Advances in technology are changing the way people look at the world. One, seemingly simple way technology changes society is through access to products. Companies like Amazon and eBay have changed retail forever with their use of the Internet, and today, most businesses prioritize their Internet-facing marketing efforts to find new customers. One industry that has popped up from the use of technology is app-based food delivery. Today, we will take a look at the food delivery industry.

Food Delivery Is Not New

You know all about the local Chinese restaurant or pizzeria that will get their professionally-made food to you, but why do these services offer at-home delivery, while other restaurants expect people to visit their establishment? Simple, pizzerias and Chinese restaurants offer delivery because of their demand.

In other words, they can afford to.

As people were more apt to stay at home, namely because of the advent of the television, restaurants, who depend on foot traffic, started seeing that traffic, and therefore their margins wane. Unfortunately, ninety percent of independent restaurants that open close within the first year. Chain restaurants that typically are franchised from corporations, and offer the same fare in all of their locations regardless of ownership have a better chance of success, but still, only have an average five-year life span.

How Technology Got Involved

With the razor-thin margins, many restaurants operate under, and there isn’t a lot of extra capital to pay delivery drivers. Some restaurateurs even believe that it is beneath their establishment to offer delivery. Regardless of what an establishment’s reasoning is for not offering home delivery, the demand for it remains. Savvy entrepreneurs saw the need (in a $7 billion market) and decided that with people’s dependence on technology that it would be profitable to create new companies that develop mobile apps to order and set up take-out or delivery.

Some of today’s most successful food delivery apps include:

• Seamless
• Grubhub
• Doordash
• Uber Eats

As reliance on mobile continues to grow, and with the advent of 5G networks, it won’t be surprising for the technology to become more commonplace.  While most of the services are only available in broader markets, these companies have been aggressive at moving the services to new ones.

Food Delivery Doesn’t Have to Be Prepared

Another trend you see in food delivery is that grocers are beginning to make available products and in some cases complete meal plans, for people using mobile technology. These services hire renowned chefs to come up with recipes that can be searched in an online catalogue. People will select which meals/food they want from the catalogue and the company will ship it to the recipient. Since the company uses fresh ingredients, orders are shipped immediately in refrigerated containers. Some of the top meal-delivery services include:

• Plated
• Sun Basket
• Martha & Marley Spoon
• HelloFresh
• Green Chef Corporation
• Blue Apron

Advances in food delivery have just begun to scratch the service of their value. Have you used an app to get food delivered to your house? What do you think about technology’s role in your dining experiences? Leave your comments below, and return to our blog for more great technology information.