Pizza Hut’s Newest Steps In Conversational Commerce

Pizza Hut is currently on the (pizza) cutting edge in terms of marketing tools. The company did not only develop the first ever cinemagraph TV ad, a new image/video technology where a mostly still image is animated with some video, they are now entering conversational commerce as well. Pizza Hut recently begun to experiment with robots to revolutionize the user experience.

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In Asia, Pizza Hut has become the inaugural launch partner with MasterCard on a commerce application for the humanoid robot Pepper. The idea is to use the app to create innovative customer engagement. Through the app, Pepper will provide a customer experience that smoothly integrates customer service, information access, and sales. Pepper should be up and running in a pilot program in-store by the end of the year.

Pizza Hut is currently the top-ranked pizza restaurant in the US for sales, but is feeling the heat from second-ranked Domino’s. Domino’s is also trying to use innovation to get ahead. The company has announced the launch of a set of new delivery vehicles across the US. The cars are painted in Domino’s red and blue colors, and carry the Domino’s logo. They also come equipped with a warming oven that can hold up to 80 pizzas and keep them warm during delivery. Domino’s hopes these new cars will give them a leg up in terms of delivery. Fierce, innovative competition like this is what is forcing Pizza Hut to move fast in making its own innovations.

Features of Pizza Hut’s New Robot

Pepper is supposed to make it easier for customers to engage, connect, and transact with Pizza Hut, according to the managing director of Pizza Hut Restaurants. The robotic waiters will greet customers and take orders, and come equipped with a digital tablet on their chest to show menu options. Customers must have MasterPass on their phone to work with the robot, then it seems to be a simple, easy ordering experience. Pepper can also answer questions about products, providing information such as calorie counts. The new robot is an exciting step forward in conversational commerce, but also has some worried about the future for human fast-food workers.

Pizza Hut on Facebook Messenger

Pizza Hut is also moving forward with conversational commerce in the form of its new chatbot for Facebook Messenger. The idea is to make the ordering process as convenient as possible by allowing customers to place orders right from the comfort of a handy chat box. Baron Concors, chief digital officer for Pizza Hut, demonstrated the new bot at Mobile Beat 2016, showing the “social media ordering” process. One of the main benefits of the bot is its customer-centric approach, with greater customization/personalization throughout the purchase experience. However, the bot does more than just take orders, as it can also answer customer questions and give updates on the latest deals. The chatbot should be available in August, and will also be released on Twitter. Meanwhile, Domino’s does not seem to have a bot yet, but does currently take orders using Amazon Echo, and by text.

Conclusion

In this year’s Internet Trends report, Kleiner Perkins’ Mary Meeker declared conversational commerce to be “messaging’s secret sauce.” Companies like Pizza Hut are staying at the head of the pack by capitalizing on new technology and serving up extra helpings.

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