4 Ways Delivery Can Help Restaurants Diversify Business (and Earn More Money)

By Karla Walsh for Uber Eats with Lola Kassim, General Manager for Uber Eats, Canada

All images provided by Uber Eats

In the past decade, an increasing number of Canadians are spending a larger proportion of their food budget at restaurants—that culinary spending category is increasing at a much more rapid clip than grocery store spending, according to Statistics Canada. And, according to a new study from Abacus Data, six in 10 millennials have used third-party food delivery apps such as Uber Eats to order meals in the past month. (ctvnews.ca)

Opting in on delivery is one of the easiest ways to secure your slice of that food-spending pie. Restaurants can earn more money and serve more loyal customers all at once.

As restaurant owners you already have a full plate trying to serve customers seated at your tables. Your business can do better by connecting to delivery resources and customers, which means diversifying your business through a delivery platform.

Here are four reasons why Uber Eats restaurant partners are enthused…and why you might want to add delivery to your menu of offerings, too.

1.You’ll have the opportunity to create additional revenue streams.

Once the seats are filled in your restaurant, you’re maxing out your earnings, right? Not so fast. You can actually tap a whole new market when you reach them in their homes or offices, where most delivery app users place their orders.

“We have found that delivery has had an effect on our business, delivery sales, and order volume continues to increase,” says John Lettieri, founder and CEO of Hero Certified Burgers (1). “We have seen some store sales increase since we started our partnership with Uber Eats.” This is based on offering delivery via the app vs. only brick and mortar sales.

For example, using the Uber Eats online restaurant portal, you can access insights on the following topics to effectively manage and grow your business income: 

• Financial and sales data
• Customer ratings and comments
• Most popular items
• Order errors

2. Attract new customers

You may reach some potential guests who drive by your storefront or see you on social media, but the moment you sign on as an Uber Eats partner, your reach extends to customers using the app near you (and with thousands of global downloads, that’s a big pool of customers). Plus, if someone is too crunched for time to make the trip to your brick and mortar but is still craving your cuisine, delivery offers an easy solution.

“The exposure we get by providing delivery is invaluable, and I see it as a real competitive advantage as it allows us to reach so many customers that otherwise would not have known about our restaurant,” says Andy Cheung, Owner of Pho Xe Lua Vietnamese Cuisine in Toronto.

Delivery app users range from families to young professionals to students, which means that you can attract and serve new customers from diverse segments you may not have been able to target through traditional marketing methods like radio or newspaper ads.

To up the ante and make your brand even more enticing to potential diners, you can create offers for customers right in the Uber Eats app (2). These promotions allow you to target new customers, stand out from the competition, encourage larger order sizes or incentivize the trial of new menu items. Some examples of popular promotion options to consider:

• Free side or drink for all orders over $15
• Free dessert with all orders over $20
• Free sample of a new menu item with every order over $30
• Discount of $5 off an order of $20 during “quiet hours”

3. Better utilize all of your company resources

Is your dining room slow from 2 to 4 pm? Why not offer a delivery promotion during that time to help cover costs to keep the lights on and rent covered? Or if you close shop at 9 pm, but have kitchen staff excited to cook for late-night diners until 2 am, why not send the front of house staff home and keep the kitchen running for delivery only?

“Delivery rushes are at different times than our dine-in rushes, and this allows our restaurant to work more efficiently, all while increasing the number of orders we can fulfill,” Cheung says.

In fact, the majority of Uber Eats orders in Canada are placed during off-peak restaurant hours, on both weekdays and weekends, helping to boost sales. Since Uber Eats helps facilitate the delivery for you via the web platform, your staff can focus on creating consistently high-quality food and serving customers in house.

4. Be more adaptive with your menu

While traditional menu changes require printing new paper menus, menu boards and updating all web platforms, it’s much simpler to switch up your offerings on Uber Eats. Run out of soup? The Uber Eats app can easily reflect the “sold out” status—no extra paper or ink required. Or if you find yourself with extra chicken in this food delivery, add bonus poultry items to your menu or bump them up to a “featured” category so they appear first.

Uber Eats is about more than a delivery platform—although it’s a strong tool to deliver on the promise. It’s about reaching new customers, serving those diners better, using resources more efficiently and creating an opportunity for making more money per order.

To learn more, please visit ubereats.com/restaurant

(1) This is based on offering delivery via the app vs. only brick and mortar sales.

(2) Availability may be limited.