Discovery
The popularity of takeout and food delivery services is only going to increase moving forward. The industry is starting to adapt to these changes. Yang Chow will be able to help bring a more convenient ordering experience to its customers where the meals can be enjoyed at home.
Market Research
Netflix and Amazon reshaped consumer habits by shifting how we can watch movies and shows or shopping effortlessly without leaving our homes. In a way, it has paved the way of enjoying experiences at home more and with restaurant industry following the similar market models as Amazon and Netflix. The delivery and takeout scene has been growing and it doesn't look like it's going to slow down any time soon. Most restaurants have been trying to keep up with the trends of the ongoing consumer demands for takeout and delivery.
Understanding the market
Assumptions
It was clear to layout what were the general assumptions in the market to help us proceed further with the research
- Assume the average user were somewhat familiar with online ordering and/or delivery systems i.e. Ubereats, Grubhub, Postmates, Door Dash
- Social media platforms or food review sites/platforms are essentials for bringing awareness to the brand
- People don't want to spend time to figure out an order platform, if it is difficult to use
- We eat with our eyes first, pictures or food descriptions help customers make food decisions easier
General Statistics
A recent study shows the restaurants brands are pushing down these channels.
- Takeout for pickup is projected to generate $124 billion in sales this year
- Takeout with direct delivery from a restaurant: $32 billion
- Takeout with delivery from third-party delivery company: $13 billion
- Catering for pickup or delivery: $40 billion
ResourceRise of Online Delivery Applications
Consumers are ordering out more
- Food delivery or pickup apps have brought America the golden age of delivery and takeout: growing 300% faster than dine-in over the past 5 years
- Well over half of the U.S. consumers grab delivery or takeout at least once a week
3rd Party Delivery Apps
Advantages
- Attracts customers that business may have not normally reached (in-sales)
- Brings exposure to new businesses
Disadvantages
- Higher fee structure brought on to the restaurant that adds pressure to margins
- User data released to these 3rd party apps, restaurant business may not have access to this info
Businesses would most likely need to consider convenience, efficiency, and cost when transitioning to online takeout and delivery methods. Third party services helped bring many businesses a seamless online ordering experience. Other companies have ended up creating their own native ordering systems via web or app.
Surveys
To gather more qualitative data about potential customers, I surveyed 18 people and interviewed 6 people. These participants all have had experience with online ordering.
Key Learnings
Looking through the data, the concerns were all even for the most part. Mainly, phone call orders seemed to have an issue of being incorrect. From the notes, they mentioned some places may not repeat the orders. The result may be due to the establishment being slammed with orders via phone call orders. Third party services may fault from the drivers not reaching destination or canceling.
Ordering concerns that go wrong
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Important factors needed for ordering
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Photos and descriptions of food dishes are the most necessary when ordering.
Preferred channel for ordering
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Interviewees preference is online ordering
Interviews
After the gaining insight from the surveys, I conducted interviews with six participants who often order food. This helped me understand some of the paint points they experienced.
Interview QuestionsInsight & Opportunities
How to choose a restaurant?
From the survey and interviews, the interviewees provided how do they decide which place to eat when there are multiple restaurants that serve the same cuisine in the vicinity.
- Past experiences
- Friends recommendations
- Yelp and Google reviews
- Number of reviews & ratings
- Cost
- Appealing photos
- Posts or reviewed by a reliable source (blogger, sites: the infatuation, timeout, LA Eats)
Key Challenges
Preference to Product
Most users would stick to a certain app or website where they were familiar with. If the service was convenient to use, the users were likely to return.
Accurate Time Estimates
For users, it was important that the time estimation needed to be as accurate for actual pick up or delivery times. It would frustrate customers when the times were delayed due to the driver or restaurant being backed up on orders.
Heuristic Analysis
Yang Chow's website suffered from many issues that may have prevented the business from successfully launching their takeout business moving forward.
The key takeaway was that sites ordering system was nonexistent. Most of the site was static and bland in design. The site did not provide a great experience for ordering.
Competitive Analysis
Yang Chow fell short in terms of many areas. Looking at the competitors, many modern Chinese restaurants offered takeout orders either through a 3rd party service or natively built one. The competitive analysis explored features that restaurant clearly failed at from the the design above.
Comparative Analysis
Since I was designing an online takeout experience for Yang Chow, I needed to explore what features are utilized in market for food online ordering services.
User Persona
I created a persona that reflected who the target representative audience was and who it would need to satisfy.
