Café Online Order Notifications to Phone, Printer or Chat

Part of our Small Business Automation guide: what to automate first and the 10 easiest wins.

The problem

Online orders get missed in a busy café, and an angry customer turns up for an order that was never made. Instant alerts make sure every order is seen.

What you need

• Square Online (or your ordering platform)
• Zapier
• SMS, Slack or another chat app

Setup with Zapier

1. Create a Zap with Square, New Order. [Screenshot]
2. Format the items and pickup time with Formatter.
3. Send an SMS or chat message to the counter phone.
4. Optionally send a pickup confirmation to the customer.
5. Place a test order, then turn it on.

Setup with Make

1. Use Square, Watch Orders.
2. Add your SMS or chat module.
3. Turn it on.

Message template

Alert to staff:

NEW ORDER #[number]: [items]. Pickup [time]. Name: [customer].

Consent and local rules

Messages about a customer’s own job or booking are service messages, not marketing. Keep them free of promotions. Check SMS and email rules in your country (TCPA and CAN-SPAM in the US, the Spam Act in Australia, PECR and GDPR in the UK and EU, CASL in Canada). This isn’t legal advice.

FAQ

Can it print the order in the kitchen?

Square can print online orders to a kitchen printer directly, so set that up in Square first. Use this automation for an extra alert on a phone or chat app. That way an order still gets noticed if the printer runs out of paper.

Do I need Square for this to work?

No. Most online ordering platforms have a Zapier or Make trigger for new orders. Swap the Square step for your platform and keep the rest of the setup the same.

Can I text the customer when their order is ready?

Yes. Add a Twilio step that texts the customer when staff mark the order ready, using the number they gave with the order. Keep it to order updates only, with no promotions.

Related

• Weekly sales summary email from Square
• Supplier reorder alerts
• Staff roster reminders
• Get it ready-made

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