Potential restaurant goers will be provided precise wait times soon via Google Maps and Search.
Already known for its search algorithms, Google may soon become popular for using anonymized historical data from more than one million sit-down restaurants around the world to estimate customer wait times. Google Search has featured a widget for a while now that provided popular times for restaurants and other various businesses. However, Google didn't narrow down the scope of wait times using the power of Google Search and Maps on just sit-down restaurants -- until now. Their new approach to wait time analysis is important, based on the convenience and accuracy factor of the data used to solve a problem involving that window of time to dine. [caption id="attachment_4687" align="aligncenter" width="835"]
Photo of open tables at a Restaurant.[/caption]
Google makes the process of sussing out that key wait time data with just a few steps, according to their blog. They direct users to "just search for the restaurant on Google, open the business listing, and scroll down to the Popular Times section. There you’ll see the estimated wait time at that very moment. And by tapping on any of the hour bars, you’ll see the estimated wait for that time period."
[caption id="attachment_4746" align="aligncenter" width="400"]
Animated Graphic of wait times.[/caption]
Being able to tap on specific bars relating to hours and gauge the differences of wait times during the day is quite an efficient method! And for those who want a romantic dinner at a popular dining spot, it lessens the chance of potential wait-time headaches.
It is also helpful that Google provides a nice breakdown of the all the minutiae involved (peak wait times and average amount of time people spend at the restaurant) in a section located below the vertical bars (Wait Times, broken down by hours).
What do you think of Google's new way to estimate wait times using its Search and Maps technology? Will you be taking advantage of this new feature? Let us know by sharing a comment below!
