When customers order delivery through an app, the app's driver brings the food and the app takes a commission. When they order on your own website, someone has to drive. For many restaurants that's their own staff. It can work well, but only if you plan the numbers before the first order, not after.
Set the radius first
Distance decides everything else: how long a run takes, how many orders a driver can do in an hour, and whether the food arrives hot. Start small, a few miles around the restaurant, and widen it once you know your real times.
Set a fee, a minimum and a free-delivery threshold
- Delivery fee: covers part of the driver's time and fuel. Customers expect one.
- Minimum order: stops a single coffee from costing you a 20-minute drive.
- Free delivery over a threshold: encourages bigger orders, which is where delivery pays.
Your ordering system should enforce all of these at checkout, and refuse addresses outside your radius, so staff never have to.
Driver pay and insurance
Drivers can be employees on shift, paid per delivery, or a mix. Whatever you choose, follow your state's wage and tip rules. Insurance needs attention: a personal auto policy may not cover a driver making deliveries for a business. Talk to your insurance agent about coverage for employees driving their own cars on the job before anyone takes an order out.
Pickup is still the most profitable order
Delivery on your own site usually keeps more than delivery through an app, but pickup keeps the most. Many restaurants push pickup with a small reward or a faster ready time, and offer delivery for people who really need it. We walk through the numbers in pickup vs delivery.
When an app still makes sense
Apps are good at finding new customers who don't know you yet. Plenty of restaurants keep them for that, and move regulars to their own website and drivers, where every order costs less.
Checklist
- Pick a radius you can serve in a reasonable time
- Set the delivery fee, minimum order and free-delivery threshold
- Decide how drivers are paid and check your state's rules
- Confirm insurance with your agent
- Run a test week with a small radius and adjust
On a NEAPES online ordering website you set the delivery radius, fee, minimum order and free-delivery threshold, and checkout only accepts addresses you can reach.
Frequently asked questions
Is it cheaper to use your own delivery drivers?
Often, compared with app commissions, but only after wages, fuel and insurance. Set a delivery fee and minimum order, and start with a small radius.
What delivery radius should a restaurant use?
Start with a few miles you can serve while food is still hot, measure real delivery times, then widen the radius if the numbers work.
Do delivery drivers need special insurance?
Possibly. A personal auto policy may not cover business deliveries. Ask your insurance agent before drivers start.
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