There should be little doubt about the fact that the COVID19 experience has forever changed the way we do things in our lives. That is certainly true as it pertains to our relationships with the restaurant industry.
There was already a movement underway for single individuals and families to focus more on the home delivery of food and meals. Clearly, the pandemic sped up the process. Let’s take a quick look at the evolution of the food delivery industry.
The Early Years of Home Delivery
The Early Years of Home DeliveryThe concept of home delivery of goods and services is not a new concept. Small general stores have been making deliveries for a century while the pizza restaurant industry has been revolutionizing the delivery of hot food to our doorsteps over the last 40 or so years.
Of course, the offering of home delivery services was more a matter of convenience as opposed to being a financial lifeline. What the COVID19 pandemic did was make home delivery necessary for restaurants and small businesses to survive while customers had to endure lockdowns.
The Great Awakening of Home Delivery
In the two decades before the pandemic, companies like Amazon and eBay made home delivery of goods a normal part of life. Who among us didn’t occasionally troll one of the online shopping networks looking for bargains without having to leave the house?
Eventually, the food industry (groceries and restaurants) started incorporating the same kind of delivery services into their business models. That eventually led to the home delivery services of restaurant food from companies like Food Panda and Grab Food. By the time the pandemic rolled around, these delivery services were in such demand that restaurants began developing food ordering systems that would directly connect them and their customers with these food delivery services.
Mobile App Technology Gives Food Delivery Industry a Boost
Where there is a need, technology will soon fill the gap. To enhance the appeal and effectiveness of home delivery for both food and merchandise, delivery companies needed to come up with mobile apps that would make it easy for users to find the things they wanted to buy.
When someone decides to order home delivery, they no longer need to worry about contacting their favorite restaurants. They can let the restaurants focus on what they do best, which is preparing delicious food. Through mobile apps provided by a growing number of online delivery services, customers now have direct access to hundreds of restaurants, groceries, and small businesses in their neighborhoods. Apps like Foodpanda offer vouchers to help save their customers money when they order.
Within minutes, customers can select the food or groceries they want, a driver will be on the way to the appropriate restaurant or grocery to place the order, pick it up, and deliver it promptly.
To enhance the home ordering/delivery process, many of the home delivery services now offer more. They provide discounts on both food and their delivery services. They provide ratings for restaurants and make it easier to find certain types of food and restaurants with search features. Finally, they have provided an affordable way for smaller restaurants to compete with the name-brand fast-food companies.
Founder Dinis Guarda
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