With many restaurants in the US struggling to stay afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic, owners are looking for ways to keep customers making orders so they can keep their doors open. One solution has been the presence of food delivery apps, like DoorDash and GrubHub. Not sure if going digital is right for you? Keep reading to see if a delivery app is worth it for your restaurant.

The Benefits of Delivery Apps

No doubt about it, delivery apps have been extremely helpful for thousands of restaurant owners during the pandemic. There are several ways that presence on a third-party delivery app can keep your restaurant thriving:

• Increased communication – Customers can leave reviews to communicate their experience with owners, and some apps have functions to ask questions of other customers or the owners. If a new customer can clearly see what your restaurant is about and how it performs, they will feel more confident choosing your place for their next meal.
• Higher demand – Many customers tend to go to their “usual” spots for a meal, generally a place close to home. But with a delivery app, more choices are readily available, and choosing a new place isn’t a risk when the food is coming straight to them! Visibility on the app can drive new customers to your restaurant.
• Easy ordering – Delivery apps specialize in making online ordering easy for customers. A streamlined interface that’s easy to navigate will encourage customers to order from the app over and over.

The Disadvantages to Delivery Apps

Unfortunately, there are always some downsides. Keep in mind, though, that these are not guaranteed to affect every restaurant that goes on the apps; your unique restaurant’s needs and situations may still outweigh the following potential disadvantages:

• The commission is high – When a restaurant signs up with a delivery app, they agree to pay a commission to the app for every order. That commission could be as high as 30% per order, which is a big cut into profits.
• Poor product control – Because the app manages orders without too much human intervention, there’s hardly any control for items being sold out. This can lead to customers receiving phone calls from the restaurant to let them know they need to reorder, which can scare off customers.
• Lower food quality – This doesn’t mean that restaurants on apps prepare worse food; instead, due to the rising number of online food orders, a single delivery driver may be collecting and delivering several orders at once and making several stops. Customers at the end of the route might receive their meal cold or much later than expected. Unhappy customers aren’t returning customers.

Overall, whether joining a delivery app is right for your restaurant is up to your specific situation. If you’re not sure whether an app-based service can boost revenue for your eatery, contact Avery Restaurant Consulting today and speak to an expert!