Food remains an essential commodity that is needed to sustain everyday life. Providing food services has created ample business opportunities for people, knowing that it is a necessity that cannot be overlooked, and this has led to the birth of fast-food eateries, restaurants, mobile snack points, and other forms or patterns businesses have taken to render food services to people. The demand for food is nonstop, so means to ensure that people get it on time have been devised, and one such way is through the connectivity of food ordering platforms serving as intermediaries between customers and food stores. Today, attention will be on ChowNow.
Overview
ChowNow is an online platform for restaurant pick-up and delivery. The roots of ChowNow date back to 2011, when it was founded by Christopher Webb and Eric Jaffe. The platform was launched in 2012 at the National Restaurant Show in Chicago. The company has its headquarters in Culver City, California, the United States of America.
ChowNow is aimed at linking restaurants with customers through its platform through which customers order food. In other words, it is an online food ordering platform that provides the usage of technology and support to assist customers in ordering food directly from various local restaurants. It is a commission-free platform.
The food delivery business has always been a major area that businesses like UberEats and DoorDash have latched onto to create a market for themselves. Unlike UberEats and DoorDash, which charge a percentage for their services from partnered restaurants for each order made, ChowNow does not charge any percentage for its service offering. Rather, ChowNow’s payment is based on a monthly subscription payment structure.
ChowNow allows restaurants to take orders through their own branded medium. Using ChowNow, restaurants can customize and brand their online ordering apps. In addition, these restaurants can make use of ChowNow’s online platform to take orders directly through social media, like via Facebook and Instagram.
To meet up with rising demand, ChowNow decided to employ the use of Salesforce Jump Start—a tailored program that brings professionals or experts to help companies save time and financial resources by getting started with Salesforce. This led the company to open and execute digital channels of engagement, including LiveAgent (an online chat) and SMS. With the use of Jump Start, the company has been able to reduce wait time for customer support by 50% and complaints by one-third.
In addition, Salesforce was able to help the company through the pandemic by helping it to quickly add new products and services, like curbside pickup.
As of today, ChowNow partners with thousands of restaurants across all 50 states of the U.S.
ChowNow App
ChowNow app is considered to operate like every other online food delivery app. For a customer to use the ChowNow App, the following steps need to be followed:
- Download the App (either on an Android or iOS-enabled device).
- Enter your location and it will show you restaurants around your area where you can order.
- Add selected items to the cart.
- Checkout.
The app is considered helpful to users as it saves them from the heavy price that would have accrued from the commission that is included from using other apps.
ChowNow Benefits
The benefits that come with ChowNow have proven to be enormous, and they will be listed here as follows:
- Increased Revenue
ChowNow is not as expensive as other apps as it has set a flat monthly rate, which means that restaurants can save from sales during the month. ChowNow does operate on a commission basis.
- Obtaining customer data
Using apps makes it easier for businesses to be able to capture customer data as it helps to drive business. Obtaining customer data will help in identifying customer preferences and, in that way, enable and provide customers with a better shopping experience by devising marketing strategies that will suit them.
- Uninterrupted Sales
Unlike shopping on-site, using an app like ChowNow allows restaurants to have uninterrupted sales as there is no line of people in the store to affect or slow down sales. More so, weather conditions do not affect sales as transactions are performed via the phone.
- Promote customer engagement
ChowNow and other online platforms serve as marketing agents for restaurants because their platforms are readily accessible by all and are not limited by location.
- Electronic invoice
Electronic invoices have enabled transparency as customers can see how much their bill is and the corresponding price of every item purchased.
- Ease of Payment
The ease at which payment is made has also enabled customers to enjoy their experience as it comes with ease and convenience in enabling them to order food from their place of comfort and pay through any chosen channel of payment, like through e-wallets, debit cards, or credit cards.
Conclusion
ChowNow has grown into a reputable force in the online food delivery business, and its peculiar mode of charging has also endeared it to various customers subscribing to use its platforms for food delivery to the public. However, using ChowNow has given diners the opportunity to connect with the best independent restaurants in their area to order takeout in a way that is fair to restaurants. Lastly, ChowNow is now considered a guide to helping customers learn about new restaurants and see if they fit into the category of restaurants that meet their tastes.
FAQS
- How much does ChowNow charge for delivery fees?
The delivery fee is calculated before the user confirms the placed order. Usually, it is $3 per pickup plus $3 per mile, inclusive of the tip.
- How reliable is ChowNow?
ChowNow has been able to secure the trust of millions of people across its places of operation and is considered to be highly reliable.
- How much is ChowNow’s revenue?
ChowNow is considered to be servicing online ordering systems for over 11, 000 restaurants across North America, and claims it generates up to $1 billion worth of revenue through its platform.
