]

Why not ask for payment at the time of the order instead of when the customer arrives? Seems like it'd be more hassle for the customer to have to open the app twice.

I'll guess it's because they quickly found people who would order stuff and not pick it up or go to the wrong store. When that happens you have to refund someone's money - unless they haven't paid yet. Now you could make a strong argument that you could ask them to pay and then not charge them until you know they have arrived at the store, but that's for v2.0, right?

 

[tmiw]

Now you could make a strong argument that you could ask them to pay and then not charge them until you know they have arrived at the store, but that's for v2.0, right?

Would doing that preclude the use of Apple Pay in the app, I wonder? Then again, Uber seems to be able to accept Apple Pay and not charge until the end of the ride without issue.

 

[avanpelt]

Not a good idea to ask for payment when the customer arrives at the restaurant. That app will be a prankster's heaven. All they have to do is submit a large order, stand outside the restaurant watching the employees go crazy trying to fill the order, and then turn around and leave.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

Not a good idea to ask for payment when the customer arrives at the restaurant. That app will be a prankster's heaven. All they have to do is submit a large order, stand outside the restaurant watching the employees go crazy trying to fill the order, and then turn around and leave.

And then their device is flagged and they can never order using it again, at any location.

 

[Juicy Box]

Mc Donalds in the US is sooooo nasty, granted I have only tried it out of curiosity in NY and CA but each time the tables and the floors were sticky and the whole restaurant design looks dated like out of a 90s movie filled with homeless people.

Over here they look a lot cleaner and usually very comfy with sofas and whatnot. however you guys got In N Out and Shake Shack so it evens it out

It depends on the location. Generally, I stay away from any urban area Mc Donalds, or for that matter, any urban area if I can.

In the suburbs and rural area Mc Donalds, they tend to be cleaner, faster, and more accurate in my experience.

While I never ate at a Mc Donalds in Europe or overseas, I have dine at a few questionable place while there. One trip to Ireland, I dined at a Asian Cuisine restaurant, and I questioned what the meat was made out of and the restrooms almost made me cry.

So, I guess it depends on where you are at I guess.

 

[Viddrumr32]

Not a good idea to ask for payment when the customer arrives at the restaurant. That app will be a prankster's heaven. All they have to do is submit a large order, stand outside the restaurant watching the employees go crazy trying to fill the order, and then turn around and leave.

If it's anything like Chick-fil-a's app they won't actually start the order until they've collected payment. Using their app it's more like you get everything queued beforehand and once you arrive it collects payment/pushes the order to the grill. So following that idea no food unpaid for should get ordered.

 

[doelcm82]

Mc Donalds in the US is sooooo nasty, granted I have only tried it out of curiosity in NY and CA but each time the tables and the floors were sticky and the whole restaurant design looks dated like out of a 90s movie filled with homeless people.

Over here they look a lot cleaner and usually very comfy with sofas and whatnot. however you guys got In N Out and Shake Shack so it evens it out

Well it isn't Whataburger.

 

[BellsWhistles]

Mc Donalds in the US is sooooo nasty, granted I have only tried it out of curiosity in NY and CA but each time the tables and the floors were sticky and the whole restaurant design looks dated like out of a 90s movie filled with homeless people.

Over here they look a lot cleaner and usually very comfy with sofas and whatnot. however you guys got In N Out and Shake Shack so it evens it out

Not sure where "here" is, but most likely the stores you visited may be 10x older than the stores your used to. They are a franchise (although I am sure there are some corporate stores), so the individual owners may not have reinvested in the brick and mortar locations. The only the thing the corporation does is invest back into the menu. There are stores in California that are very updated. I'm not a daily consumer, so I can't speak to the state of most stores.

I have to admit.... I have actually visited McDonalds for a quick bite, because of the Apple Pay convenience.
Not because I see it as my healthy alternative. ;-)

 

[Fall Under Cerulean Kites]

I’d likely not use this app for the very few times I visit McDonald’s. But for frequent visitors, I could see the benefit. Not that your food will be ready any quicker (it’s already quick), but so you can bypass the lines.

I use the Panera app once a week. I place an order (and pay with Apple Pay), leave my office, and by the time I arrive at the restaurant, my food is sitting in a cubby, ready to be picked up. I walk in, grab my food, and walk out, all without having to interact with anyone. No lines. No one to screw up my order. No waiting. It’s great.

 

[KdParker]

Not a good idea to ask for payment when the customer arrives at the restaurant. That app will be a prankster's heaven. All they have to do is submit a large order, stand outside the restaurant watching the employees go crazy trying to fill the order, and then turn around and leave.

You will probably be charged before the actually start putting the order together or around the same time.

 

[Sedulous]

Not a good idea to ask for payment when the customer arrives at the restaurant. That app will be a prankster's heaven. All they have to do is submit a large order, stand outside the restaurant watching the employees go crazy trying to fill the order, and then turn around and leave.

Yeah, this could happen and then user is banned. Likewise, same thing can be done with old fashioned orders done by phone.

 

[avanpelt]

If it's anything like Chick-fil-a's app they won't actually start the order until they've collected payment. Using their app it's more like you get everything queued beforehand and once you arrive it collects payment/pushes the order to the grill. So following that idea no food unpaid for should get ordered.

That makes sense. Not sure why McD's thinks this is a novel idea, then, since CFA is already doing it. I thought McD's was going to use geofencing to see where you are in relation to the store so they can make sure the order is ready once you get to the store; but I doubt they're going to do it that way.
[doublepost=1489600290][/doublepost]

Yeah, this could happen and then user is banned. Likewise, same thing can be done with old fashioned orders done by phone.

Does McDonalds actually take orders by phone? I know when some friends and I were 11 or 12, we called in a bogus order to the local McDonalds but I didn't think they actually took orders by phone.

 

[v0lume4]

McDonald's is one of those places where I know that the ingredients are bad, and I try to avoid eating there for my own health. But I'd be lying if I didn't admit that once in a while, I cave, and I get some McDonald's. And I love every single bite. Those burgers and fries and sweet tea are freaking delicious.
[doublepost=1489601790][/doublepost]

Mc Donalds in the US is sooooo nasty, granted I have only tried it out of curiosity in NY and CA but each time the tables and the floors were sticky and the whole restaurant design looks dated like out of a 90s movie filled with homeless people.

Over here they look a lot cleaner and usually very comfy with sofas and whatnot. however you guys got In N Out and Shake Shack so it evens it out

It depends on the location. Generally, I stay away from any urban area Mc Donalds, or for that matter, any urban area if I can.

In the suburbs and rural area Mc Donalds, they tend to be cleaner, faster, and more accurate in my experience.

@vertical smile Ditto. It depends largely on location. Not far from my home (suburbs), McDonald's recently demolished and rebuilt a restaurant and it's quite nice. Compare that to, say, the McDonald's on Market St in San Francisco. Ick. No comparison.

Granted, I tend to just use the drive-thru for fast food restaurants as I find the interiors of them all nasty (which is probably irrational but whatever ). But I do have to say that Chickfila tends to have the cleanest interiors.

 

[foxconn]

I mainly go there for the fries. The burgers make my stomach turn.

 

[TurboPGT!]

I’d likely not use this app for the very few times I visit McDonald’s. But for frequent visitors, I could see the benefit. Not that your food will be ready any quicker (it’s already quick), but so you can bypass the lines.

For me the benefit of this App is ordering what I want, how I want it, without having to talk to the complete morons that they assign to take your order.

 

[IJ Reilly]

In a bid to avoid customer congestion,

McDonald's doesn't need to address customer congestion so much as customer indigestion.

 

[cerote]

Think everyone is worrying about wrong thing. The main question should be will they get the order right? They only get my order right about 60% of the time.

Also they barely know how to handle apple pay. When I ask to use it at window they always look dumbfounded and I have to tell them put the terminal so I can reach it. (There are a few that pretend to look around then still look like I'm speaking some other language and call manger)

 

[Juicy Box]

For me the benefit of this App is ordering what I want, how I want it, without having to talk to the complete morons that they assign to take your order.

This reminds me of the times I tried to order half sweet tea / half unsweetened tea because their tea is so sweet. I don't even bother anymore, it just confuses them and many times they give me an Arnold Palmer instead.

Their sweet tea is like drinking tea flavored syrup.

 

[kpeex]

And then their device is flagged and they can never order using it again, at any location.

Sounds like, as they say in tech, "a feature, not a bug".

 

[WarHeadz]

So much McBashing going on here. I love me a nice Big Mac and a large fries which I dip into the extra big mac sauce I ask for on the side. Ok now I'm hungry but all I have near me is Carl's Jr. and Jack in a Box.