As the Covid-19 pandemic continues and South Africa moves back to lockdown level 4, millions of people in the food, entertainment and hospitality industry are being heavily affected, and continue to look for ways to keep their doors open and reach their customers.
We have been amazed by the resilience of the restaurant industry. It is a long road ahead which means it is more important than ever to band together to support restaurants. Our team has been working around the clock to do everything we can to support the communities we serve and have been investing in measures that will help restaurant partners to attract customers and increase order volumes.
Win a R500 Uber Eats vouchers and support the restaurant industry
We are also making it easier for Eaters to give back to restaurants and delivery people. You can now give directly to the restaurants you love at checkout. 100% of your contribution will go to the restaurant. You can also thank and tip your delivery person in the app after each delivery.
Leveraging technology
Restaurants can leverage technology platforms to ensure they can continue reaching their customers without having additional costs.
Lwandile Ndala from Wandies Place in Soweto has been operating on the Uber Eats app since its launch in Soweto in 2019. The pandemic has affected Wandies hugely. “As a buffet restaurant that mainly attracts international tourists, due to the pandemic, we had to lay off staff and run the business mainly on deliveries since tourism is slow at the moment”. However, Ndala states, they saw an increase in orders online as they have reached current and new customers via the app.
Another cost reduction comes in the form of staff count, as there is no need to hire any delivery staff, as this is all done by delivery partners that can access the Uber Eats app to make these deliveries. Uber Eats enables them to run their businesses while the app provides them access to a new market.
One such example is Grill Baby in Cape Town who are dedicated to the highest quality halaal ingredients, unique international flavours and sustainable packaging. While the pandemic has hit them hard, thanks to the Uber Eats app they have been able to reach new customers while still delivering to their existing client base.
Restaurants are also able to still quickly and easily test out new food trends with their original menus via the online menu on the app, without having this impact their physical restaurant. This means easy new meal testers without a physical menu change.
For example, Wandies was able to use data and customer feedback provided by the Uber Eats app, to get a sense of what customers enjoyed more from their menu, therefore, allowing them to make sure it's always available. “We are also looking to expand our dishes to cater for students as there is a huge increase in student accommodation in our area, so this will be an opportunity for us to increase our client base.”
Uber Eats houses a large sum of critical data that can be mined effectively into trends, needs and opportunities for various restaurants. By using Uber East’s data analytics tools, restaurants can tap into local market gaps or seasonal tastes, which in turn may attract more consumers and help the business evolve with the changing trends and tastes, continuing its relevance and profitability.
An Italian eatery, Nonna Mia, based in Norwood and Parkhurst, in Johannesburg, whose offering is steeped in tradition and heritage, taking inspiration from Nonna (which means Grandmother in Italian) and her original recipes, has been using the Uber Eats app for four years now.
A manager at Nonna Mia explains, “The Uber Eats data informs our business strategy by allowing us to build on our strengths, address our weaknesses and refine our offering to ensure we are in line with consumer demands.”
He also adds, "The new restrictions have been devastating for the restaurant industry, however, Uber Eats has assisted us in ensuring our business continues to run, and we can still serve our customers throughout this period. We found particular value in the promotions run through the app.“
Uber Eats will help onboard and guide all new restaurant partners and together with data and analytics, aid in the growth of their business. The approach is extremely hands-on and Uber Eats works with the restaurant to create the best possible service offering outcome.
As a business, we will continue to take actions that support delivery people, customers, and our business partners, both large and small.
Follow ubereats_za on social media, visit www.ubereats.com/za or check your Uber Eats app to explore the restaurants in your area and look out for more local deals running to support restaurants. It is also R0 Delivery from now until 11 July 2021, when you order through the Uber Eats app.
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