What is Mobile Ordering?

October 19th, 2020 by Loyalty Sense Inc.

Mobile ordering is a modern concept that consists of 2 main subcategories. These include taking orders online through a website, or on a mobile app. Mobile ordering allows restaurants, cafes & eateries to accept orders and payments online remotely. Customers can access the business’ menu online [on website or app], pick their items, pay for their order, and arrange for a pickup or delivery all in the touch of their fingertips. Mobile ordering allows for pre-ordering when needed, or to have orders prepared ASAP.

Benefits of Mobile Ordering

One

Saves on Payment Processing Time

Allowing customers to skip the line by placing an order on their device also saves on processing payments. Since most people ordering through mobile devices use a credit or debit card, the business’ staff can focus on in-store customers and keeping to-go-orders ready for pickup, without worrying about ringing in the items in-house, or figuring out how much to charge each pick-up order when the customer (or delivery driver) arrives.

Two

Clear Pricing

Having an online menu would mean that item prices would be shown online as well. Most customers appreciate the ability to see the pricing clearly, including specials or loyalty app pricing seamlessly integrated. Mobile ordering apps are also preprogramed to automatically calculate total checkout costs, showing the tax break-down and tipping options, which helps both the customers and businesses the hassle of having to manually calculate these numbers.

Three

Add-Ons

Like any website, mobile ordering apps allow for add-ons toward the end of a checkout. It is a common feature used by many restaurants as studies have shown that restaurants tend to have higher item numbers on orders due to add-ons such as breadsticks or soda.

Why should I set up Mobile Ordering for my Business?

Mobile devices, from smartphones to connected cars and watches are changing the consumer experience and giving restaurants the opportunity to rethink how they interact with their employees and their customers. The increase in mobile phone traffic to online stores is partly fuelled by another trend: the rise of social product discovery and effective social ad targeting. The use of mobile ordering has increased by 300% since 2014, and 70% just from 2019 to 2020 alone, which shows that not only is the online industry growing, it is growing rapidly. By not having mobile ordering for your business, it could mean missing a large number of missed consumers, and therefore a large number of missed revenue.

So, do I have options when setting up Mobile Ordering?

Of course, you do! With mobile ordering, businesses have an option to set up services with a third-party company, such as UberEATS, Skip the Dishes, DoorDash or have their own personal online ordering system, completely branded with their own content. Whichever decision you decide to go, there are always Pros and Cons to each. To summarize, here are some of the main Pros and Cons for each category:

Third-Party Companies such as SkiptheDishes, UberEATS, DoorDash

PROS

Third-party companies are well known and well-developed and may reach a large audience and even get your business known if it is still growing
Delivery drivers are provided

CONS

there are hefty fees per order associated with using their services (approximately 25-30% commission rates)
If you are dealing with multiples companies, each company provides its own equipment (e.g. iPad), and you would have to manage multiples devices instead of having one with everything.
the branding for your delivery services would not be yours but of the third-party company.

Your own branded Website/Mobile App

PROS

70% of consumers would rather place a mobile order directly with the restaurant than through a third-party app like SkiptheDishes, UberEATS, and DoorDash.
You may personalize your own content, with your own logo and freedom to update your online menu as you wish.
The only fees you would have to pay is your setup fee, and a flat monthly app licensing fee starting at $120/mo per location with no commission fees!
- In some cases, if you do set up your own website via an external organization, such as Loyalty Sense Inc., this includes your Point-of-Sale software, Online Ordering Website, Mobile Ordering App and Ongoing Customer Support.
Depending on your programming, you may set up your own services to integrate with third-party companies and manage all of them on a single device [your business’ POS].

CONS

Deliver your own orders
- Note: Some programs are compatible with Third-Party companies so they will provide delivery drivers (see conclusion for more details!)
A mobile app needs to be made in such a way that suits each platform, Android, Windows, iPhone, etc. which can be costly, time-consuming, and may require heavy investment in R&D.
Sometimes there can be unknown errors on your website which may slow down your website’s speed and cause additional problems, requiring you to contact third-party companies, anyway.
Mobile Apps require ongoing care both as regard to fresh content and technological updates.
Apps and websites can be rather expensive the more functionality they have, the more they cost and can be hard to update and keep it working and might not work for you if you don’t have proper tech support.
Managing a website and a mobile app that’s just a smaller version of your website can be a daunting task and if it is not properly handled it can potentially damage the perception of your brand.

Conclusion

It is best to say that depending on your company’s objectives it’s crucial to decide which things works best for you. Aside from a few of the cons listed above, if you have a website that’s working hard for you with strong visitor numbers and generating a good crop of leads, going to a third-party company might be unnecessary. However, to address the cons of having an “Own Branded Website/Mobile app” above, there is even a third option! With the help of some companies such as ItsaCheckmate, with compatible software, businesses can now integrate the pros of Third-Party companies [such as having delivery drivers provided] within their Own Branded Website/mobile app.

Although Mobile Ordering is still a relatively new marketing strategy for marketers, it is also why it offers a lot of untapped potential for businesses. Having an 18% increase in customers ordering from mobile (instead of calling in to order) will allow you to stay ahead of market and ahead of your competition. With a little creative thinking, focusing on targeting your users’ needs and solving potential problems, mobile ordering can go a long way to improving your business goals.