Things to keep in mind before opening a restaurant on GoPuff

Are you ready to join the bandwagon: joining third-party platforms to flourish your restaurant business? Several third-party platforms like GoPuff, Chownow, and Postmates exist that offer services for a specific fee. 

They give you a place on their platform to increase your sales. Using third-party apps like GoPuff, Postmates, etc., can gain insights into consumer behavior and expose your business to new customers. 

Moreover, strengthen customer loyalty by staying in touch via the platform. Though the advantages can gloss over the initial woes, you certainly can not afford to ignore them. Here we have prepared a list of things you need to keep in mind before opening a restaurant on GoPuff. 

Pros of opening a restaurant on GoPuff

Ease of Customer Journey and Convenience

Customers find it easy to place orders via third-party platforms like GoPuffs, ChowNow, etc. The reason for this is that third-party delivery lets customers quickly order from a Google My Business (GMB) listing, website, or app directly from their phones. 

Popularity

Opening a restaurant on GoPuff increases its popularity. Customers are more likely to choose your business due to the ease of order placement that one gets via third-party platforms. When they use your services and find them satisfying, they will likely recommend your restaurant to their knowns.

Money Spent

Thirty-four percent of customers spend at least $50 per order when ordering food online. Customers can visually see the food items to choose from when ordering food online, making it more impulsive to include add-on items, like drinks, desserts, and sides.

Customers impulsively buy food because they don't realize the cost when purchasing food online. Whereas eating out at a restaurant makes them aware of their spending.

Cons of opening a restaurant on GoPuff

Price (Delivery Fee and Tipping)

If the third-party platforms have high delivery charges and tips, your customers might reconsider using your services again. Even though people like to spend large sums of money on food online, they do not generally like high delivery charges and driver's tips.

Therefore, check out their delivery charges before going for any third-party platform like GoPuff.

Not Available in Certain Areas/Demographics

You might want to open your restaurant on a third-party platform to reach more people. However, GoPuff doesn't provide services in every area, so you might face a disadvantage in this regard.

Therefore, check their availability in your demographic to avoid such situations. If you find them unavailable in your area, you could go for another platform or develop your app.

Suggested Reading:

GoPuff Business Model | Complete Guide

Bad Experience Leads to Less Loyalty

There are chances that the third-party platform might deliver the wrong order to someone, or the food may arrive cold. Such incidents see customers blaming the restaurant instead of the third-party platforms. Your restaurant can even lose its loyal customers because of the third-party platforms.

Therefore, you need to review the third-party platform carefully before opening a restaurant on them.

Things to keep in mind before opening a restaurant on GoPuff

Determine Your GoPuff Restaurant Menu 

If you are new to the GoPuff platform, start with making a simple, attractive, and easy-to-read menu. It would be best to include all your dishes that are easy to make and take less time for preparation. During the initial days, keep your menu full of items that will travel well and are easy to preserve their quality. 

After testing the waters, and if everything goes well, add new food items to your GoPuff restaurant menu.

Packaging & Assembly 

The next thing to take care of is packing and assembly. Be wise and careful when choosing your delivery packaging, as certain food items might not go well when packed together. For example, take-out containers, to-go bags, individually wrapped plastic cutlery, etc.

Also, assemble and examine delivery items for accuracy and safety. It would be best to consider how many staff members you might need to perform this task.

Delivery Technology 

When you open a restaurant on GoPuff, you should know that from now on, you will need to manage two streams of traffic: dine-in and off-premise. One thing that might help you is a kitchen display system that can support capacity management. 

Real-time quotes supplied to the third-party delivery partner, GoPuff, and its customers are based on real-time activity in your restaurant's kitchen. This provision helps you set realistic expectations for your customers regarding their possible delivery time.

Restaurant Layout 

Also, before opening a restaurant on GoPuff, decide on the place where you will gather your carryout orders. Think carefully about whether you need to reconsider your restaurant's layout to accommodate room for assembling delivery orders.

Setup and Integration

Before opening a restaurant on GoPuff, know it is heavy on the setup process. The process of opening a restaurant on GoPuff is lengthy, and you need to furnish them with many details about your restaurant. 

You can start promoting and selling from your website, apps, and social media channels when this process is complete. When you open a restaurant on GoPuff, you can even integrate with third-party apps for POS, Loyalty Programs, etc. 

Suggested Reading:

How to increase the visibility of your restaurant on GoPuff?

Order Management

Even though you will get an all-inclusive dashboard that allows restaurant owners to access orders, pull up reports, and track inventory from GoPuff. 

It might lack the flexibility to alter the existing structure to suit its needs. You need to contact customer help and ask them to make the most of the changes.

Multilingual Customer Support

Make sure your GoPuff restaurant has Multilingual customer support so that all of your consumers can get the most out of your products and services. 

You should be able to listen to concerns irrespective of their native or preferred language, culture, or location. Therefore, check whether GoPuff provides multilingual customer support.

Marketing and Analytics

Also, you need to check with GoPuff on their marketing and Analytics services. Suppose they have limited marketing and do not offer full-fledged digital marketing solutions such as SEO, Blogs, Off-page promotions, etc. In that case, you might be at a loss by opening a restaurant on GoPuff.

Why Open a restaurant on GoPuff?

Since you have seen things to keep in mind before opening a restaurant on GoPuff, let us now see why you should go for GoPuff.

Customer Data  

Understanding customer data is essential to driving your restaurant business. The data lets you know customer preferences and prepare offers based on them. It enables you to enhance the customer experience and make it excellent. Also, it allows you to come up with great marketing strategies that work and skyrocket your profits.

Increase Customer Engagement  

Today, restaurants become famous only when they become available online, as many people come across them while surfing the Internet and go ahead and try them out. 

Going online boosts customer engagement, and with a platform like GoPuff, you also up your marketing game.

Boost Customer Loyalty  

Apps like GoPuff boosts revenue and goodwill by making customers trust your business. People trust things available online and even come across new companies through the Internet.

Uninterrupted Sales  

Even in stormy weather, your customers can order food online; GoPuff ensures uninterrupted sales. One utilizes an online ordering system when one can not travel to the restaurant or have no time.

Electronic Invoicing  

When your staff takes orders via telephone, there are chances of miscommunication. However, that is not the case with an electronic invoice, as it avoids any confusion. 

Electronic Invoicing provides your GoPuff restaurant with transparency. One can see how much bill one has received and how much corresponds to every item.  

Real-time Metrics  

Every restaurant depends on real-time metrics like the number of orders completed, pending orders, revenue generated, best-selling products, etc. This data assists your GoPuff restaurant in coming up with strategies to improve your business.

Online Payment Gateway  

The ultimate goal of online ordering systems is to provide potential users with convenience; the facilities to make payments through debit cards, credit cards, e-wallets, etc., increase this convenience.

Tailored Experiences  

GoPuff gives a personalized experience to customers as it considers customers' preferences and provides them with choices best suited for them. It lets food establishments take care of the likes and dislikes of their customers.  

These are the benefits of opening a restaurant on GoPuff.

Conclusion

Opening one's restaurant on GoPuff or any other third-party platform is full of perks and benefits. However, there are a few things you need to keep in mind before opening a restaurant on GoPuff or any other similar platform. 

You might find yourself in need of professional assistance. In that case, you can always call on AppsRhino. We are a dedicated team with proven expertise in on-demand apps. We can walk you through any difficulties that arise in your journey. 

• Food Delivery
• Taxi services
• Alcohol Delivery
• Grocery Delivery

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What technical requirements should a restaurant fulfill to work with GoPuff?

Restaurants need a reliable internet connection, a point-of-sale system compatible with GoPuff's platform, and the ability to manage online orders seamlessly.

How can a restaurant optimize its menu for GoPuff customers? 

Creating a condensed, curated menu focusing on popular items and optimizing pricing can enhance a restaurant's appeal to GoPuff's audience seeking convenience and value.

What marketing strategies work best for restaurants on GoPuff? 

Utilizing GoPuff's platform for promotions, offering exclusive deals, and leveraging social media to highlight the convenience of ordering from the restaurant through GoPuff can be effective.

What are the financial implications for restaurants partnering with GoPuff?

Restaurants should consider commission rates, potential increases in sales volume, and the impact on profit margins when partnering with GoPuff to ensure a viable financial model.

How does GoPuff handle delivery logistics for partner restaurants? 

GoPuff manages the delivery process, including logistics and drivers, ensuring timely and efficient delivery of orders from partner restaurants to customers.