On-Demand Food Delivery Services

In the wake of the sharing economy, there are more opportunities than ever for new types of companies to emerge and succeed. I mean, the on-demand ridesharing business is currently dominating and revolutionizing our way of travel! On-demand food delivery services are a another great example of the boom of the sharing economy. In fact some are now saying that we are in the midst of the "Golden Age" of Food Delivery.

According to estimates from Morgan Stanley, the food-delivery industry is a $10 billion business, and it is only growing. The delivery space is huge right now as consumers are heavily focused on services that provide maximum convenience.

What are On Demand Food Delivery Services?

You have probably heard of companies like GrubHub and DoorDash. In a nutshell, these companies partner with restaurants or grocery stores to deliver any kind of food you want, right to your door. What a revelation , especially for those of us who love to cozy up in our pajamas and enjoy a prepared gourmet meal, or who live in urban areas without a car or nearby supermarket.

When you want to order food, you can simply log onto a food delivery website serviced in your area and search for the type of food you want, or even the specific restaurant you are craving. You can also browse restaurants by area to find the quickest delivery options to your home. Think you might order from these sites often? Luckily, you can create an account with each of these websites making it even easier to order in more often with just the click of a button (honestly, with an account many of these sites will even save your favorite orders so you can order as quickly as possible!). From start to finish there is minimal contact with the restaurant itself as the food delivery services act as the "middle-man" in this operation.

Who are they?

Depending on where you live, the specific food delivery services available may differ. Some of the most prominent companies that operate across a large span are Yelp's Eat24, GrubHub, DoorDash, and Deliveroo.

Eat24 is a company by Yelp. Only fitting that Yelp, the hub for everything to do with restaurant ratings, jumped on the bandwagon for on-demand delivery. The company prides itself on its "Split the check" feature to alleviate the worry of doing it yourself. In most cases, one of the restaurant's delivery drivers will deliver your order, so there are not opportunities to become a driver.

DoorDash was founded in 2013 by four Stanford students, and remains one of the most populoar on-demand food delivery services. The people who drive for DoorDash are called Dashers, and the company is known for their simplistic application to becoming a driver and earning money in the first week! Hear what some "Dashers" have to say about their jobs here. 

Deliveroo is a British online food delivery company operating in eighty-four cities in the UK, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Belgium, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Australia, Singapore, Dubai, and Hong Kong. Deliveroo offers a section on their website that features restaurants you can only order from their site. Deliveroo calls their delivery people riders because instead of driving cars, you ride a bicycle or scooter. 

GrubHub is the nation's largest online and mobile food ordering company, operating in New York, Washington DC, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, London, and other US cities. GrubHub also includes Seamless. Their mobile application is used by thousands across the country, and is officially partnered with GrubHub. It is fairly easy to become a driver for GrubHub / Seamless, you just simply submit your driver's license or State ID, car insurance, and bank account information. Just like driving for Uber or another rideshare company, the hours are flexible. Find out the specific requirements to becoming a driver here.

Where are they?

You can find food delivery companies almost anywhere, however they are most prominently located in and around major metropolitan areas across the United States. Large cities such as New York City have hundreds of different food delivery services available, each with the offerings of hundreds of restaurants.

Why are they so popular?

Some people question how these services have become so popular. It is all about the convenience factor. On-demand markets will continue to grow and to transform the face of our economy. People use these services in order to save time and focus on the activities that give them the most value. Another reason why these services are so prevalent is because consumers love choice, and each of these websites have hundreds of different options right at your fingertips.

This is why RideGuru operates to give consumers a choice between all the different rideshare services available for them. We believe that as the on-demand economy continues to grow, companies like rideshares and food delivery services will only become more popular and it is important to know the differences between them!

Felicia is an intern at Ride.Guru. She is from upstate NY, and is currently pursuing a marketing and computer information systems degree at Bentley University. One day she hopes to travel the world and visit every continent.