Delivery, drive thru, and carryout are by no means new channels for the restaurant industry. They are, however, far more important to a successful restaurant operation than they used to be, thanks to one very significant global pandemic.
That necessary pivot to omnichannel business has been a boon to brands both on the quick-service side of the industry and on the full. Restaurants continue to invest in innovative off-premises solutions to provide expanded access and value to their guests — though with varying results in quality, pricing, experience, and service.
Indeed, the off-premises experience is rife with opportunity for things to go wrong, whether via a third-party employee or faulty packaging or technological combustion. Succeeding in off-premises channels is still a bit like thriving in the Wild West, with no clear rules or governance for how things should be.
To help benchmark performance in off-premises and provide some firmer expectations for what success can look like, we’ve partnered this year with market research firm Technomic to offer a look at the leading brands across three off-premises channels — delivery, drive thru, and carryout — as well as those who achieve success across any occasions outside the restaurant. Brands are ranked by customer satisfaction levels, with leaders based on a combination of satisfaction, the difference in satisfaction between that off-premises channel and other channels, plus other factors.
If you want to achieve success in your own off-premises business, these are the brands to emulate.
- How delivery is impacting restaurant innovations
- How the drive-thru transformation is shaking up the restaurant industry
- Food lockers and technology help boost restaurant carryout sales
METHODOLOGY
Customer satisfaction scores represent aggregate rating of measures (top-box percentage ratings) comparing delivery, drive thru, carryout, and all off-premises occasions to overall guest averages. Drive thru data represented limited service only; eating location was not specified but considered occasions where diners ordered via the drive thru. Carryout data did not specify ordering channel but excluded drive thru, considering other occasions where consumption took place outside the restaurant. Delivery data was limited to phone/online orders specifically placed for delivery. For overall off-premises score, ordering channel was not specified but considered all occasions where consumption took place outside the restaurant. Attributes used for aggregate rating varied by data set but generally included overall satisfaction, food quality, food visual appeal, speed of visit, order accuracy, quality of packaging, ability to pay using technology, and more.
Illustration by Emile Illustration
