Paytronix Systems, Inc., the most advanced digital guest experience platform, published 
the inaugural edition of The Digital Divide, Aggregators: The Cost Of Convenience, which finds that 58% of US consumers skip aggregators (i.e., GrubHub, DoorDash, Uber Eats) when ordering from their favorite restaurants. A PYMNTS and Paytronix collaboration, The Digital Divide focuses on food delivery aggregators, an ordering method that some consumers find convenient, but others avoid due to perceived high costs.
The research finds that only 17 percent of consumers in the United States who regularly purchase food from restaurants used an aggregator to order from their favorite table-service restaurant or quick-service restaurant (QSR) at least once in the last three months.
“Brands today must own their digital ordering channel from start to finish,” said Paytronix CEO Andrew Robbins. “Guests clearly want to work directly with the brands they love, and the more control brands have over the full ordering process, the better and more personalized they can make it. Aggregators play a key role in this ecosystem, but brands need the tools and technologies in place to keep their guests happy and coming back.”
The report findings include:
- Aggregators remain less popular option — Less than one-fifth of restaurant customers used an aggregator to order from their favorite eateries in the last three months. Ordering directly from the restaurant by phone or online remain much more popular options.
- DoorDash and Uber Eats are the most popular aggregators — Door Dash is the most popular, with 58 percent of aggregator users ordering through the platform at least once in the past 15 months. Uber Eats (46 percent), Grubhub (37 percent) and Postmates (20 percent) round out the top four, with less than 10 percent for other players.
- Convenience is Key — Approximately two-thirds of aggregator users say they select aggregators for convenience. More than one-third believe it is the only way to order delivery from their desired restaurant. Most of the other top reasons also center around convenience; 34 percent of aggregator users say these platforms are the only way to get delivery from the restaurants of their choice, and 32 percent say ordering this way is faster.
- Cost is a factor — More than half of restaurant customers who do not use aggregators point to the fees and menu mark-ups added by aggregators as a reason they go directly to restaurants. Those that use aggregators are less concerned about the cost factor.
Methodology
PYMNTS surveyed 2,213 adults who purchase food from restaurants at least once a month — including dine-in, delivery and pickup — between September 2 and 9 about how they place orders, how much they spend and the impact of the pandemic on their purchases.
