Let’s dive into simple, yet powerful strategies to maximise your lunch rush by getting your tools to do more—from supercharging your POS and KDS with Abacus, to automating key diner experiences through OrderUp’s upselling, QR ordering, and pre-ordering.

Upselling on Autopilot

Upselling doesn’t have to feel pushy—it’s about offering customers better choices or add-ons that elevate their experience. Make sure your venue’s digital ordering handles those effortless upsell moments before checkout.

• Drive Up Average Spend: With integrated and automated suggestions, let customers be tempted by add-ons or meal upgrades, boosting up the average order size.

• Let Your Tech Do The Work: Whether through your kiosk, digital ordering, or directly at the POS, seamlessly automate upselling suggestions throughout the ordering process. As customers add items, your system steps in with smart suggestions– think size upgrades, add-ons, or bundled meal-deals– all designed to encourage customers to explore more of your menu and opt for something extra, all without interrupting their flow. It’s a smart way to boost average order values across every touchpoint.

Speed Meets Efficiency with QR Ordering

Make your venue ordering smarter with QR ordering: slash wait times and give customers control over their ordering experience, making it perfect for fast-paced environments.

• Scan, Order, Go: By placing QR codes on sign poles or posters, customers can quickly scan and order while waiting in line, freeing up your staff from counter work and getting orders through faster.

• No More Queue Blues: Don’t let long queues discourage diners—QR ordering eliminates bottlenecks for both ordering and paying, helping you serve more customers in less time.

• Order Ahead with Scheduled Delivery: For those customers who sit in the office, daydreaming about lunch, but end up choosing the quickest option just to dodge the line—why not make it easier for them by offering the option to Order Ahead? Let them place their order from the office and swing by to pick up in-store. Or, offer hassle-free delivery through integrated white-label delivery services, with just a tap.

Pre-Order Your Success

Take charge of the lunch rush by offering pre-ordering through your venue’s online ordering site. This gives your customers the freedom to plan ahead and ensures their meals are ready exactly when they need them.

• Lunch On The Dot: OrderUp’s Online Ordering allows customers to place orders in advance and choose flexible pickup windows, ensuring their meals are ready exactly on time while keeping you prepared—perfect for a busy lunch break.

• Smoother Kitchen Operations: It's a team effort! With pre-orders coming in early, your kitchen staff can prep ahead, balancing the workload and reducing the chaos of handling a flood of orders all at once.

• Boost Order Accuracy: Mistakes happen, especially during the rush! By letting customers review and place their orders online, you can cut down on errors, save time, and make customers happier as they get exactly what they ordered. Plus, with digital order accounts, they can easily "reorder" their previous carts with just one click. Perfect for people on the rush with routine orders—no need to think, just order!

Incentives That Make A Lasting Impact 

Create loyalty, not just sales. Offering the right incentives can turn one-time visitors into regulars. Whether you're in the heart of the CBD or a neighbourhood favourite, let every peak-time customer become part of your loyalty ecosystem.

• Inspire Repeat Visits: Capture customer details at checkout with loyalty programs like Liven Loyalty, and send targeted offers through EDM and marketing incentives to keep them coming back.

• Your Own Digital Currency: With Liven Loyalty, you can create your own branded digital currency that customers can spend and earn, where they can stash for future visits.

• Tailored Incentives: Liven’s fully customisable loyalty options let you craft offers and rewards that align with your goals—delivering personalised incentives that solidify your venue as their go-to spot.

Tap Customer Insights

Liven Abacus POS is your secret weapon for nailing those busy lunch hours. It provides your venue with real-time insights into customer habits and trending favourites, right at your fingertips, so you can stay ahead and make smart, data-driven decisions that boost sales.

• Top-Selling Products Report: See which items are driving the most revenue across your stores, while also tracking how customers are customising their orders. Use these insights to shape future menu changes and upsell strategies.

• Insights on Demand: Leverage real-time data from Liven’s Loyalty to easily identify your top-selling lunch items and craft promotions that drive sales during peak hours. Plus, with Abacus Pocket BI, restaurant owners can keep an eye on real-time sales data right from their phones. With easy navigation and clear visuals, the Pocket Manager app lets you effortlessly access sales summaries, track sales activity, view top-selling products, and manage your entire product list. Stay ahead of the competition by managing your products and monitoring sales onsite—all from your smartphone.

• Tap Into Ordering Habits: Get rich insights into customer purchasing patterns, including hourly breakdowns and average spend, so you can adjust your strategy on the fly during busy times.

• Timing is Everything: Analyse how sales of menu items vary across different time slots (like breakfast, lunch, and dinner), so you can fine-tune your offerings based on what's trending at different times.

• Stay Stocked & Ready: By tracking top-selling items and go-to menu favourites during peak times, Abacus POS helps you manage inventory efficiently, making sure you’re always stocked with the right ingredients on hand.

Keep the Kitchen Flowing with KDS

Efficiency in the kitchen is crucial during peak hours. Liven Abacus KDS (Kitchen Display Systems) helps your kitchen run as smoothly as out the front of house.

• Bump Off Feature: Clear virtual dockets easily to remove confessions around which orders are still in progress and which are ready to serve

• Custom Display Modes: Choose the display style that complements your kitchen workflow—Group together like orders? List orders in a queue? It’s up to you. Choose a setup that keeps everything moving.

• Real-Time Alerts: Ding ding! Stay on top of the queue by getting real-time updates whenever a new order or modification arrives straight from the POS

• Order Prioritisation: Abacus KDS helps chefs prioritise orders in the order they were placed, keeping everything organised and reducing delays.

Speed Up & Reduce Errors with Self Ordering-Kiosks

Minimise queues and wait times by introducing new ways to order, like Abacus’ Self Ordering Kiosk. Not only do kiosks cut down queues during peak times, but 20% of consumers also spend more when using self-service options!

• Faster Order Processing: Kiosks allow customers to order directly, cutting down queue times and reducing the need for staff, especially during busy hours.

• Less Staff Pressure:Free up your team to focus on food prep and customer service while kiosks handle the ordering.

• Offer A Tailored Experience: Self-ordering kiosks let customers customise their meals at their own pace, leading to more accurate orders and happier diners.

• Let Operations Flow: Integrated with POS and kitchen systems, kiosks streamline operations and reduce communication errors, keeping everything flowing smoothly during high-traffic times.

The lunch rush may be short, but its impact doesn’t have to be. By supercharging the power of your POS, KDS and ordering platforms, you can squeeze more out of every minute, driving up AOV and turning first-timers into loyal regulars.

Ready to turn your lunch rush into a lasting revenue stream? Over a 15-minute call, let's chat on how we can help your venue thrive during peak hours.