Should Your Restaurant Online Ordering Site have a Spanish Version?

As restaurant operators become increasingly aware of the importance of the Hispanic demographic, the answer for many of them is a resounding YES!.  

It's estimated now that 20% of Americans speak a language other than English in the home - and 62% of these speak Spanish.  One of every 6 US Residents is Hispanic, and this segment of the population is growing faster than any other.  27% of Hispanics are most comfortable with English, and 17% comfortable in both English and Spanish, implying that 56% are most comfortable with Spanish.  Geographically concentrated in the Southwest, Hispanics are on their way to becoming a majority in California. 

For quick serve, pizza and fast casual restaurants in particular, the Hispanic market can be attractive.   The Hispanic population is on average 10 years younger than the general population, and boasts the largest household size (4.0 members on average vs. 2.9 members in the average white, non-Hispanic family), both factors which bode well for online food ordering. 

In 2010, almost two-thirds (65%) of Hispanics were online, making up 11% of the total U.S. online market. 

But do you need to offer a Spanish language site for your restaurant online ordering?  Here's some compelling reasons to consider it: 

• People prefer to shop in their native language

• Companies have reported higher spending when the site is in the native language.

• You'll rank higher in search engine results for native-language searches

• The competition is doing it - Pizza Hut, Dominos, Papa Johns all offer Spanish language sites.

Dallas-based Pizza Patron has led the way in specifically targeting Hispanics with its concept, and competitors are taking notice.  Dominos is targeting the Hispanic market with their "Domino's Perfect Combo" campaign which kicked off in the summer of 2012 with Spanish-language TV advertising. 

Luckily, setting up and maintaining a bilingual site is made easier with the right choice of Online Ordering solutions.  For example, Granbury Restaurant Solutions is now offering a multi-language option for its off-the-shelf restaurant online ordering solution.  The introduction of our multi-lingual option means you can set up parallel menus, as well as alternate prompts and instructions, providing your consumers with a choice as to which language they prefer.  The site is not limited to Spanish  - for Canadian restaurants, for example, an English / French option may be preferred.

When you are competing for customers, it makes sense to reach out to welcome them in as many ways as possible.  Make your online ordering solution a multi-lingual one.