The business of online food delivery saw rapid growth in this decade (2011-2019) but the market is still very raw and there is little understanding about its dynamics, growth potential and consumer behavioral aspect. With an impressive annual growth rate of 14% the global market of food delivery stands at $92 billion soon it might reach $200 billion by the year 2025. It’s a fast-changing market where companies are competing with each other for market share.
Key factors driving the industry’s growth and top players
The 21st century is the perfect time for online food delivery companies to thrive. They have the available technologies that are empowering the food delivery business. Millennial foodies, robust supply chain network along with advanced technology are the key drivers of online food delivery system.
People and supply-chain were there before; in fact, the food delivery system was also present. The drastic change came after the introduction of internet-based platforms started serving food online. The first-ever online order was for pizza from Pizza Hut in 1994. And it all went uphill from there. Let’s look at the gravitating rise of the top three players in the industry from all over the world that stood out for the year 2019.
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Uber Eats
The company came into existence in the year 2014, launched by American ride-hailing giant Uber. It is an easy way to get the food you love delivered. Uber Eats enables a customer to surf through its mobile app or website from its group of restaurants. It has collaborated with 130,000 restaurants in over 25 different countries across the globe. Which makes it one of the largest food delivery companies as its app is used by millions.
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Grubhub
Grubhub is the leading online and mobile food ordering and delivery marketplace in the USA. It connects hungry diners with local takeout restaurants. The users can order dinner from listed 140,000 takeout restaurants spread over 2,700 cities of the US and London. The firm processes 457,300 daily orders and serves 21.2 million active users.
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Just Eat
The company operates a leading global hybrid marketplace for online food delivery. It provides its customers with an easy and secure way to order and pay for food form restaurant partners. The company was founded in 2001 in London, UK. Since then it has spread its business in 13 countries while partnering with 82,000 restaurants. The Just Eat app has 22 million users worldwide making for 170 million orders each year.
What does it take to make an online food delivery a hit?
If anybody who wants to take a shot at an online food delivery business needs to go deep in the market, learn from the top players that are mentioned above and be receptive to the current evolving market scenarios. It might look easier from outside but require a great deal of planning and resources to set up and run an online food delivery platform successfully. The first and foremost thing before the start of any business is to decide the business and revenue generation model. Choose one model at the start and stick to it for a while. The major contributors to a business model of an online food delivery system are Â
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Customized website
The fresh company should think fresh otherwise there are thousands out there who look alike. Try to create a different identity with originality rather than following the same road. By creating a customized design the food delivery venture can get the eye of the people. The website is the first destination for any user to get basic information about the firm’s services.
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Develop a mobile app
After website mobile application development is the next step to conquer and engage smartphone users. According to a survey, the people who are using mobile apps for ordering food have increased from 20% to 34% from 2014 to 2017 and still growing at a healthy rate. So, it is vital to target customer experience in the smartphone-based market.
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SEO and ASO
Database management should be handled in such a way that the information can get easily read by search engines and app stores. This will enable constant traffic to the website and mobile app. This needs a dedicated team of designers, programmers and app developers to develop and maintain such a system. And keep the website and the app visible to the users to maintain good progress all along.
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Research and database formulation
The new company needs to do a little bit of digging to gather concrete information about the target area that includes demographics of the population, number of restaurants, resources available for two way supply and convenient way of payment. All this information can be used to optimize and customize the website and mobile app for better delivery of services.
Time and quality of service will decide the long run
The industry is still in preliminary stages of growth, it will take some time to evolve and get mature. As per the market research, approximately 63% of the people cancel orders online due to their customer experience. The platforms should provide quick, unique, and seamless ordering experience to make them stand apart from the crowd. Because the technology is almost the same that is used by the online delivery platforms, therefore, it is necessary to choose the right delivery model. A model that is convenient for access, transaction, benefit, and post-benefit.
Like any industry, the consumer is the king and they decide who will rule the online food delivery market for a long time. There are lots of options in front of the users and they can switch platforms with a tap of the finger. The future hybrid model should fully integrate all the services related to food delivery in one place. The customer should not wait for more than the time allocated to complete a delivery. In the end, it will be the consumer relation and communication of ideas and services that will decide the winners of this race.
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