The COVID-19 pandemic has opened new doors for the food delivery market. As luck would have it, third-party food delivery platforms have the right keys to these doors. Restaurants that hesitated to join these platforms are approaching and collaborating with open arms.

Dine-ins are declining, and deliveries are thriving. And for this single reason, there’s no better scenario to foray into the flourishing food delivery sector with an ultra-modern food delivery app.

One critical factor that can steer a business towards success on any given day is evolving with the latest trends. Now, these trends can be people’s demands or even technological advancements. Adapting to the dynamic trends can help an entrepreneur stay ahead in the competitive market space.

Are you an entrepreneur who wishes to launch an UberEats clone app? If so, are you aware of the ever-changing trends? This blog discusses six crucial trends to watch out for and implement in your food delivery app.

#1 Shift in Ordering Trends – Hot off the fire! 

Just so you know, placing orders over a phone call was a trend decades ago. Times have changed, and so does the technology & food delivery sector. The emergence of smartphones has made it a convention to order with just a few taps. A decade later, other trends are sprouting up.

• Order via virtual assistant: Alexas, Nests, Echos, etc., are becoming an integral part of people’s lives. Food delivery platforms are working on APIs to accept orders via virtual assistants. Conversing and ordering can be a ground-breaker as it eliminates activities like browsing, adding to cart, etc., conserving time and energy. Grubhub, JustEat are some platforms that have already become Alexa-compatible.
• Order via smartwatches: Wearable gadgets do a lot more than showcasing time nowadays. Android & Apple Smartwatches are storming into the industry at a rapid rate. The sheer pleasure of ordering via smartwatches has already created a buzz among the audience. Domino’s Pizza capitalized on this trend and launched a smartwatch Android app. OrderUp has also introduced ordering via Apple Watches in their latest update.

#2 Modern Delivery Mediums – Solutions to Mundane problems! 

Extensive use of automobiles for deliveries comes with negative impacts like pollution, environmental degradation, etc. Besides, with traffic becoming increasingly intolerable, the need to execute modern delivery mediums has become the new trend.

• Delivery via Robots: Technology is accelerating at a massive pace, and robots are one concrete example of the above statement. Self-driving robots come pre-equipped with sensors, cameras, and GPS to reach customer destinations without any hassle. JustEat is introducing pavement droids to deliver food in the UK. Eat24’s copier-sized autonomous delivery robots are all set to hit the floors in the near future.
• Delivery via Drones: From Amazon to DHL, experimentation is carried out in full-swing to transform drones into mainstream delivery options. Leveraging the air medium can be optimal to eliminate traffic, congestion, and locate delivery destinations in a flash. Domino’s Pizza’s success with the drone delivery option makes the plot even more impressive in upcoming years.

#3 Look beyond the Restaurant-to-Consumer model – Exploring different niches! 

While there’s neck-to-neck competition in the food delivery sector, a considerable extent of traffic and rivalry happens in the restaurant-to-consumer model. However, numerous unexplored niches in the food delivery sector can turn the wind and create a trend. These include,

• Pet food platforms: An exciting fact that can make the world go berserk is that 68% of American families own a pet, and the pet industry generated a revenue of $95.8 billion in 2019. Pet food delivery can be ideal for people who rely on online platforms for shopping and services. Monster Pet Supplies has already rolled out an app in the UK and has gained a positive response from the audience.
• Food waste platforms: If you’re the one who crunches numbers, here’s one for you from the Food & Agricultural Organization (FAO) – one-third of the food produced worldwide gets wasted. Food waste apps can be a befitting solution to prevent food wastage by picking up food and supplying them to people in need. Food For All is a startup that picks up unsold meals from local restaurants and delivers them at a 50% discount.

#4 The Wave of Cryptocurrencies – Diverse into the Cryptosphere!

Cash, Cards, Wallets, and now Cryptocurrencies. Food delivery apps are integrating crypto-payment options, owing to their enhanced popularity among the audience. Payment with cryptos isn’t an entirely new concept, as platforms have already implemented this emerging payment option. Online platforms like Papa John’s Pizza, Takeaway.com support crypto-payments with relatively unknown cryptocurrencies.

#5 Catering to millennials – A massive scope! 

Did you know that millennials spend extensively on food ordering platforms than people of other generations? Gaining such a massive millennial audience is crucial to sustain and succeed in the market. However, millennials demand more than just ordering food. Some of the captivating functionalities include instant reordering, one-step checkout, gamification, virtual chatbots, etc., providing an unparalleled ordering experience. Making calculated moves in view of alluring the younger generation can be a potential game-changer for a world-class UberEats clone.

#6 Leveraging AI & ML – Big Data Can be the Answer!

Data is a critical component that one needs to consider before emerging into any sector. Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning are finding their presence in almost every industry nowadays. Having data on traffic details, delivery timings, food preparation time, purchasing history, bestsellers, etc., can give an entrepreneur quality insights on what to do and what not to do. Leveraging AI & ML to its fullest potential can make a food delivery platform the next big thing of the modern era.

Conclusion

The food delivery market is changing drastically, and new trends propel the market towards the anticipated positive trajectory. The key to take your food delivery service to the next level may lie in these trends. Capitalize on them, and implement unique strategies in your on-demand food delivery app to stand apart from the rest of the lot. Reach out to an app development company, discuss your trends and strategy to storm into the market, and launch your app like UberEats right away.