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Online ordering in an age of 'pie-high' expectations for pizza brands

Increasing demand for delivery and decreasing customer tolerance for waiting mean that pizza brands must absolutely have an online ordering portal today and ensure it works quickly and easily. Here are some things pizza leaders can do now to make sure those essentials are in place.

July 10, 2019 by Elizabeth Kelly — Marketing Specialist, https://www.linkedin.com/company-beta/590905/

Your brand is missing a lot of sales action if it doesn't offer online ordering in an industry that increasingly depends on home delivery and convenience of takeout orders. Your online ordering portal must perform well or it just might as well be emblazoned with words telling the customer to "Go away."

These ideas apply regardless of your brand's size, whether you are a single store or thousands. And that fact will not change. According to Statista, food delivery in the U.S. alone between now and 2023, will expand from around $17 billion to more than $24 billion. We're guessing you want a piece of that action.

Just by way of example, SpeedLine recently talked to the owner of NYPD Pizza's location near Orlando, Florida about this increasingly important pizza business topic. Jeff Longo recalled the moment he realized his brand absolutely had to have an online ordering presence. 

"Customers had been asking for online ordering," Longo said. "A good percentage would call in, but some people would not order by phone. We didn't offer online ordering, and they didn't want to call or walk-in. So they didn't order from us."

But there is, of course, more to it than that. Indeed, simply offering a website to order through isn't enough. The site and online ordering portal attached to your brand must be attractive, reflective of the brand, and most importantly, fast and easy for customers to use. This becomes clear if you simply think back over the past month to all of your online interactions. By doing so, you'll see why your site's ease of use is absolutely mandatory. After all, when websites don't load for you, load slowly or just get caught up in a mire of buggy design and function, how did you then think about the business the site was attached to? Did you trust them? Did you even complete your order? 

Similarly, your pizzeria customers have now grown to be very particular about their online choices, and if their encounter with your brand leaves a bad taste in their mouths, it's likely your pizzas won't be going in their mouths either. And that's lost business, so, take the time to watch a friend or family member enter an order on your site, then evaluate how easy it was for them to complete the order., but don't stop there. Here are some other key online ordering site functions to test and be aware of:  

Mobile performance

Seventy percent of internet traffic was estimated to originate from mobile devices in 2017, according to CIO Dive. In fact, in 2016, 26% of Americans ordered delivery at least once a week and that number has only increased since then. Given those facts, it's critical that your website behave just as well via mobile device as it does from a laptop or desktop computer. If it doesn't, it's very likely you're missing out on orders. 

This means your pizza brand's website should be designed and tested with mobile device usage in mind, so open your site's online ordering portal on your own mobile device. But don't just do it via one browser, try all the browsers available and make sure all your brand's pages are sized properly to mobile formats. The easiest way to do this is to hold your phone in portrait mode, then swipe side-to-side on each page. If you can actually swipe the page in this way, your brand has a problem with its site via mobile interfaces and you need to talk to your provider. 

Accuracy 

Site content accuracy is essential because mistakes can be very frustrating to customers. Review your site and ask others to do the same with an eye out for everything from unclear content and directions to menu discrepancies. Look closely at that online menu. It should match your in-store delivery menu exactly, right down to the price. If price accuracy appears to be a particular problem with your platform, look for an online ordering providers which pull pricing directly from the store at the time of each order to remedy the problem going forward.  

Loading speed

The reality is that today, no one waits — a sobering fact given that your competitors are just a few clicks away. In fact, according to Think with Google, for every one-second delay in loading times, online orders drop by up to 20%. 

Bottom line? You need to monitor your online ordering website's loading speed using Google's page speed tool PageSpeed Insights to ensure this vexing problem is not your brand's. Similarly, check loading speeds yourself by taking your own phone on a "tour" of your store's delivery area locally, stopping at various locations to open your online ordering site. In most cases, slow loading speeds in these areas will be caused by poor cell reception, so it's helpful to know where your customers also may encounter these issues. If you notice a dip in delivery orders placed online in areas you also noted poor reception, it's a good indication poor cell reception is to blame so you can begin troubleshooting the issue.  

Customer experience

A poor online experience creates both frustrated customers and buying friction. The order flow — from just browsing your menu, to placing an order and checking out — must be simple and quick with obvious cues or directions to lead customers through the process. 

Aside from investigating order flow issues, do the detailed job of scanning through your site for problems like link errors, odd image sizes, tiny hard-to-read text, and difficult-to-click buttons. These types of issues — especially on mobile devices — will cause your customers to click away. 

Branding

The branding your team worked so hard to create and align must also be carried through on your online ordering portal. Your location or chain's branding is one of the things that makes your restaurant unique, so make sure when you use your online ordering page, it syncs well with that branding and acts as an extension of your brand. Ensure the site retains consistency in its use of brand logos, colors and images to ensure customers both know and trust their in the right place to get the pies they love.

Feature menu items

What dish is your restaurant known for? What is your weekly special? Good online ordering sites communicate the answers to customers. After all, just like branding, these are the things that set your brand apart and they should be prominent on your website. 

Pizza-specific

Menus for pizzerias aren't simple. Between the choices of sizes, toppings, sauces and crusts, pizzas are inherently customizable, which is one of pizza's big people-pleasing traits. This mean that your online ordering site must be one built for the intricacies and many offerings of a good pizza brand. Likewise, it must allow for all levels of customization in customer orders, including separate toppings on separate halves and other specifics. Before enlisting the help an online ordering provider then, make sure to review their experience with pizzerias to ensure they can provide the level of customization required. A little time and effort now can pay off big later. 

Photo: iStock

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