Transition in the Food Delivery Market: Traditional Way vs. Apps
Last Updated on June 16, 2024 by Yoyo
As a supplier of disposable food packaging containers, Aikou has always been closely linked to the development of the takeaway and delivery market. In recent years, with the advancement of internet technology and the popularity of smartphones, the new model of App platform delivery has rapidly risen, posing a huge challenge to the traditional restaurant self-delivery model. Today, let’s explore the future development trends of the food delivery market.
Table of Contents
Traditional Delivery
In our daily lives, ordering food has become a very important lifestyle. The existence of takeaways allows us to enjoy delicious food anytime, anywhere, without having to cook or leave the house. Speaking of food delivery service, we have to mention those restaurant’s own delivery teams entrenched in every corner of the city, with years of operating history. These delivery team members are experienced and familiar with local road conditions, and they can usually deliver freshly cooked, hot meals to customers in the shortest amount of time. However, facing the changing market environment and consumer demand, the traditional delivery model has also revealed some weaknesses and deficiencies:
- Limited coverage range: Due to manpower and cost constraints, traditional delivery usually only covers a few blocks around the restaurant. This means that if customers live far from the restaurant, they may not be able to enjoy the restaurant’s food order service, unable to meet the needs of customers at a greater distance.
- Limited menu selection: In the traditional food order model, customers can only choose from the menu provided by the restaurant. This means that if customers want to try some new, different dishes, they may not be able to find them in the same restaurant.
- Low level of informatization: Traditional delivery models often lack real-time order tracking and evaluation functions. This means that customers cannot know the status of their orders in real-time, nor can they give their own evaluations after eating, which undoubtedly reduces the dining experience of customers. Moreover, customers have to save the contact information of each restaurant separately, which greatly increases the use cost of customers.
Food Delivery Apps
In recent years, new food order platform Apps represented by Uber Eats, Grubhub, Deliveroo, Glovo, Rappi., etc have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain. These platforms attract more and more consumers with their unique advantages and services. Here are their main advantages:
- Platform integration resources: food delivery platforms integrate many restaurant resources, whether chain fast food restaurants or coffee shops, can be found on these platforms. This integration method greatly enriches the dining choices of consumers, allowing them to enjoy delicious food while also enjoying convenient services.
- Wide delivery range: These food delivery platforms have a large number of riders, who ride electric vehicles or bicycles, and shuttle among the streets and alleys of the city, delivering food to consumers. Whether living in downtown or suburban residences far from the city, you can enjoy such delivery services.
- High level of informatization: Food delivery platforms provide real-time order tracking, evaluation, and other functions, consumers can check the status of orders at any time, evaluate restaurants and riders, which improves the transparency of the entire service. In addition, the platform will regularly launch various discount activities, such as full reductions, discounts, free delivery fees, etc., further enhancing the dining experience of customers.
| Features | Traditional Delivery | Food Delivery Apps |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage Range | Limited, usually only a few blocks around the restaurant | Wide, can deliver to downtown, suburbs, etc. |
| Menu Selection | Single, limited to the menu provided by the restaurant | Rich, can choose dishes from multiple restaurants |
| Level of Informatization | Low, lack of real-time order tracking and evaluation functions | High, provide real-time order tracking, evaluation functions |
| Others | Customers need to save the takeaway order contact information of each restaurant | Platform integrates resources, provides discount activities |
Future Outlook
The current trend shows that the new model of food delivery has undoubtedly gained obvious advantages, but this does not mean that the traditional restaurant’s own delivery model has no room for survival. In fact, some restaurants have achieved quite good results by developing their own order APPs and establishing delivery teams, which to a certain extent proves the feasibility of this model.
So, who will dominate the future of the food delivery market in the face of this situation? The answer to this question is not simple, because it depends on multiple key factors, including:
- Advancement of technology: Suppose new delivery technologies appear in the future, such as autonomous vehicle delivery, this may have a major impact on the existing delivery models. Whether new technologies can be widely used in the market depends on the maturity of the technology and the market’s acceptance.
- Consumer demand: With the increasing diversification of consumer needs, both food delivery platforms and restaurants need to continuously innovate and provide better services to win the market. For consumers, they prefer to choose those delivery methods that can provide quality service and satisfaction.
In general, the situation in the food delivery market is changing, but no matter what, its development will ultimately revolve around the concept of “customer first”. Only by always adhering to this concept can we stand invincible in fierce market competition. I believe that in the near future, the food delivery market will become more mature and will be able to provide customers with more convenient and quality services to meet their various needs.
