Things to keep in mind before opening a restaurant on Postmates

Introduction

Moving your restaurant to an online platform is beneficial and does wonders for your business. As profitable as opening a restaurant online may seem, it is equally essential to bear a few things in mind before opening a restaurant online. 

The new generation loves getting food delivered to their doorsteps. If you are one of the restaurants that provide this facility with delicious food, you have already secured a place in the market.

There are numerous such platforms for hosting your restaurant there. A few of them are UberEats, Postmates, GrubHub, DoorDash, etc. Opening a restaurant on Postmates has numerous benefits, and one of them is an increase in customer base.

Though the prerequisites of opening a restaurant on Postmates may get glossed over, you should not overlook them. We tell you everything that you should keep in mind before opening a restaurant on Postmates.

What is Postmates?

Postmates, one of the on-demand food and good delivery services companies, lets buyers order anything from anywhere in the city and work in over 100 metropolitan cities in the USA. People often compare Postmates' business model to its rivals like UberEats, but it has a unique way of delivering the goods; through human messengers. 

This network of human couriers gets connected via an app and GPS; whenever a consumer wants something delivered, the messengers get notified. After being launched in 2011, Postmates saw great success over the next four years.

How does Postmates work for your customers?

Postmates has concise work. Users order from within the app after looking into numerous food items and restaurants. Once they pay for the order (or choose the pay-at-home option), Postmates appoints a driver to collect the order from the restaurant and deliver it to users' doorsteps.

What makes Postmates unique?

These are the Postmates features that stand out in the market:

1. It lets individuals order anything from anywhere in the city.
2. It includes particular stores for consumers.
3. The Postmates delivery fee is not that high and depends on the distance from the pickup to the drop-off points.
4. They can deliver the product within an hour.
5. The Postmates pay structure also attracts users. The minimum Postmates delivery fee is $5, but sometimes offers include a lesser minimum cost.
6. Consumers can track the location of the messenger through GPS to know how far the order has reached.
7. The newly launched feature of Postmates is the pickup option, which they found with the motive of expanding.

How to register your business on Postmates/ How to open a restaurant on Postmates?

Here, we will tell you the registration process for opening a Postmates restaurant. 

Step 1

Go to the sign-up page built for businesses on the Postmates website. Now, you need to fill out your personal information, such as name, phone number, email address, and a password, which you can use to log in to your account.

Step 2

The next step you take is to add your business information to Postmates. First, you will need to type in the Name of your business and proceed by claiming it. This process gives you control of the information that gets displayed. If you are unable to find it, you can skip this step and move on to the next.

Step 3

Click on the "My business is not listed" option if you do not find your business. Make sure that you enter your business address and phone number before proceeding.

Step 4

Once you submit your business information, you will see a confirmation screen.

Step 5

Postmates will then email you to confirm your registration and request you to log in to complete the setup. Next, open up the login screen to enter your email and password. Before you type in your banking information and product details, ensure that your location information is correct.

Step 6

It is an additional (and optional) step. Here, you can download the Postmates app on your mobile device to stay updated and get instant notifications of your business performance. This last step ensures that your business content is always updated on the Postmates app and other digital channels. 

Things to keep in mind before opening a restaurant on Postmates

Setup and Integration

Before you open a restaurant on Postmates, know it is a bit expensive.

The entire process is not just long, but it also demands some details from you before getting started with the setup.

When this process gets finished, you can right away start promoting and selling from your website, apps, and social media channels. When you open a restaurant on Postmates, you can also integrate with third-party apps for POS, Loyalty Programs, etc. 

Postmates also lets buyers order from their Facebook and Instagram profiles since you can easily integrate menus into the website.

Order Management

Postmates offers an all-inclusive dashboard that permits restaurant owners to access orders, pull up reports, and track inventory. But it lacks the flexibility to change the existing structure to suit their needs. For this, restaurant owners need to contact customer support and ask them to make the most of the changes.

Multilingual Customer Support

Multilingual customer support assures that all of your consumers, irrespective of their native or preferred language, culture, or location, get the most out of your products and services,

Cost

As a restaurant owner, you will receive the following benefits:

1. Zero cost for using their web app
2. Zero cost for their delivery as a Service API
3. It does not charge you until your consumer gets their delivery
4. You can request a custom flat rate fee with Postmates to see if it suits you better.

To manage your customers’ payments, all payments go via the Postmates app, and consumers can pay via credit card. Sadly, Postmates' fee system is not transparent. On their website, they say that fees come from the pre-tax prices of your food. 

Postmates also states that they will define your commission rate once you sign up with them. Nevertheless, you can expect the online platform to charge you a commission fee; it might range from 15% to 30% of each pre-tax order.

How Much Does Postmates Charge Their Partners? 

Commission Fee: It charges a commission fee of 15-30% of the order amount to their partnered restaurants for delivering and listing their products.

Sales Tax: The sales tax depends on the state that the store belongs to, and it varies from 5-7%(approx) of the order amount.

Deposit: The Postmates platform charges a minimal amount, less than 1% of the order value. It is for depositing partnered restaurants' money in their account.

Credit Card Tax: Postmates charges nothing for a partner with a credit card. It will be beneficial to partners as they can skip credit card tax.

Pros Of Postmates Partnership

Postmates gives its partners numerous benefits, and here are some critical pros of a Postmates partnership.

1. It increases your brand visibility and reaches your neighborhood's more extensive user base.
2. It lets you know what your consumers like from your store with valuable data.
3. Postmates gives a 300% increase in online takeaway sales to its partnered restaurant owners.
4. Partner restaurants can promote their brands by showing ads or offering offers to their buyers.

Cons Of Postmates Partnership

Although there are numerous benefits to the Postmates partnership, here are some cons you should know.

1. Postmates slice away from your hard-earned cash as a commission fee and other charges.
2. There are several concerns in brand building, and many have concerns about their brand identity.
3. Many partnered restaurants are worried about whether their products get delivered to their consumers properly.

Conclusion

Opening a restaurant on Postmates or any platform is a big transition, and you need to take every step carefully. Though the benefits are exciting of having an online presence, the cost at which it comes is worth considering. 

We know how Postmates charges its partnered restaurant owners and what the cons of opening a restaurant on Postmates. It is suggested that if you want to open a restaurant on Postmates, be prepared for the associated costs they are going to charge you and how much control you have over your customers' orders.