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Online Ordering - no longer a buzzword, but a necessity that has taken the restaurant industry by storm. With busy lifestyles, safety concerns, and the newly acquired superpower to make one-click ordering, diners have become habitual of getting their food delivered to their doorstep. And no one is complaining. Naturally, restaurants are now pressed to enter the digital landscape if they wish to survive and thrive in the tech-driven world. But here’s the conundrum: should you partner with third-party food delivery apps or enforce an in-house online ordering system?
We side with the latter. Let’s find out why.
Online Ordering - putting your business on the path to profitability
Whether you choose to accept orders via third party aggregators or your own website, the crux of the matter is that the orders are coming through a digital channel. This means that if you haven't yet thought about getting your restaurant business online - it's time you do.
The Price of Partnering with Third-Party Apps
Initially, which is the case with most restaurant operators, getting the restaurant listed with food aggregators such as Uber Eats and GrubHub might seem like an appealing option on the surface. After all, these apps provide a ready-to-use platform for both restaurants and customers. Most importantly, these food ordering apps can be easily found on the phones of most millennials today. They not only offer a quick way to restaurants to get online but also provide lucrative perks like wider reach, increased visibility, daily transactions, and all this without the hassle of delivery operations.
However, these perks are short-lived and come at a cost. Working with a third-party vendor means that for every order made on their app, you’d have to pay a certain percentage of the order value to the vendor. These commission rates are extremely high and often not feasible for restaurants in the long run at all. Remember the viral post by a Chicago Pizzaiolo that had people shocked over delivery fees charged by GrubHub? The screenshot of a payment summary clearly showed how the restaurant had earned $1,042.63 for selling 46 pizzas but was paid only $314 at the end of the month by GrubHub.
Moreover, major companies in this line of business have come into the limelight for contentious business practices. All in all, the cons outweigh the pros.
In House Online Ordering System- A Vital Asset
Setting up an in-house online ordering system for your business can be a game-changer not just for the restaurant, but also for their loyal customers. When you divert all the traffic to your website you not only set up your business for 100% profitability but also keep your customers happy with impeccable service and food quality.
Having a well established online ordering and delivery backed by a powerful system allows you to have a lot more control in terms of elevating the customer experience too. You get to access customer data that can help you personalize their experience on your platform, just like you would do for a diner at the restaurant. When your customers feel valued they tend to order frequently from your business, thereby, adding more loyal customers. There is also more space for marketing.
Last-Mile Delivery - Not really a problem
Now, most restaurant operators are skeptical of having their own fleet of delivery drivers. They think it can add up to the cost given overhead expenses like transportation =, fuel, uniforms, insurance, and so on. Of course, setting up a delivery fleet requires a lot of planning and might even demand some investment initially. But once it's done, you'll notice how having your own drivers help you save more and earn more.
- our drivers will only make deliveries for you. This means food will reach your customers on time.
- Your drivers will ensure that the food is packaged and transported as per the protocol to maintain the highest standard
- You can track the health and well being of your drivers on a daily, even hourly basis to ensure safe deliveries
- Most importantly, you don't have to pay a single dime to anyone for each order to make deliveries.
But if you're new to the market, or not willing to invest in a delivery fleet as of now - you can always opt for a last-mile logistics firm like Postmates that offers a flat-fee delivery service. Here’s how it works:
Once the order is received, an employee from the restaurant will make a request to the delivery app to send the driver.
The driver is then assigned and the restaurant, as well as the customer with notified of the details of the driver - mainly the name, contact number, and even the body temperature (applicable since the pandemic).
The order can be tracked in real-time by customers.
Each delivery made is charged a flat-fee, regardless of the quantity. The restaurant can either pay the fee from their profits or pass it on to the customers.
This takes away the burden of managing the logistics of food delivery and you get to hand it over to efficient employees. Since the cost of food delivery can be passed on to the customers directly, it majorly pertains to 100% profitability per order.
In House Online Ordering System- A Cost-Effective Solution
In 2020, more than 70% of restaurant revenue was brought about by online ordering and food delivery. Why lose out on profits to forever increasing third-party commissions? Essentially, the better your restaurant performs, the more profit there is for a third-party vendor. Doesn’t seem too fair, does it?
At Restolabs, we can set you up with an online ordering system that enabled your restaurant to start accepting direct orders from your native website or mobile app. At just $450 a year, you can automate a large chunk of online operations. Mobile ordering, reward programs, order management, and real-time analytics are just some of the perks that you can benefit greatly from. Not only will this help boost online sales quickly, but it will also provide you with data that can be used to improve your business performance in the future.
From the Customer’s Perspective
Online ordering has become a way of life for customers today. Dining out is reserved for only a few occasions, but food delivery takes place every week! Customers are also plagued by the high delivery rates charged by aggregator apps, that increase with bad weather and high demand.
As word spreads about the problematic repute of aggregator apps, more and more customers are willing to support local businesses instead of adding to the pockets of billion-dollar corporations. Moreover, loyalty programs and other incentives can easily influence customers into switching from aggregator apps to your app or website.
In a nutshell, having an online ordering system lets you have full control over your business. You can bid goodbye to hefty commission rates and keep your well-deserved profits. Set up your own online ordering system and soon you will get the most out of every order!
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