Mobile Payments May Be the Key Ingredient in Food Delivery

We’ve discussed the concept of mobile payments interlinking with food delivery at length here, and with good reason: the two fields intermingle wonderfully. Whether you’re just sitting at home scheduling the evening’s dinner or you’re out somewhere and you want to build an impromptu picnic in the park, mobile payments and food delivery equal a smooth, improved experience. It’s catching on well beyond delivery, too, making mobile payments useful in restaurants of every stripe according to new reports.

One of the biggest factors giving mobile payments extra ground in the food service game is the steadily growing number of use cases for it. Restaurants have clearly seen the potential impact, and have been rapidly ramping up their use of the latest point-of-sale (POS) mechanisms to take advantage.

For restaurants, mobile payments are heaven-sent. The rapid speed of payment processing, a range of tools to authenticate payments and thus get the restaurant paid faster in turn, and the ability to use mobile payments as a way to not only improve customer service but also turn over more tables rapidly are all part of the draw for restaurants.

For delivery, meanwhile, there’s little difference. The food can be effectively paid for before it’s even made, thus making delivery little more than a way to complete a transaction. There’s very little risk for the business—even for the delivery drivers who no longer have to collect cash beyond their tip, and not always even then—and that makes mobile payments highly desirable for restaurants.

Essentially, the pace of mobile payments use in restaurants should really only speed up. We’re already seeing mobile payments hit a wide range of restaurants, including at mobile order-ahead functions and with in-restaurant order kiosks. Additionally, restaurants—historically low-margin enterprises—that haven’t already adopted mobile payments tools will have to to keep up with their competitors. Those who fail to offer customers the desired experience will suffer; it’s a fact of the open market.