Digital marketing has become a top priority for most restaurateurs these days. Improving marketing and customer engagement is the top goal for 36% of business owners in the year ahead, according to Informa's second annual Restaurant Technology Outlook Report. Tools like consumer data, loyalty and rewards programs, and AI-powered marketing capabilities are all part of the conversation, but could distribution platforms also join the fray?
Uber recently announced the launch of Uber Eats Video as part of a new package of operator-based features aimed at expanding the breadth of Uber Eats functionality, including a new app for restaurant managers. Uber Eats Video is a social video feed similar to TikTok, where operators can post mouth-watering videos of menu items to further engage consumers. As social media moves almost entirely to visual media, it makes sense that distribution platforms will graduate from static, text-based restaurant listings to more dynamic entities.
In other news this month, M&A activity in the restaurant tech space continues to heat up with acquisitions of Restaurant365, ChowNow, and Wonder. Drone delivery is also poised to continue to grow in popularity, thanks to a new partnership between DoorDash and Wendy's.
Tech Tracker brings together what's happening in the restaurant industry's technology space, including news from restaurants, vendors, digital platforms, and third-party delivery companies. Here's a breakdown of what you need to know and why.
Uber Eats Video launches as an operator-run social video feed
Uber Eats recently announced the release of several new operator features to celebrate reaching 1 million merchant partners. The most notable of these features is Uber Eats Video, which brings a TikTok-like social video feed to the food delivery platform.
The platform allows operators to post videos to their Uber listings for free, providing a visual element for customers scrolling through the Uber app trying to find something to eat. On the customer side, consumers will see a “Popular Dishes” section within the app, where they can view videos of “selected dishes.” [the Uber] You can also watch videos on the rotating carousel and get suggestions for similar dishes. Operators can post videos of food preparation and packaging to entice consumers to click the delivery button. The feature is currently being tested in San Francisco, New York City, and Toronto.
“For Uber Eats videos, we created a first-of-its-kind product for the delivery platform that showcases some of the great food our sellers create and makes it easy for consumers to discover new dishes. ”This is a product for Uber Eats. “We believe this could be an effective way to help restaurants display and sell their dishes more beautifully and visually to appeal to consumers. We are also excited about the potential of this feature to help people find
While Uber Eats isn't the first platform to offer restaurant-specific social video opportunities (Tech Tracker previously covered Atmosfy, which uses influencers and user-generated content to do much the same thing) ), could be a game-changer for delivery platform business models.
Three major restaurant technology acquisitions this month
As NRN previously predicted, the restaurant technology sector will continue to shrink and consolidate as smaller startups and innovations are acquired by midsize and larger food service technology companies. This month was no exception. Here's all the M&A activity we've observed this month:
- Restaurant365 acquires ExpandShare – The restaurant enterprise management platform acquired learning management system ExpandShare earlier this month, which will add AI-driven training content to Restaurant365's suite of capabilities.
- ChowNow acquires Cuboh– Online ordering platform has acquired Cuboh, a POS integration platform designed to make ChowNow more of a one-stop shop for operators.
- Wonder wins relay – As first reported by Eater, a month after announcing a major funding round, food delivery platform Wonder has quietly acquired New York City-based delivery competitor Relay. , the deal will allow Wonder to update its infrastructure.
More NFT-based restaurants close or pivot
Another day, another NFT-based restaurant concept will close or pivot to a different operating model. Last year, SHO Group's NFT Club project was officially canceled, and more recently, Starbucks abandoned its Metaverse program.
Most recently, the Los Angeles-based Bored & Hungry restaurant (a Bored Ape NFT-themed restaurant) closed and the brand was sold to Hungry DAO. Founder Andy Nguyen told technology blog Decrypt that the story of Bore & Hungry may not be over yet, as he is still looking for another place to bring the concept to life.
In other similar news, the NFT restaurant “Fly Fish Club,” which raised $14 million in less than a minute during its 2022 NFT pre-sale, is now selling real money as well as NFTs, as first reported. It is said that they are steering towards acceptance. By Eater.
This move effectively pushes the yet-to-open operation into the realm of traditional “private clubs” and further cements the NFT craze as just a passing fad, especially for the hospitality industry.
Wendy's and DoorDash partner on drone delivery
DoorDash and drone company Wing partnered with Wendy's to launch a drone delivery pilot in Christiansburg, Virginia, starting this spring. NRN has reported on multiple drone delivery tests, but this is the first time Wing has specifically launched a pilot outside of its home. This is the first time Wendy's has used a drone to deliver food.
“At DoorDash, we are committed to advancing last-mile logistics by building a multimodal delivery platform that serves all aspects of the market,” said Harrison See, Senior Director, DoorDash Labs. he said in a statement. “We are optimistic about the value that drone delivery brings to our platform as we work to provide more efficient, sustainable and convenient delivery options to consumers.”
Latest funding round for restaurant tech startups
Although there is likely to be an eventual slowdown, there is still money left in private equity for food tech startups. Here are some of the largest funding rounds NRN has observed this month.
- delivery collective, Led by Defy Venture Capitol, a newly built last-mile delivery service that enables operators to directly serve and manage customers has raised $3.8 million. The company's premise is that restaurants don't have to hire delivery drivers themselves, eliminating the need for third-party aggregators.
- juicer, Founded as a restaurant revenue management and pricing solutions company. $5.3 million in seed funding led by York IE to develop data tools.
- buyer's edge, The digital procurement solutions platform announced it has raised $425 million in preferred equity investments from Morgan Stanley, Blackstone, and other private equity leaders.
- bite, The kiosk software company has raised $9 million in Staley Capitol-led investment and Series A funding to expand the company's capabilities.
Contact Joanna: [email protected]meters
