Hey Hot Potatoes,

Welcome to the latest edition of the Hot Potato Newsletter! I don't know about you, but I am feeling extremely excited, especially because we're talking about a topic close to my heart this week: food delivery.

In the UK, takeaway is big business, according to Statista, with it being the third largest online food delivery market globally, behind China and the US, with the sector valued at around $48 billion in 2024. It goes to show that there is a large opportunity out there, and it's important to know how best to set yourself up for success.

Having spent three years at Just Eat as well as a brief stint at Deliveroo, I have learned all the tips and tricks that restaurants can leverage to give themselves the best chance of success. I firmly believe if done in the right way, delivery can be a key channel for your business. In today's newsletter, we're going to explore all the different methods you can use to maximize revenue on delivery. Let's get into it!

In today’s email: Delivery Domination: Supercharge Your Delivery Sales This Summer

Read Time: Approx 3-4 mins

Platform and Account Optimisation

Make sure you’ve nailed the list below and you’ll be on your way to food delivery success.

• Ensure you’re set up correctly: It was unbelievable at times, during my time working at Just Eat when restaurants wouldn't put their correct opening hours, missing out on orders as a result! Make sure there are no spelling mistakes on the menu and generally everything looks correct online.

• Preparation and Hold Time: These are without a doubt the two most important operational metrics food delivery companies focus on. Prep time = the amount of time it takes to prepare your food and hold time = the amount of time you take to prepare your food after your allotted prep time. The lower the prep time and hold time, the more couriers enjoyed picking up from a restaurant, meaning better service and a better customer experience. A lower prep time typically makes you appear more appealing in search results. If couriers started to get wind your restaurant took ages to prepare food, they were less likely to accept orders.

• Integrate to POS: From an operational viewpoint, its worth using a platform like Deliverect or Slerp (who provide direct delivery too) to integrate your delivery platforms with your POS. This means all orders go straight into your til so no chance of manual errors and other benefits like instant menu changes across all platforms at once. This saves you time, money and potential headaches further down the line.

• Backlinks working Correctly: Its worth double checking the links on your website and socials are correctly directing to the platforms of your choice. Lets not trip up at the first hurdle when customers are trying to order from you but cant!

Get the basics right and you’ll have the foundations in place to be set up for success on delivery!

Menu Magic

Your menu holds all the cards to your success! You want to make it as attractive as possible to drive further revenue, heres how:

• Bundles: These are a great way to offer increased value to customers but also increase your average order value too. It's always advised to put these right at the top of the menu, making it the first thing they see.

• Build Your Own: One of the biggest successes I saw when working at Just Eat was implementing a 'Build Your Own' section on a restaurant partner's menu. Customers loved the ability to personalise their order and in turn spent more too after adding a bunch of different add-ons.

• Menu Layout: A simple menu layout wins every time… you want to make it as easy as possible for customers to buy from you. Clear sections that are correctly ordered makes it easier for customers to read and in turn order. A smaller menu typically works better too from an operational perspective, so you can prepare dishes quickly.

• Photography: You want to make your menu look as attractive as possible and strong dish photography plays a big part in that. Customers eat with their eyes and if they've never ordered from you before, photos could provide that extra push to incentivise them to order from you.

Remember, you're not just selling food; you're creating an experience that keeps customers coming back. The time you invest in optimising your menu today will pay dividends through increased order values and customer loyalty tomorrow.

Marketing Initiatives

The SERP can be a competitive place, and sometimes it can be worth looking into ways you can use promotional tools to increase awareness.

• Special Menu Items: I occasionally saw some restaurant partners have significant success when creating an exclusive delivery-only dish or special menu item. Whether it was for a specific event e.g. Valentine's Day or using unique ingredients, it gave people a reason to buy from them.

• Social Media: I firmly believe as a hospitality business you need to embrace the digital world, and assuming you want to push revenue through delivery, talk about it on socials. You can also add an 'order now' button on Instagram, making it even easier for people to order from you... mid scroll!

• Ask for benefits: If you are a well respected partner on the delivery platforms or even exclusive on a platform, there is no harm in asking for benefits like boosting you on the SERP, putting you on a favourites carousel or even seeing if they would contribute towards an offer. Remember, delivery platforms are partners in your success; build those relationships and don't be shy about asking for support!

• Promotional Offers: There is no getting around it the SERP is a competitive place. Sometimes, especially early on on the platforms, it could be worth investing in an offer to drive new customers to your menu who have never ordered before. Or if you were quite established, you could run an offer just for new customers. I would never suggest it as a long-term strategy but more of a short-term boost.

Sometimes having great food doesn’t just cut it, you need to have great visibility too. If you want any advice or support with helping grow your delivery sales or even just an audit, let me know, I’d be more than happy to help!

Today we've had a quick run through on how to nail and boost your delivery sales. Tell me, for those who use delivery, whats one change you’re going to implement today?

In our next edition of Hot Potato, we're pulling back the curtain on sustainable and ethical supply chains that don't just feel good, they drive real business value. Discover how leading hospitality brands are transforming their sourcing practices into compelling customer stories and premium price points.

Ready to dive deeper into building sustainable supply chains that customers value? Subscribe now to have the newsletter delivered straight to your inbox in our next edition!

Bon appétit,

Max Shipman, Founder, Hot Potato

P.S. Don't forget to add us to your safe senders list to ensure you don't miss out on any of our tasty content.