Table of Contents
1. Background About The Changing Business Landscape
The business landscape has changed significantly in the previous few years. Technology is taking over a lot of elements of a business. In fact, the evolution in technology is turning out to be a great way for business owners and modern-day entrepreneurs to manage and maneuver an increasingly complex business landscape.
As a result of such phenomenal growth, ways of conducting a business have evolved significantly. A prime example of this is the shift in the way consumers have started to buy products; and so have the businesses changed their processes of selling and luring customers into buying it. As and buy consumers have eagerly started to push for more online buying and ordering experiences, so are businesses coming up with distinguished online ordering systems and newer ways of satisfying their needs.
“In the words of Bill Gates- ‘Information technology and business are becoming inextricably interwoven. I don’t think anybody can talk meaningfully about one without talking about the other.”
Widespread demand and availability of on-demand delivery services, increasing number of consumers going digital and chunk of businesses getting their processes automated, all, in part or whole, have contributed substantially to the growth in online ordering systems across the globe. Through this, not just customers are benefitted and their needs met, but the fact cannot be denied that businesses too are having a good time dealing with online ordering systems.
2. Knowing About The Online System And Learning About SAAS
An online ordering system helps a business drive new sales and improve its profit. But there is a lot of hard work involved. Easy as it may apparently sound, challenging it is to build sales and generate profits in an industry which is highly competitive and shows frequent signs of intense rivalry. Having said this, we cannot make an exception in the case of online food ordering industry.
With consumers worldwide wanting convenience of the next level, businesses having online ordering processes appear to be going a long way in the competitive run.
With the coming into being of online ordering management systems and businesses preferring to use SaaS (software as a service) more often than not, technology has made things easier for food businesses and restaurant owners. Food businesses which were capable of cooking and offering sumptuous delicacies but somehow, for one reason or the other, lacked on the serving part of it, have too, found a great business ally in companies offering SaaS, dealing with online ordering system and providing online ordering services.
“The way to a person’s heart is through his stomach, and your food business can ‘reach’ a thousand hearts through a restaurant delivery software. For this, you can have any food delivery software of your choice. But, for your business to not just ‘reach’ but ‘touch’ and ‘dwell’ in their hearts, hyperzod’s unparalleled online restaurant delivery software can be all that you could ask for.”
3. Knowing The Existing Statistics And Figures Characteristic Of Online Ordering Systems
Due to massive surge in online ordering systems around the globe, several food businesses and restaurants are now willing to spend almost 70% to 80% of their budget to set an efficient online food ordering system to drive up their sales and improve subsequent profits.
But on the contrary, there have been businesses who are struggling to keep up with the changing pace of ordering trend and associated business processes. For instance, as per an article published in January 2020, Kraft Heinz, an American food company’s market cap has fallen by around 50 percent over the past twelve months, and the company’s inability to keep pace with changing consumer tastes is largely to blame.
A survey of over 200 major companies revealed that Kraft Heinz is not the only one to suffer. While a majority of firms believe that they are “picking up on signals of change” that might disrupt their usual line of business, fewer than half (around 42%) admitted that they are “unable to act on those signals.”
In the words of John Chambers, chairman of Cisco, “At least 40 percent of all businesses will die in the next 10 years, if they do not figure out how to change their entire company to accommodate new technologies.”
So, which side would you want your business to be on; the evolving businesses who are willing to spend and allocate resources to online ordering systems or the ones which are unable to respond to changing signals and adapt?
Industry understanding and business prudence says you stick with the former case. Below are a few statistics and data that narrate the entire story about the whopping growth of online ordering system over the previous few years.
The NPD Group through one of its analysis reported that delivery and drive-through orders had taken hold, making carrying out the less convenient service mode.
From February 2020 to February 2022, digital and non-digital carry out restaurant orders declined by 2%, while delivery increased by humongous 116% and drive-through orders grew by 20%. Digital ordering grew by a banging 117% in two years and contributed to the delivery and drive-through growth.
As per another data from NPD, the number of restaurant visits reserved and paid via smartphone in the United States (US) increased by 50% from the year 2017 to 2018.
By possessing a food ordering and delivery application, businesses can reach new sets of customers and thereby process greater number of orders. Starbucks is a proof of that. Their Mobile and Pay app is largely responsible for 13% of annual U.S transactions, thereby driving a major part of its revenues and profits.
But in order for businesses to successfully capture and dominate the online ordering and delivery market, they ought to know their target market. A deeper understanding of their target audience and their needs and choices helps businesses cater more comprehensively and flexibly, in such evolving times.
A complete demographic profile and a track of changing behavioral habits of the target audience, aids businesses define the style of their marketing activities and also further helps to develop the right functionality.
For instance, the following data of different country markets can serve as a big basis for businesses to chalk out a neat plan and a well-drafted strategy pertaining to online ordering system and delivery.
Companies by working to create a personalized and an interactive user experience, can draw inwards a lot of customers.
Similarly, China with a banging global user penetration rate of roughly 34.2%- almost one third of its humongous population, actively uses online delivery services. This overwhelming figure of the Chinese market is followed by country markets of Netherlands, UK, US and Canada in the same order, thereby putting in front seamless scaling opportunities for global online food ordering and delivery companies.
In fact, so massive is the scale of possibilities for businesses that online ordering systems and applications have lately proved to be a boon for businesses and are largely benefitting. It relieves the business of many commitments and obligations and saves time for other important activities. An efficient online ordering system and a consummate online delivery app owned by a futuristic company will surely provide your business, chances a plenty.
A far-sighted online ordering and delivery company also ensures that it just does not limits itself to satisfying the basic needs and preferences of users, but, acknowledging the super quick growth of competition and rivalry among businesses, it also works hard to disrupt the market with its rapid-fire innovative technologies.
All in all, a good food management and online ordering system learns quickly and more often the newer ways of optimizing business related activities.
4. Benefits Of An Online Ordering System Or SAAS For A Business
Let us read on and find out the array of benefits of an online ordering system or SaaS (software as a service) for a business. These benefits are, perhaps, the major reasons as to how online ordering system or SaaS enables businesses in improving their sales and generating profits.
a. Ease of use
When businesses use software as a service for the purpose of taking orders and ensuring deliveries, they have somehow already incorporated a system which has neatly and brilliantly baked-in practices. This results in great ease of use and it further helps in bringing a greater number of users and possibility of new sales for the business.
b. Enables businesses to offer a customer-oriented platform
A good online ordering system cum app makes it a point that its customers are dearly valued and their need and preferences are successfully met. An online food ordering management system cum app should be so developed that it is easier for its users to skim through effortlessly and order things of their liking from the comfort of their homes. If the platform is customer oriented, it goes without saying that it will produce happy and satisfied customers which would further lead to increase in sales and profits for the business.
c. Enables utmost convenience
By providing an online ordering app for all the needs of a business, software companies silently provide great convenience to the customers. A user, if offered convenience through such apps, ends up looking for the same platform time and again, as and when the need to order arises.
d. Increased customer interaction
Online ordering and delivery systems make great allowance for customers to directly interact with the restaurant or food joint and demand things of their choice. The restaurant/food joint then easily and quickly learns as to which meals are the most sought after in their menu and which one is the least ordered. The result of this is it gives a valuable insight on what the customers are preferring more and getting inclined towards and what they are liking less or disliking about their products and offerings. This sort of customer interaction and engagement is vital in today’s competitive era for drawing in more customers, increasing the sales figures, building brand loyalty and in improving the customer base of the restaurant so concerned.
e. Well monitored sales data
In comparison to traditional brick and mortar stores or an in-store delivery system, an online food ordering system helps businesses save a lot of money by offering customers the freedom and convenience to choose online, and then get it delivered to their doorsteps. A similar offline or a physical setup could cost many a business their fortune.
f. Saves a lot of monetary resource
In comparison to traditional brick and mortar stores or an in-store delivery system, an online food ordering system helps businesses save a lot of money by offering customers the freedom and convenience to choose online, and then get it delivered to their doorsteps. A similar offline or a physical setup could cost many a business their fortune.
g. Greater scalability
An online ordering app offers businesses numerous possibilities. These possibilities if taken care of well, undoubtedly enables businesses to scale up their level of operations. Since such apps are in great demand, they bear a likelihood of having an increased visibility. This increased visibility leads to greater scalability for the business in the form of better sales and increased profits.
h. Timely upgrades
By enabling software as a service (SaaS) for a business, the provider upgrades, as and when due, the online ordering system and it becomes available to their customers. Such a feature keeps the customers updated and businesses upfront. Due to such frequent and timely upgrades, customers worldwide are more in awe of such apps thereby increasing the likelihood of generating new sales and subsequent profits for the business.
5. Can Your Business Avail The Above-Mention Benefits To Its Advantage?
Having put forth some of the likely merits of an online food ordering system, it should be kept in mind that such systems offer a plethora of benefits to the business, regardless of its size or customer base.
Rather, a great online ordering system would let no opportunity pass over. By virtue of its competitive and continuously evolving character, it will surely work upon increasing the customer base of its partnering business and its subsequent size.
From having an online presence to staying on top of your sales and profits and to leading the industry, there are a number of ways to enrich your business and improve your profits via an online ordering system or the so-called online food ordering system.
