The rise and growth journey of food delivery apps in the world of hyperlocal e-commerce

The way the world eats and satisfies its hunger is changing dramatically. Not very long ago, people preferred cooking food at home or even if they wanted to get food from outside, there were not many options available. But, food delivery in present times has quickly shifted gears and changed for good. Its rise, most importantly has been due to the fact that consumers everywhere around have started to prefer convenience over and above everything.

There is no dearth of sumptuous food items available in the market now. Right from getting super cheesy pizzas and lasagne to the most savoured Chinese and Thai dishes, the markets have it all. An icing on the cake is the fact that simultaneous growth of hyperlocal e-commerce, easy availability of food delivery apps and lightning-fast deliveries have paved way for the modern consumers seeking such dishes.

The growth of food industry has been pretty promising in the last decade. In fact, one of the several industries that have witnessed enormous change in the last couple of years is the food delivery industry. Attribute it to the growing technology or changing lifestyles of consumers, food delivery industry is a thing to envy and its statistics are a sight to behold. The global online food delivery market size was valued at USD 189.70 billion in 2021 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.8% from 2022 to 2028. More such statistics infuse in us the understanding that food deliveries are here to stay for much longer than expected.

Food delivery app installs

Applications have simplified consumers’ lives around the world. A food delivery app likewise has provided convenience to them that was never fathomed. The use of such food delivery apps has grown by leaps and bounds. To put a statistic in point, global installs of food delivery apps increased by 25% in 2020 compared to 2019, and were up by a further 21% during 2021. Looking at APAC, installs were even more impressive, increasing by 37%, topped off by an additional 6% in 2021. In North America, the 2020 boost hit 30% and was up by another 10% in 2021. Compared to other regions, EMEA saw the least growth in 2020 with a 12% increase, but the market was booming in 2021, up by 37% in that year.

The growing taste for ordering in- Tracing the food delivery app sessions

As impressive as the installs are, so are the sessions tracked through the data. They have shown ascend from one year to the next. If statistics are to be believed, global sessions of food delivery apps skyrocketed by 88% in 2020 as compared to 2019. And while the report was being developed in 2021, the global sessions had jumped to another 43%.

Taking a look at the regions again, sessions in APAC exploded in 2020, growing 128% compared to 2019, and steadily continuing with that pace in 2021, it posted a boost of 42% by the end of Q3. Similarly, sessions in North America jumped a whopping 122% in 2020 and they did grow by a further 45% in 2021. While not quite as momentous as the others, sessions in EMEA also saw significant increases, at 41% and 42% in 2020 and 2021, respectively.

With app installs and sessions growing at an unprecedented pace, the average session length has also increased consistently in all the regions. Where on one hand in 2019, the global average session length was 11.03 minutes, it increased considerably to 12.85 minutes in the year 2020. As of the last recorded data, it had already climbed to 13.59 minutes while the year 2021 was still not over. APAC's average session length has grown the most, with 9.74 minutes in 2019, 12.05 in 2020, and 12.69 in 2021. EMEA also posted substantial boosts, with 9.93 minutes in 2019, 10.45 minutes in 2020, and 11.3 minutes in 2021.

So, it can be witnessed through the data of food delivery app installations and sessions that there is a growing enchantment for food delivery among the consumers, inhabiting various regions of the world. As long as this fondness grows, which in all possibility is going to last long, food delivery app downloads, installs and usage are going to boom. Such an unparalleled craze and devotion of time to food delivery services has primarily led to the rise and growth of it. And, this makes binding upon us to further understand the benefits that are accrued to food delivery apps.

Benefits accrued to food delivery apps in the world of hyperlocal e-commerce

Round the clock services- A large number of restaurants and food joints are usually open round the clock and offer services 24*7. This enables customers to order food any time they want. This has contributed to the ever-growing demand for food delivery services across the globe. While customers can order food at almost any hour of the day, businesses too can reach out to a large number of customers at even the oddest hours of the day, with the help of food delivery apps.

Reduced operating costs- Seeking services of food delivery apps is generally economical. This means taking your business online in a hyperlocal world. The costs involved in operating an online food delivery business are way lower than the ones involved in operating an offline set up. Food delivery services are easy to manage and with experienced and trained drivers, businesses can be run smoothly, efficiently and economically. Such services allow drivers to deliver food and other items using their own bike, scooters, and other vehicles which further reduces operating costs of restaurants, food outlets, virtual kitchens, etc.

Brings great convenience- Right from searching the product of your choice online to getting it delivered to your destination, it is all smooth and convenient for the onboard businesses. Things that were once fathomed to be complex and tedious, have become easier and convenient, courtesy to the rise of food delivery apps. Businesses using an efficient food delivery app can score really big in terms of rendering ease of use to their customers. Such an app makes simple food delivery services possible for customers as they can easily decide what they want to order, when to get their order delivered, what payment method they are going to choose and where do they want the order to be delivered.

End to end automation- This feature ensures that the processes are carried out in an automated fashion thereby reducing delays and achieving great efficiencies for businesses. Though not all, but there are some food delivery software companies that are end-to-end automated and hence provide the feature of auto scalability for businesses. This has also spurred the growth of food delivery services and is urging several ghost kitchens and culinary entrepreneurs to take food delivery services as a viable option.

Easy way to make up for reduced foot traffic- Post the coming into being of hyperlocal e-commerce, businesses have loved they way it makes up for reduced organic footfall. There is no doubt about the fact that offering food delivery services has helped restaurants and food businesses recover the reduced foot traffic caused due to restrictions in pandemic like situations where lockdowns and social distancing norms were enforced. Not just this, but having a food delivery app for your business can also allow you to reach out to new customers who are more inclined to ordering online from the comfort of their homes. This has also led to food delivery services picking up pace in recent times.

Lightning-fast deliveries- If there is one thing that we, in this age of hyperlocal e-commerce, can be sure about is the fact that consumers are wanting unbelievably fast deliveries. And while food delivery companies compete to set newer benchmarks of deadline deliveries every day, it is no longer a dream. Yes! consumers of today are liking the pace of food delivery services and perhaps, this has set them going globally.

What does the future hold for food delivery apps?

There are a number of contributing factors that have led to an evolution in how we buy food and consume it. In fact, the rise and continuing growth of food delivery is not a matter of chance or serendipity but mass acceptance. Yes! the global consumers are shifting towards more online buying and food delivery services take the lead. Since it is a low involvement buying, satiates hunger and provides the expected convenience, consumers’ frequency to order food online is getting increased; and it is only expected to grow with the passage of time.

The impending technology looks even more promising and brings in a great deal of possibilities for businesses wanting to get into the hyperlocal e-commerce space through food delivery apps. For the existing ones, the graph continues to ascend as the number of consumers making online food orders show an increase with each passing day.

Moreover, food delivery platforms that are automated to the core and can be feature packed as in- providing highly tailored UX/UI, payment gateway integration, organized dashboard, social media integration, custom navigation, geofencing, push notifications, etc, surely paves way for more businesses to come and be a part of the growing hyperlocal craze. This is satisfying for aspiring businesses and food entrepreneurs to the extent that an increasing number of them is expected to take up food delivery as a viable option.

Lastly, as they say, if hyperlocal e-commerce is the future, drone deliveries are the means that are going to take it all the way through. Yes, delivery through drones is an evolving and riveting concept that can compel a lot of restaurants, food businesses and cloud kitchens to be a part of online food delivery industry and be called ‘pioneers’ in drone deliveries in the coming times.

Winding up

Putting across forthrightly, the future is hyperlocal and an efficient and robust food delivery app is the steering that can guide us into it and then through it.

Which one does your business intend to pick up will decide the course and pace it is steered at.