How Do Food Delivery Apps Support Local Restaurants?
While the benefits of using food delivery apps are widely understood, the benefits that apps like Swiggy provide to restaurants are seldom discussed. Food delivery apps provide a range of benefits to restaurants associated with them, such as:
1. Improving discoverability:
Popular apps like Swiggy have a wide network of restaurants in even tier 2 and tier 3 cities. Restaurants can list out their specialty and menu on a dine out app and get discovered by people in no time. Simple onboarding ensures that most restaurants in a region are able to maximize their online presence. Since food delivery apps provide an online avenue for local restaurants, they enable people who are not residing in close proximity to order food. This gives all restaurants an equal chance to showcase their expertise.
Furthermore, delivery dining apps make it easier to fetch the translations of a restaurant’s listings, enabling people to understand what they’re being served even if the name of the dish isn’t in their native language. Likewise, a translation tool can help convey dietary preferences to a staff member who is not fluent in a specific language. It is possible because cooking instructions are conveyed electronically rather than verbally on a food delivery app. This lingual inclusivity also ensures that people don’t shy away from trying foods with non-English names.
2. Improving order accuracy:
Almost every dining out app actively encourages diners to leave reviews for the restaurants they’ve ordered food from, whether their order was for a regular office lunch or a casual dinner. While some people may find it too annoying to have to leave a rating every time, guests’ opinions help a restaurant pinpoint areas of improvement. Food delivery apps may also present additional insights like the worst-rated dishes, which can help restaurant owners and chefs better align their cooking procedures. Likewise, they may also be able to discover their highest-rated dish. If the demand for a particular dish is high, restaurant staff can then stock the pantry accordingly to ensure that they would never have to turn down an order.
Moreover, order accuracy is guaranteed when an order is made entirely online through a food delivery app. This is a pivotal step in ensuring that customers get the best experience by getting exactly what they’ve asked for. Order accuracy may not be high if the restaurant staff has to record instructions from customers who walk into the restaurant manually. Order accuracy can be of great importance for people with special dietary needs, such as those who only want to order online vegan food, lactose-free desserts, etc.
3. Reducing operational costs:
Food delivery apps handle most of the ordering process themselves – from taking customer orders to collecting payment. This means restaurants don’t need to have their staff dedicated to these tasks. The apps also provide GPS tracking features. A notable example is Swiggy, which saves restaurants from having to invest in setting up their delivery infrastructure.
Food delivery apps also help in reducing food wastage. Since these apps operate on a demand and supply infrastructure, it’s easy for restaurants to predict how much they should have in their pantry each day to fulfill the average orders. For instance, if somebody places an order for a cake, the restaurant would only have to prepare one after they’ve received the online cake delivery request. This eliminates the need for keeping cakes ready ahead of time, resulting in lesser wastage.
Lastly, food delivery apps also help in supporting cloud kitchens. They allow restaurants to expand their delivery reach and serve more customers without spending money on seating space and decorations for dine-in customers. Since they don’t have to worry about managing seating or ambiance, cloud kitchens can focus on food quality and delivery logistics. Cloud kitchens can be very efficient in handling small orders, like pizza delivery, which can encourage small businesses to thrive without significant investment on setting up a restaurant-like seating space.
Final words:
Restaurants and food delivery apps have a mutually beneficial relationship. Food delivery apps like Swiggy are committed to delivering positive experiences to everyone, including the restaurants they’ve partnered with. By providing insights, increasing discoverability, and reducing operational costs, these apps ensure that every kitchen strives to deliver the best meal to its customers.