Online Delivery Platforms In Trouble
Despite large-scale marketing campaigns, the big online delivery platforms are not succeeding in becoming the top dog. This sounds somewhat incomprehensible at first, after all, the pandemic is proving to be a driver of online food orders and deliveries. A Bitkom study last year proved this. In this study, 53% of respondents said they ordered ready-made meals online and had them delivered to them. Before the outbreak of the pandemic, the figure was 40%.
But most people prefer to turn to their favourite Italian restaurant around the corner and order there – preferably by phone. Bitkom’s study also showed this: 54% of respondents ordered by phone from a delivery service, an increase of 6% on the previous year 2019. Calls directly to the restaurant amounted to 46% – an increase of 5% on 2019.
No wonder small local delivery services and mergers of restaurateurs are setting up their own delivery chains to operate independently and better.
Local Delivery Services Are More Popular Than Ever
The reason for this is very simple: guests value personal contact with the restaurant, bar or café and want to maintain this. For most, the focus is clearly on supporting restaurateurs in the immediate vicinity. In the hope that they will continue to exist after the crisis.
Advantage Of Local Delivery Services: No Commission
The decisive advantage of local delivery services is the absence of a commission. Most online providers charge a commission for restaurateurs to be listed on their platform. If they also use the delivery service offered by the platform, the commission is quite high – up to 30 % commission on the order turnover! It is therefore not surprising that restaurant owners either set up their own delivery service directly in-house or join forces with other restaurateurs in the area.
Local Delivery Services: Being More Independent For More Service
This not only saves them further expenses, but also makes them much more independent in their decisions. After all, they have the entire delivery service in their own hands. Employees who have just been put on short-time work can thus be “brought back” by the restaurateur and take over the delivery service. This concept has a positive effect on the service. Own employees feel more connected to the catering business than external suppliers who do not know the business at all. In the end, not only the staff and the business benefit, but also the guests. Service and customer satisfaction can thus be controlled and improved.
Our Solution For The Gastronomy
Our gastro app is designed for in-house delivery as well as self-collection and is a cost-effective alternative to the big online delivery platforms. Since we don’t broker a space on a website or an external delivery service, there is therefore no commission payment to us. With our app solution, we want to continue to support restaurateurs not only now, but also after the crisis. This includes features such as vouchers, stamp cards to strengthen customer loyalty or push messages to promote new offers.
