Radius Networks – Brochure 2020

Leveraging location technology for curbside pickup, instore order delivery, and payments Project partner

Leveraging location technology for curbside pickup, instore order delivery, and payments Marc Wallace, CEO and Cofounder of Radius Networks, discusses how location technology represents the future of customer service in restaurants and retail...

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D al e Bent on Cr ai g D ani el s

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T

echnology has and always will

offer the same level of seamlessness that

be used to solve problems.

we experience in our own homes. The

At the very basic level, tech-

interesting thing however, is that this isn’t

nology is developed and used to make

necessarily a new challenge for restau-

things simpler. Just look at our day to day

rants and retail stores; these businesses

lives and the way that technology has,

have been looking to enable the most

for the most part, made our experiences

seamless and effective customer service

simpler which has changed the way

since the very beginning. The only real

we as consumers engage with retailers

thing that’s changed is the tools that they

and restaurateurs. We now expect and

have at their disposal.

outright demand that the businesses we enter and purchase food and items from 4

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“At the end of the day, you really need to understand the problems that

your customers have, and then solve

table and the service staff has to locate

them,� explains Marc Wallace, CEO and

and identify the corresponding table to

Cofounder of Radius Networks, a location

that order. In some instances, more than

technology service provider. “In our case,

most, they may even walk throughout

customers are businesses, such as restau-

the entire restaurant before arriving at

rants, grocery stores, retailers or casinos;

the right table with the right customer.

so we are tackling very specific problems.

Through wireless-enabled location tech-

In most cases, those problems are taking

nology, Radius Networks has transformed

wasted time out of the equation.�

the customer experience by allowing busi-

Picture the traditional, and maybe even

nesses to track customers, improve profit

stereotypical, restaurant environment,

margins and ultimately increase customer

where a food order is ready to go to the

retention.

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Customers have, and will always, vote

server’s attention to pay for your bill can

with their feet, and in order to retain those

be frustrating for the customer. It leaves a

customers, businesses need to be able to

bad taste in their mouth at the end of their

remove the pain points. As Wallace noted,

dining experience,” says Wallace. “We’ve

wasted time is one of the single biggest

developed solutions for making payments

pain points in customer service. Radius

remotely without contacting the server.

Networks offers location-based curbside

The server is notified when the bill is paid,

pickup, in-store and table service solu-

and they can focus their attention on

tions, as well as mobile payment technol-

real problems that other customers have

ogy to remove not only the one pain point,

instead of shuttling credit cards back and

but multiple pain points. “We’re addressing

forth.”

other key problems, such as payments.

At the time of writing, the world has

When you dine-in at a restaurant and

been gripped by the COVID-19 pandemic,

are in a hurry to leave, trying to get your

a truly unprecedented event that has

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completely devastated lives and econ-

it has risen dramatically. It was once within

omies all over the world. It has also

a business’s top ten things it needed to

completely ripped up the rulebook when

consider, and has now risen to the very

it comes to food and retail, with lockdown

top of their to-do list.”

restrictions forcing businesses to either

Radius Networks is currently offering a

close down entirely, or pivot to delivery

free version of both its FlyBuy curbside

services. Radius Networks’ FlyBuy curb-

and buy-online-pick-up-in-store (BOPIS)

side pickup solution was actually launched

software for restaurants, retailers, and

over 12 months ago, but it has fast become

non-profits during the COVID-19 crisis.

a key technology offering that is solving

By its very definition, location tracking

an unforeseen problem. By automating

technology appears to be very intrusive.

the curbside delivery service for custom-

It is tracking locations and using that data

ers, FlyBuy provides a turnkey, end-to-end

to inform decision making, after all, and

solution that uses the customer’s location

naturally that can cause a little fear and a

for a faster, easier order pickup experi-

hesitation. Wallace acknowledges these

ence. “There was already a pre-existing

concerns and understands them whole-

return on investment (ROI) with FlyBuy

heartedly. “We had a decision to make

because we were reducing the wait times

early on in the company whether we

for customers when ordering for pickup,

were going to harvest data and use it for

which results in more frequent visits” says

marketing purposes, or whether we were

Wallace. “Throughout this pandemic, curb-

going to be a privacy-centric company

side delivery has become the only channel

and focus on providing a solution,” he

that people can do, so the importance of

says. “We chose to be a privacy-centric

“At the end of the day, I think this goes for business philosophy in general, you really need to understand the problems that your customers have, and then solve them” Marc Wallace, CEO & Co founder, Radius Networks

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company, mostly because all of us, as individuals, wanted that for ourselves.”

“When it comes to us being a location company, we are very transparent with our customers, so that they can be transparent with their consumers about what we’re doing with their location data, what we’re using it for, and how long we’re keeping it.”

This transparency is built into the very DNA of the company. FlyBuy will only ever use the location data to alert the store when a customer is on the way and then has arrived onsite to pick up their order, and only after the customer has opted-in to sharing that information. After a period of time has passed, they will then delete that data entirely. Its policy dictates that it does not, and will never, share that data with any third party, giving customers peace of mind that their data is safe and used only as agreed when they opt-in.

Wallace believes that, while the reluctance and fear is understandable, consumers have access to services’ policies and can ‘do some homework’ in order to allay them. “I think, given the amount of options we are given today, customers can no longer just assume every location company is tracking or doing something devious with their information. They need to be aware when they approve location usage and when they don’t,” he says. “If 8

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Marc Wallace CEO and Cofounder

they can be sure that sharing their location brings value to them, whether it be to have a car service come to their exact location, or

Marc is a serial entrepreneur. He is

their groceries meet them at their

the co-founder and CEO of Radius

car immediately upon arriving in

Networks, Inc., located in Washington,

the pickup zone, they will happily

DC. Prior to Radius Networks, Marc

share their location. Once they

co-founded several other success-

have established a level of trust

ful startups, such as District Taco,

in the people that are request-

a Mexican-food fast casual chain in

ing location permissions, and see

DC, where he serves as Chairman,

the benefits it brings to their lives,

and SwapDrive (backup.com), an

there is no problem.”

online backup company acquired by

Radius Networks was founded

the Norton division of Symantec in

in 2011, and for the best part of a

2008. Before creating SwapDrive, he

decade, it has grown from strength

served at Orbital Sciences Corporation

to strength as a business, working

as an aerospace engineer and engi-

with the likes of McDonald’s, Five

neering manager across multiple

Guys, and Coca-Cola, as well as

successful rocket and spacecraft

being recognized in the INC 500,

launch campaigns. Marc holds a B.S.

the Deloitte Fast 500, and the CIO

in Engineering from Cornell University

Magazine’s Most Promising Digital

and a M.S. in Information Systems from

Experience Solution Provider. But

George Washington University.

none of these successes would have been made possible, without a solid and sound foundation within the business. “I’ve been told by people ‘wow you guys got really lucky.’ Luck had absolutely nothing to do with it. Our mission is to solve problems for businesses, and right now businesses need our

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help more than ever. There were a lot of really difficult times over the years where we worked hard and earned the right to stay in the game, and we are once-again earning it right now,” says Wallace.

“Take FlyBuy as an example. I’ve been asked as to whether I thought this piece of technology that we developed over the last few years would ever be as important as it is right now. Yes. Yes I did, and so did everyone else on our team, and that’s key to our success as a company. Every single person at Radius Networks is engaged and believes in what we do.”

In these times of crisis, the spotlight has shifted significantly onto those business fundamentals and Wallace is extremely proud of the business he has built and the people within it. “The business principles that we’ve been practicing over the last few years have paid off. We are a strong company with sound fundamentals and sound financials. We haven’t over extended ourselves, either from an investment perspective or from an expenses perspective and that’s paying off for us now,” he says.

“It is tough in the current environment to point to positives, because you almost feel ashamed to do so. I think we’ve done a lot as a company to help others; we’ve given 13

our product away for free to hundreds of

communicates in an open and transpar-

small businesses, thousands of locations,

ent way with its customers, the same

with no obligation, and it’s a testament to

rules apply from within. He admits that

the work we have done to get to this point.

the pandemic has, ironically, made that

A lot of companies are doing a lot of good

communication better in some aspects,

work to help each other right now and

but it has always been a key part of what

they can do so because they are built on

makes Radius Networks tick. “We’re talk-

solid foundations.”

ing to our customers all the time. My team

Those foundations start from the very

is the best team in the world. They’re

top. Wallace is a key advocate in commu-

working in overdrive right now, communi-

nication. Much like Radius Networks

cating at such a high level, and listening

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to customer needs, because their needs

upfront about everything that may come

have changed dramatically,” he says.

up along the way.”

“As the CEO, I try to have frequent

Listening to the customer is key. That

hands-on-deck tag-ups with everybody

much is no secret. But when it comes to

to give them an update and try to be as

technology, listening to customers is abso-

transparent as possible about the status of

lutely essential when ensuring that what

the business and what’s happening. I do

you’re offering is what the customers need

this so they can feel comfortable that they

and what they want. Wallace’s role as the

have a job today, and they’ll have a job

CEO is not to sit at the top of the busi-

tomorrow. We work together to come up

ness and leave it to everyone else. He is

with our team goals, and stay aligned and

very much active and engaged at every

“It’s about persisting through the bad times, just like the good times, and trusting your business fundamentals and experience” Marc Wallace, CEO & Co founder, Radius Networks

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level to ensure that everything Radius Networks is doing is driven by the customer. Wallace is proud of the culture within his business and often finds himself sitting on a call with a major customer and beaming at how well his team listens and understands the customer’s needs and how Radius can successfully address them. “I’m so proud that we, as a team, have a culture that takes so much pride in their work,” he says. “Our people have always been solid employees, pre pandemic, but they have become absolute rockstars today.”

In addition to his team, Wallace credits much of Radius Networks’ success to the partnership ecosystem that they have built over the years. “Our partners, such as AOPEN, Olo, Apple, Google, ShopperKit, Rigado, Toast, NCR, and Oracle, have been essential to our growth and success,” says Wallace.

The world as we know it has changed forever and we cannot begin to predict what this new world will look like post pandemic. One thing is for certain, communication, and the way in which businesses engage with their customers, will never be the same again. Radius Networks has enjoyed success after success over the past ten years, and as we all experience great uncertainty, the goal for Wallace is to continue providing valuable location technology for many years to come. The key to succeeding, regardless of such uncertainty, remains the same for Wallace and his team. “Persistence,” he says. “It’s about persisting through the bad times, just like the good times, and trusting your business fundamentals and experience.

Being transparent with employees and having a good team around you is key.”

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