MOBILE STRATEGY FOR A FOOD TECH START UP


Food is a necessity without what we cannot live. The survival of mankind and all other living creatures largely depends on it. In fact, without food, man would cease to exist. It is where we all draw our energy from which allows us to breathe, work and carry out our daily activities. Food is also a great source of income for many. Due to its constant demand all over the world, many people are taking it up as a business and making a living out of it. Just like every other business, competition has forced many to get creative and use all the resources available to make their businesses grow and stay afloat. With the emergence of new technologies on a regular basis, the possibilities are endless. What seemed impossible to achieve one decade ago can now be done with ease.
One such thing that has been embraced by many is the use of mobile phones in the food tech industry. It is not the hardware, rather the software that is acting like a game changer in the industry.
·      Flexibility
Many people find themselves so much engrossed in their busy schedules that they have little or no time to run their errands. This demanding lifestyle, especially amongst the urban dwellers has led to many people opting to eat food from restaurants as opposed to making home-cooked meals. This has in turn led to an upsurge of food tech businesses.
·      Increased Profits
With the evident growth of cities and the availability of a growing target market, the basic principles of demand and supply determine business sustenance. It is, however, the embrace of mobile technology that has led many food tech businesses to realize larger profit margins than their counterparts.
The science behind this is the fact that businesses that have embraced mobile technology have realized a drop in their operational costs. Mobile technology has allowed most businesses to cut down on their expenditure in the form of reduced advertising and communication costs. Use of mobile technology helps reduce the cost of customer acquisition which basically means that business owners are spending less to attract customers to their businesses.
·      Convenience
It is easier today to book a table at a restaurant via a mobile application which offers both the client and the service provider the convenience of making the necessary arrangements through the click of a button. The customer also enjoys the privilege of checking out their menu for what to eat, all from the comfort of their home or workplace. Prior to the embrace of mobile strategy in this line of business, a simple transaction like this would require a customer to make their way to the restaurant to book a table. Thereafter, proceeding to make their order and then waiting for it. This not only used to waste time but resources as well. Imagine driving all the way to the restaurant to find that they are booked out and there are no open tables available. What’s worse, being a vegan, arriving at the restaurant to find out that they don’t serve vegan dishes. However, the embrace of mobile technology eliminates such unnecessary inconveniences of the customer and the business owner as well.
·      Reduced Expenses
The fact that customers can also place orders for delivery to their homes or workplaces via their mobile phones has greatly reduced the need to acquire large business premises to occupy all the customers at once. It means that one can cater a large clientele without necessarily having a bigger premise to shelter them. It translates to lower rent expenses, especially for start-up food tech businesses.

·      

·      Marketing Platform
A strategy that has proved to work well is the marketing of new dishes and those already available via the restaurant`s app. Through mobile strategy, most restaurants have managed to create large databases of their frequent customers. This has in turn enabled them to use it as a platform to reach out to masses when marketing their offers. 

·      Improved Customer Experience
Restaurant owners can now make real-time improvements or adjustment on the services they offer based on information they get directly from their customers. They can also determine considering the sales which foods are the most favorite to the customers and therefore can provide those food items more. This in turn improves the customer experience as the restaurant continues to understand the customers’ needs.
So, is it important to include mobile strategy in your food tech start-up? Below are some of the key pointers to consider before making a final move.
·      PROS
-       It is convenient for the customer and business owner, as it allows them to make prior arrangements necessary to facilitate a transaction.
-       It reduces the operational cost by allowing customers to make orders for delivery outside the premises, therefore cutting down on rent expenses.
-       It increases the customer base, as it allows one to serve a large number of customers.
-       It reduces wastage/spoilage of food since the business owner only prepares for orders that have already been placed.
-       It saves time as the restaurant can start preparing a customer’s order as soon as the order is placed.
-       It helps the restaurant owner make real-time decisions based on facts acquired from the sales in the restaurant.

·      CONS

-       As a business owner, one has little or no control on the services offered by the mobile service provider. This can lead to customers experiencing downtimes while trying to place their orders.
Conclusion
In a nutshell, the benefits of adopting mobile strategy in a food tech start-up obviously outweigh the disadvantages. With the realization of success in industries that have adopted the mobile strategy, it is more than likely to have a positive outcome when included as a part of the strategy to cut down on business expenses and yield high return in an industry that is driven with a lot of skills and competitions.


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