Grow topline sales through DoorDash while using your in-house delivery fleet.
December 4, 2020
Sponsored by Door Dash
Restaurants with their own delivery drivers often don’t need the assistance of third-party firms. But what some of those same restaurants lack is the marketing reach and deep customer access those firms often supply.
Now those operators can enjoy both options using DoorDash Self-Delivery. The new web-based platform markets restaurants to its thousands of customers to grow transactions and keep staff delivery drivers busier than ever. Here’s how this hybrid delivery partnership works:
DoorDash Self-Delivery lists restaurant brands and their menus on the DoorDash app and DoorDash.com.
all restaurant-specific delivery fees and the delivery zones are set by the restaurant.
DoorDash users pay for orders and tips online, tips are passed through to the restaurant to distribute to their staff.
Orders arrive in restaurant kitchens on a DoorDash-specific tablet or the restaurant’s existing online order tablet or POS system.
Order status information such as food prep progress or delivery ETA is communicated to customers.
As orders are completed, customers receive another notification saying their food is out for delivery and that the order is being fulfilled by the restaurant’s delivery driver.
DoorDash receives a reduced commission for each order.
Ideal for the Restaurant Industry
Gary Stibel, founder and CEO of the New England Consulting Group calls the Self-Delivery model ideal for the highly nuanced restaurant industry. Many operators prefer to employ delivery drivers directly for training and cross-utilization in other staff positions. Some restaurateurs also believe drivers give better service when representing their brand alone. But most significant, Stibel adds, is how this hybrid model provides independent restaurants and smaller chains marketing advantages too costly for companies their size.
“There are a lot of restaurants wanting to grow sales right now, and delivery is a great way to do that,” Stibel says. “A hybrid option like this is the right solution for everybody whether they’re an independent with one location or a chain with restaurants all over the world.”
Stibel says DoorDash Self-Delivery provides options that meet each restaurant’s unique delivery needs. Depending on the pace of business at one unit versus another, a multiunit brand may benefit from an in-house delivery team at one unit while finding third-party services befitting another.
“An awful lot of restaurant executives see delivery in black or white terms: They want third-party delivery or staff delivery,” he says. “I believe you can have both—that a hybrid model is best.”
Many Options Available
“Delivery requires more thought now,” he says. “It’s not a one-size-fits-all market anymore. Operators have great options.”
Nick Bogacz has used a blend of staff delivery drivers and third-party drivers for many years. The owner of five-unit Caliente Pizza & Draft House in Pittsburgh says the delivery hybrid model is an attractive option he uses across his system.
“I’m an old-school delivery driver; that’s how I started in this business,” laughs Bogacz, who has about eight staff drivers at all locations. “I can’t not deliver pizzas. It’s just in me.”
But as the coronavirus pandemic led to restaurant shutdowns across the U.S. in the spring of 2020, Caliente’s revenue sagged, leaving Bogacz seeking more help marketing help from third-party delivery providers.
“We needed more sales wherever we could get them, so we started with DoorDash” he says. As overall orders increased, his staff drivers got busier, and Bogacz leaned increasingly on third-party delivery drivers to manage the increase. “When it’s busy, we’ll have 300 to 400 orders per store going out,” he says. “So, we adjust all the time.”
He says those adjustments typically come at peak sales periods driven by new LTO’s or on busy weekends.
“It’s good to have drivers on staff, but when you only have five scheduled on a Friday night and one calls out sick, you need help,” Bogacz says. “Those third-party companies don’t just have 10 drivers, they have 300. And I see no drop-off in service when they fill in. It’s great to have both.”
Especially since delivery is predicted to continue growing steadily for the foreseeable future, Stibel says.
“Whether you’re 17 or 71, people like getting delivery,” he says. “The 17-year-old kid’s best friend is his phone, and he thinks it’s cool to order through an app. The 71-year-old just loves the convenience. Delivery is huge now, and it’ll remain huge for a long time.”
Interested in considering a meal delivery option like DoorDash Self-Delivery? Visit DoorDash Self-Delivery to learn more about how this new platform could help your delivery operation.
