Got delivery? Your customers want to know it’s you.

Want the latest on the delivery industry? See our 2022 food delivery infographic for the newest insights.

On-demand food delivery services have a customer support problem – which is especially problematic considering their popularity is on the rise. So, what is negatively impacting the customer experience? What do customers care about the most? How can the experience be improved? 

First Orion wanted to better understand just how many people are using food delivery apps, and what makes or breaks a consumer’s experience, particularly in the midst of a pandemic. We surveyed 2,000 consumers on their ordering habits and past experiences and released a report today on the findings. 

Here’s a breakdown of some of the top survey findings: 

• More than 92% of people we polled have used a delivery app to order food. While it is easy – and often preferable – to order food using an app, people don’t want to rely on it as their sole source of communication. In fact, more than 80% of First Orion survey respondents said they’d want a phone call if there is any known issue with their order.
• For businesses such as restaurants that rely on third-party services or contractors to deliver their offerings, customer satisfaction is vital. Most people are relatively happy with their preferred app – 96% said they were “satisfied to very satisfied” with the service they use most often. But all of that can change if a delivery doesn’t go as planned; more than 80% of consumers indicated their overall satisfaction would decrease if it took longer than expected to resolve an issue with their delivery.
• So how do customers expect to be contacted? While some respondents are satisfied with a text, more than 30% of respondents stated they’d prefer a phone call if delivery is not going as expected. However, it’s incredibly tricky to get a customer on the phone if you call with an unknown number. 
• A pending food delivery (accompanied by some good old fashioned hunger pangs) should be enough to make consumers answer a mysterious call, but no – 62% of people said they’ve missed a call related to their food order because they didn’t recognize the number that was calling. And 81% of those polled said it was “very important to extremely important” that an unknown number be identified by name so they know who’s calling.

There’s obviously a lot riding on a phone call – the restaurant’s reputation, future orders, the driver’s income, the customer service agent’s call completion times, and the app’s overall efficiency.  If your call is anonymous – it’s probably going to be missed. To ensure better pick-up rates, restaurants and food delivery apps can label their calls. A branded phone call, clearly stating who is on the other end and why, can solve a whole chain of problems before a call is ever missed. It can be the difference between a hot pizza and a lost delivery driver.

Want even more of First Orion’s delivery survey? We’ve put together a full report, available for download here.