Dive Brief:
- Red Lobster will deploy SoundHound AI’s voice automation systemwide to handle its phone takeout orders, according to a Tuesday press release.
- The casual dining chain said the system ensures every call can be answered and that the technology has been trained on Red Lobster’s full menu.
- Red Lobster framed the tech as a way to reduce staff workloads, thereby improving in-person service. Since exiting Chapter 11 last year, Red Lobster has focused on a combination of limited-time offers, like seafood boils and its Lobster Fest promotion, and experiential changes like a happy hour deal that doubled as a value play.
Dive Insight:
Automated phone answering technology could help Red Lobster maximize its phone sales and improve the in-store experience. SoundHound’s tech, according to the press release, can answer multiple calls at the same time and answer questions about menus, hours and location. The system takes phone orders and inputs them directly into Red Lobster’s point-of-sale system.
“We’re able to streamline the takeout process to make ordering faster and easier for our guests; including quick and seamless reordering for those who always want their favorites,” said Larry Konecny, the brand’s chief operating officer since last November.
Konecny added that the phone tech is not the sole option, and consumers who would prefer to speak to a person can still connect directly to the restaurant.
Phone AI and other voice ordering systems are not new in the restaurant sector, and tech firms have framed the bots as a way to improve consistency, avoid missing sales, and free up labor for years. SoundHound has been expanding its capabilities and acquired takeout ordering AI platform Allset last year.
Ben Bellettini, SoundHound’s senior vice president of restaurant sales, said the tech firm is seeing strong demand for its system and that brands using it have seen positive employee and consumer feedback.
Two mid-sized chains, Beef O’Brady’s and Torchy’s Tacos, added SoundHound across their systems last year. Earlier this summer, the AI company deployed its technology with Peter Piper Pizza in two states.
But there have been high-profile instances of brands stepping back from AI voice ordering, especially at the drive-thru. McDonald’s ended a test with IBM last year, for example, and Taco Bell hit the brakes on its own AI expansion last month.
