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Editor's Note: Tech Tracker examines various technologies and innovations that are disrupting the industry and changing how restaurants interact with customers.
Whopper delivery on a motorcycle?
After a successful direct delivery test to the car in Mexico City, Burger King announced that it would send motorcyclists to deliver the Whoppers to Los Angeles drivers stranded in traffic jams.
Nicknamed Traffic Jam Whopper, the on-the-move delivery project uses real-time data to target Burger King fans on busy roads and highways. Direct delivery to cars was encouraged with the help of push notifications and digital billboards placed along busy roads during a month-long test of the program in Mexico City. .
Bruno Cardinali, marketing manager for Burger King for Latin America and the Caribbean, said the Traffic Jam Whopper campaign was essential to publicize Burger King's delivery service in Mexico, not just in the capital.
Burger King has also been able to capture rush hour delivery sales, a period when application orders are normally slow, said the International Executive.
"Thanks to the Traffic Jam Whopper campaign, we increased the deliveries of some outlets in April, adding a significant number of orders per restaurant and per day, just during peak hours," he said in a statement. statement of 10 May. sent to the News Restaurant of the country.
Burger King's New York advertising agency, We Believers, released a video last week showing the traffic jam delivery campaign in action.
Drivers stuck in end-to-end traffic jams are encouraged to order as soon as they enter a delivery zone located less than 3 km from the nearest Burger King. To ensure security and avoid tickets, drivers can use voice commands built into the application to place their orders. Orders were limited to a Whopper meal, which included fries and a choice of bottled or water pepsi. (Limit of four)
The billboards and the digital banners of the application display information on the status of the orders. A countdown teases drivers, telling them how many minutes they have to place orders while their cars are moving in certain delivery areas.
Once the order is ready, a motorcyclist with a white container of the brand Burger King attached to his bike delivers the meal. In-app Google Map technology is used to determine the exact location of the driver.
"We managed to deliver an average of 15 minutes from order to delivery," We Believers co-founder Marco Vega told NRN.
Burger King said The Traffic Jam Whopper will be deployed in other high traffic cities, including Los Angeles. The company has not provided a schedule for the rollout, which will offer an expanded menu – not just the Whopper combo meal, Vega said.
"The strong increase in awareness and downloads of our Burger King Mexico app along with the surge in overall sales of delivery services is prompting us to consider expanding the program not just in other cities. Mexican animated, but also in other megacities like Los Angeles, São Paulo and Shanghai, "said Cardinali.
Waitr plays the local game
Tech Tracker, which is celebrating its first birthday this month, typically focuses on the big players in the distribution – Uber Eats, Grubhub, DoorDash and Postmates.
But there are innumerable other little players who, believe it or not, become a thornbone on the side of big players. One of them is Waitr.
Since Waitr Holdings Inc. went public at the end of 2018, we have learned a lot more about its strategy of dominating small and medium markets. This range has grown exponentially this quarter with the acquisition of Bite Squad.
The purchase is largely responsible for the 287% growth in the company's revenue of $ 48 million compared to $ 12.4 million in the first quarter of 2018.
The Lake Charles, Louisiana-based company said Bite Squad contributed about $ 22.9 million to its revenue gains. The delivery brand, whose drivers are employees of W-2 and not contractors, works with chains and independent restaurants in cities with between 50,000 and 750,000 inhabitants.
While Waitr experimented with non-partner restaurants during small tests, the company told NRN that it was adding more restaurants to its platform without a partnership agreement.
This is a big difference, as some third-party delivery companies often deliver restaurant products without consent, especially when entering new markets.
Waitr said that its active customers during the quarter increased by 309% to 2.2 million euros, compared with nearly 542,000 for the same quarter of last year. During the quarter, Waitr added more than 3,600 restaurants and more than 240,000 active dinners.
By comparison, Grubhub has 19.3 million active diners and averages 521,000 orders per day, according to its latest quarterly results.
Waitr's founder and CEO, Chris Meaux, said Waitr would continue to grow by strategically dominating smaller markets, rather than aiming at a national scale.
"Our proven gaming book is focused on the local market," Meaux told investors during a conference call.
The company recorded a net quarterly loss of $ 24.7 million, or 38 cents per share, compared to a loss of $ 3.4 million, or 34 cents per share, in the first quarter of 2018. This loss is 39; explains by non-recurring expenses of $ 6.9 million related to the Bite Squad purchase.
ChowNow is aiming delivery
The ChowNow online ordering platform recently secured $ 21 million in Series C financing and celebrated the capital injection by attacking third-party delivery companies.
Last week, the company unveiled a website called www.orderbetter.com, designed to inform consumers of third-party distribution tactics. Specifically, ChowNow said that last-mile delivery companies are attracting local restaurants with a promise of increased sales. But freelancers are likely to suffer more from third-party deliveries than large chains, as they can not absorb commissions that hurt margins, says ChowNow.
"The exorbitant costs generated by third-party food delivery applications are unsustainable for independent restaurants," says ChowNow. "We hope that OrderBetter.com and the broader awareness campaign will help reverse the course we follow."
Tech Tracker has contacted DoorDash, Grubhub and Postmates industry leaders for feedback. The companies refused or could not be contacted for comment.
ChowNow was founded in 2012, well before today's modern day delivery. It allows to order online via a restaurant's Facebook page, its website, Google, an application created by ChowNow or via the ChowNow website.
Contact Nancy Luna at [email protected]
Follow her on Twitter: @FastFoodMaven
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