You could get a craving at any time. If you do not want to cook yourself, there are more convenient ways to get what you want at any time. The industry is competitive, with almost every restaurant joining the trend.
If you want to join the business, you would need some guidance. People are changing their lifestyles to adapt to the world, and you can capitalize on that. You can learn from the best, take some notes on what they do best, and include it in your plan.
The food delivery industry
Coronavirus shutting the world down caused many restaurants and dining establishments to lose a lot of money as new variants hit the world. Most of these eateries are turning to food delivery services to boost sales.
By 2027, the global market for online food delivery anticipates growing from $80.37 billion in 2020 to $128.5 billion. If you are thinking of entering the industry, some tips from some of the lead food delivery apps will be excellent.
Food delivery business model
Food delivery is one of the fastest-growing gig economies globally, with North America, Asia, and Europe having the largest market base. For instance, the food delivery services in China reach about 650 million people.
The US follows as the second largest, but it is also the best-funded industry. However, success in this industry depends on a model that focuses on businesses and consumers. Not the business-to-consumer or business-to-business model.
Yes, the industry is competitive, but you are on the right path if you create an easy service for both restaurants and consumers. Businesses want apps that make it easy to order and interface. If you help cut costs and increase their market reach, you can expect success.
The top food delivery services
The best 20 global food delivery services include:
Uber Eats
From delivering fixed-price menus in Santa Monica to being an international brand, you can learn a few things from Uber Eats. It is present in over 1000 cities across the world. Customers also get many options from the company’s comprehensive collaboration with restaurants.
Uber Eats may not be the smoothest app to use when ordering food. But it remains the first choice for millions of people.
What does Uber Eats do well?
- Group orders to make it affordable for friends and colleagues
- ‘Schedule later’ feature that allows customers to get their food when they are ready
- Less effort reordering your favorite food
- Fast deliveries
Grubhub
Grubhub operates in 2700 US cities, servicing over 140,000 restaurants. The platform has broad partnerships, which guarantee their customers a wide variety of meals.
If you wish not to share your credit card information with the app, the app accepts forms of payment. Grubhub accepts PayPal, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. Customers can search for the food by price, rating, distance, delivery time, or fee.
What does Grubhub do well?
- Excellent filtering and search possibilities
- Many discounts
- Easy to reorder because the app keeps a history of your orders
- Diverse and easy interface and payment options for customers
DoorDash
DoorDash collaborates with 310,000 restaurants across 4,000 cities globally. However, most of these are in the US. The search options are not as many as Grubhub, but you get the type of food, rating level, prices, delivery time, and vegan.
What does DoorDash do well?
- Easy to navigate menus that you can customize
- DoorDash pairs its users with restaurants that offer them the best deals, like free first orders and the fastest options
- Great discounts and coupons for its customers
- DoorDash’s subscription that lets customers enjoy free delivery
- It is relatively consistent in customer satisfaction
Delivery Hero
Delivery Hero is present in 50 countries in America, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America. It collaborates with local brands to ensure that customers get their orders fast and efficiently.
The company has a record of 791 million orders. Customers get in touch with their favorite restaurants. This German-based company collaborates with over 500,000 restaurants across the world
What does Delivery Hero do well?
- Wide variety of services, including grocery delivery
- Fast and easy ordering and delivery
Foodpanda
Foodpanda operates in 41 countries across the world. It collaborates with over 40,000 restaurants to give its customers the most diverse and rich menus.
What does Foodpanda do well?
- Wide selection of restaurants
- Seamless payment methods
- Easy access to special offers
Postmates
Postmates has been one of the leading food delivery services in the US for a long time. Customers can also order groceries, beverages, retail items, and food.
Postmates services over 4,200 cities in the US.
What does Postmates do well?
- A wide range of services, including clothing, groceries, and food delivery
- Extensive reach and strong branding
- 24/7 delivery depending on the restaurant
- Simple user interface
- An ‘unlimited service’ subscription to help cope with the delivery fee charges
ChowNow
ChowNow goes over and beyond food delivery. While servicing 18 cities in the US and the region, you can order your favorite cuisine and have them delivered within minutes. The app promises commission-free ordering. This clears out any unexplainable charges on your bill.
What does ChowNow do well?
- No hidden fees
- Focuses on local restaurants and not chains
Delivery.com
Imagine if you were hungry, had dirty laundry, and needed to go grocery shopping on the same day. If you do not like the sound of that, then Delivery.com is the perfect option. You can explore the best menus from local and chain restaurants, shop for groceries, and have your dry cleaning at your doorstep.
What does Delivery.com do well?
- A wide range of services
- Extensive reach
- Group order to help you split the bill with friends
Domino’s Pizza
Domino’s is an international brand with an excellent delivery company. Unlike other companies that deliver food from different restaurants, Domino’s Pizza only offers its menu.
It has an impeccable user interface, and when it comes to customizing your order, no one beats Domino’s.
What does Domino’s Pizza do well?
- Order tracking for every process, including pizza prep, oven, pickup, and delivery
- Ability to modify orders and customize meals
- Clear visuals of what the customer gets
Just Eat Takeaway
If you are in Europe and would like to try a meal from one of 82,000 restaurants in the region, you should get Just Eat Takeaway. The company, which launched in 2001, earns revenue from commissions.
What does Just Eat do well?
- It has a simple, streamlined user interface
- Plenty of discounts and coupons
- Excellent search and filter features
Available- Android
Deliveroo
This London-based company services over 200 cities. It collaborates with popular restaurants in Europe. Some do not even have the traditional dining setup and only handle takeout.
Customers pay based on their order, while the restaurants pay the delivery company their commission.
What does Deliveroo do well?
- Wide variety of cuisines, including ones from non-traditional restaurants
- Numerous coupons and discounts to enjoy
Instacart
If you need to make a meal at home but have no time to visit the market, or the local grocery store, Instacart is your app. You can order your list of groceries and other household items, including alcohol.
Instacart partners with over 20,000 retail outlets in the US to give you the best options and variety. You can also order cooked food from restaurants.
What does Instacart do well?
- Customers get an intense list of grocery stores to choose from
- The ‘Instacart Express’ feature allows customers to enjoy faster deliveries
- ‘Drop off’ feature to minimize contact during delivery
Seamless
Seamless, a sister company to Grubhub, services over 4,000 cities in the US, the UK, and London. It is among the best food delivery services and offers customers a wide variety of cuisines. There are no extra fees, and users can subscribe for free delivery at a fee.
What does Seamless do well?
- Extensive reach
- Cuisines from local and national chains
- Multiple methods of payment
Subway
Subway is an international brand. Despite having a wholesome menu, it offers delivery services on its products. Now, customers can enjoy their favorite Subway through the Subway App. There is also a promise of $0 delivery fees, which is why it is so popular.
What does Subway do well?
- Broad reach, servicing hundreds of cities in the world
- Cheap delivery services
- Partners with other popular delivery services to give customers their best experience
Zomato
In India, Zomato is a household name. It includes crucial information about restaurants on the app, such as their reviews and menus. Customers enjoy a wide variety of delivery options from their favorite restaurants.
Zomato is also present in the US, Australia, UK, Canada, and New Zealand. The platform is in use across 10,000 cities globally and has now expanded to delivering groceries.
What does Zomato do well?
- Wide reach
- Variety of delivery services
- Contactless dining feature that lets customers order anything using barcodes from restaurants
Ele.me
Ele.me is a subsidiary of Alibaba, which offers food delivery services in more than 2,000 cities in China. There is a range of food ordering and delivering options on a customer-to-customer basis on the platform.
What does Ele.me do well?
- Offers a variety of gourmet food takeaway services
- Wide reach
- 24/7 service support
Download Ele.me here
Glovoapp
Glovoapp offers multiple delivery services, from grocery to pharmaceuticals. It started in Barcelona, Spain, and has since grown to markets worldwide. Glovoapp is now one of the top food delivery apps in South America, South West and Eastern Europe, and Africa.
What does Glovoapp do well?
- Delivers cuisines from both local restaurants and chains
- Fast delivery
- Diversification-delivers groceries, food, and more
GoPuff
GoPuff does more than connect a customer with their favorite restaurant. It acts as a modern-day convenience store in the 150+ cities it operates in. You can get anything from the platform, from your favorite beverage to your favorite pizza.
What does GoPuff do well?
- A standard delivery fee of $2
- Wide variety on your delivery options
GoFood
Also called Gojek, GoFood is a common household name in Vietnam, Singapore, Indonesia, and Thailand. It offers crazy deals, such as free delivery with no minimum orders to customers looking to eat food from their favorite restaurant.
Customers can get the best variety of meals from thousands of restaurants in 100+ cities.
What does Gojek do well?
- Fast deliveries
- Wide variety
- Many promotions and discounts
Swiggy
Swiggy is the top-rated food delivery service in India. The service is available in almost every city in the country. With over 1.5M downloads on the Google Play store, it must be doing something right.
What does Swiggy do well?
- Seamless restaurant locator for its customers
- Focuses on the Indian market, making it homey to its users
- Users can store money in their wallet for easier payment
The future of food delivery services
Even though it is competitive, the food delivery industry is promising. More people are opting for a convenient lifestyle, which is what food delivery companies are doing. New trends in the sector are steering more people to join the industry. Some of these include:
A restaurant owned delivery services like Domino’s and Subway. More restaurants are joining the trend, where they develop their delivery system. This way, the food, and fees become cheaper because there are no intermediaries between them and consumers
Convenience store experience– Food delivery companies slowly expand to provide customers with a wholesome shopping experience. Companies diversify food to drinks, pharmaceuticals to groceries, and household supplies. More food delivery companies will include all these services and more in the future.
Subscription models– Food delivery apps are now offering their users subscription plans to enjoy reduced delivery fees. These plans also have discounts and increase customer loyalty, thus enabling companies to build brands.
If you want to join the food delivery business, you need to prepare for some stiff competition. There are many ways to enter the industry, and the examples above will help you see how your predecessors did.
You could develop the app, join as a driver, or even create your franchise around it. The industry’s future is promising, and you might get your break in food delivery. You can also check other business opportunities over the internet and see which one works best for you.
