This blog will help you better understand why more and more restaurants are ditching third-party delivery systems only to take on in-house online ordering systems.

Restaurant digital orders were expanding at a rate of 23% per year even before the COVID-19 outbreak. This is because food delivery is the ideal outlet to convenience, especially in the age of social distancing and reduced indoor dining at restaurants.

However, what would you consider doing if you where to find out that a person was taking advantage of your hard work? Probably break ties with them? Well, you won't be the only one, more and more restaurants around the world are looking for better means for offering food delivery to their customers. Online ordering appears to be the dawn to this problem.

How did Food Delivery become so popular?

Not too long ago, a number of people identified a gap in the restaurant market - the increasing need to door-to-door delivery services. And this was a weight taken off the shoulders of all restaurant owners as they were now able to focus on what they loved - great food, new innovations and excellent customer service.

However, it didn't take long for restaurant to realize that this option of food delivery wasn't really benefitting them. Yes, it did provide a significant additionally stream of ordering revenue but in turn it also lead to an increase in expenses as these restaurants now had to pay third-party delivery services a 15% to 30% fee for each order placed, which had proven to be a significant expense for any business to absorb. As a result, the new trend is restaurants setting up their own in-house delivery solution.

Customers too are recognizing this prejudicial downside and are actively creating a shift in the industry, 74% of consumers say they'd rather order directly from a restaurant, preferring that their money goes to the restaurant and not a third-party delivery service.

Why is Online Ordering taking the lead?

Five years ago, relatively few restaurants even owned a website, let alone provided food delivery services or the ability to place orders and pay for them online. Today however, an increasing number of food outlets offer such digital solutions.

Customer are spoilt for choice. Making a profile in today's highly competitive landscape is a task in itself. There can literally be 25 pizzerias in the same 10-mile radius and customer loyalty only seems to be depreciating. Therefore, restaurants are forced to offer discounts and special promotions in order to retain customers. And when a further delivery commission of 15% to 30% is added on to this cost, it can seem almost impossible to make a profile. Which is why restaurant owners are left with the alternative of an in-house online ordering solution that allows customers to place their orders directly to the restaurant.

Control of customer data

Restaurant no longer have any interaction with their customers, as all customer data is now managed via the third-party platform. This makes it virtually impossible for restaurants to build a lasting relationship with their customer base, and as most of you may already know, customer relationships are based on emotional responses - are you able to sympathize with your customer when an order did not meet expected standards, do you know if the food descriptions and images enticed the customer, are you able to send email alerts on special offers? These important touch-point are no longer a part of your control.

With in-house online ordering however, all customer data collected stays with you, giving you new opportunities for marketing your restaurant's loyalty programs and special offers.

Additionally, third-party delivery services could also risk damaging the presentation, accuracy and reliability of your restaurant brand. For an example, some delivery partners may have in-built heating systems to keep food warm and crisp, while other don't.

Your customers tend to overpay

It has proven to be more feasible when ordering directly from a restaurants online store when compared to a third-party delivery source. One reason could be that some restaurants tend to hike up their original prices in attempt to cover the delivery commission costs of up to 30%. On the other hand, most restaurants online stores offer personalized promotions with special rewards systems in place, which is beneficial at the point of checkout. This may not be an options when using third-party delivery aggregators.

Another important point to consider is that in-house ordering and delivery solutions also tend to facilitate loyalty programs, for an example, customers can expect to save up to 15% when placing two consecutive orders in the same month. It is also a known fact that delivery partners take longer to deliver, averaging at 49 minutes. However, with direct online orders, the delivery time can be reduced to only 20 minutes.

Menu changes aren't instantly reflected on third-party solutions

Most restaurants make changes to their menu on a weekly or even daily basis. This maybe a new price update or a new product and even a change to a product description. Unfortunately, these vital changes do not get instantly updated when using a third-party delivery platform.

Now for the real question - Have you ever had to deal with a frustrated customer who orders their favorite meal off your menu, only to be disappointed by the fact that it's out of stock, or worse, have you had to make the awkward phone call to guests to explain the menu change? Have you even lost orders because of this or has your retention rates decreased?

With in-house online order solutions, menu updates made on they fly are reflected instantly on the online order store. These updated can also be made from anywhere and at any time, with no need to any app downloads. So your customers will always have access to an accurate and current menu.

Additional benefits of Restaurant Online Ordering Systems

• Frequent interact between guests and your restaurant, help you brand stay memorable and top of mind

• Better communication with delivery agents so they can embody your restaurants images and offer enhanced customer experience

• Offer guests time-based visibility of menu items, special pricing on valued products, loyalty programs and mobile optimized product images

What does the future look like for the food delivery industry?

While several restaurants still offer third-party delivery services to generate demand for their food, both the restaurant community and their guests have opened their eyes towards the demeaning problem with the current food delivery service market. Customers prefer spending their money on their favorite restaurants and not technology suppliers.

As a result, more and more restaurateurs are taking steps towards taking ownership of their own food delivery solutions. Allowing them to keep 100% of ordering revenue, whilst building meaningful and lasting relationships with their customers through the direct delivery model.

With Applova's Free Digital Menu and Online Ordering Store you can maximize your ordering revenue, offer convenience and evolve with the market.

Ready to ditch third-party delivery services and set-up your custom online store that allows you to collect customer data, accept online payments, make instant menu updates, offer promotions and so much more - all for a nominal service fee of only 5% per customer order.

Check out a sample menu here and sign up now!