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> that don't end in a sale. i would bet 99%+ of all calls to restaurants from grubhub end in a sale, thus making this law meaningless. edit: why did i get dow

> that don't end in a sale. i would bet 99%+ of all calls to restaurants from grubhub end in a sale, thus making this law meaningless. edit: why did i get downvoted for this? it adds to the discussion and it doesn't break any of HN's rule. are people just not happy about it or something? wtf.

aaron-santos 6y ago
Have any data to back up that claim?
- reaperducer 6y ago
  Probably not. That’s what makes it a bet. But if you’ve ever worked in a restaurant, it certainly seems logical.
  - xapata 6y ago
    "How late are you open tonight? Ok, thanks."
    - chc 6y ago
      It seems unlikely that there is a large contingent of people who Google a restaurant (which they must be doing in order to get Yelp's number), ignore the listing of hours right next to the number and call the restaurant to get the hours. I believe it happens, but I have a hard time believing that particular sequence of events accounts for even one call in 50.
      - wilshire_nc 6y ago
        I do it all the time, google’s hours are often wrong, especially during covid.
        chc 6y ago
        To clarify: You're saying you do this more often than you order takeout? Especially during Covid? Because I explicitly said I believe it happens, just that it's a minority of calls.
        xapata 6y ago
        Yeah, I almost never order over the phone. I go in person to look at the menu.
- robertlagrant 6y ago
  What data would be required? A betting slip? (-:
tw04 6y ago
99%+? I can give you a case in point: we just tried to order Thai on Saturday from one of our favorite restaurants. They were short staffed in the kitchen and the wait time was over an hour... so we didn't order. I'm willing to bet a ton of other people did the same thing. Why should the Thai place have to PAY for people that declined to order?
- lotsofpulp 6y ago
  > Why should the Thai place have to PAY for people that declined to order? They don’t, unless they agreed to those terms with the entity charging them. For example, if the agreement was to pay Yelp for all phone calls coming from Yelp’s website.
  - labawi 6y ago
    If it were a mutually negotiated contract, on equitable terms, then it would be a valid and very relevant point. Yelp is not exactly known for fair negotiation.
  - mbrameld 6y ago
    That's a little disingenuous. They don't HAVE to pay for those calls, but if Yelp's system decides an order took place then they get charged for the call. Based on some experimenting done recently by a podcast I listen to (can't remember which one right now), that decision boils down to "if the call was longer than 45 seconds and food was discussed, then an order took place". It's then up to the restaurant owner to reconcile and dispute any charged calls that didn't end in a sale. That means listening to the recording of every call that was charged and requesting a refund for each one that didn't end in an order.
whimsicalism 6y ago
> i would bet 99%+ of all calls to restaurants from grubhub end in a sale, thus making this law meaningless. How do you prove it ended in a sale though?
azernik 6y ago
Grubhub itself, in this article, claims only 35%.
- impendia 6y ago
  After reading the article I don't feel particularly inclined to take Grubhub at their word.
  - azernik 6y ago
    Yeah, but if they're lying they'd lie on the high end, not the low end. If it's actually 99%, they'd say 99.999%. If it's actually 10%, they'd say 35%.

aaron-santos 6y ago

Have any data to back up that claim?

reaperducer 6y ago
Probably not. That’s what makes it a bet. But if you’ve ever worked in a restaurant, it certainly seems logical.
- xapata 6y ago
  "How late are you open tonight? Ok, thanks."
  - chc 6y ago
    It seems unlikely that there is a large contingent of people who Google a restaurant (which they must be doing in order to get Yelp's number), ignore the listing of hours right next to the number and call the restaurant to get the hours. I believe it happens, but I have a hard time believing that particular sequence of events accounts for even one call in 50.
    - wilshire_nc 6y ago
      I do it all the time, google’s hours are often wrong, especially during covid.
      - chc 6y ago
        To clarify: You're saying you do this more often than you order takeout? Especially during Covid? Because I explicitly said I believe it happens, just that it's a minority of calls.
        xapata 6y ago
        Yeah, I almost never order over the phone. I go in person to look at the menu.
robertlagrant 6y ago
What data would be required? A betting slip? (-:

tw04 6y ago

99%+? I can give you a case in point: we just tried to order Thai on Saturday from one of our favorite restaurants. They were short staffed in the kitchen and the wait time was over an hour... so we didn't order. I'm willing to bet a ton of other people did the same thing. Why should the Thai place have to PAY for people that declined to order?

lotsofpulp 6y ago
> Why should the Thai place have to PAY for people that declined to order? They don’t, unless they agreed to those terms with the entity charging them. For example, if the agreement was to pay Yelp for all phone calls coming from Yelp’s website.
- labawi 6y ago
  If it were a mutually negotiated contract, on equitable terms, then it would be a valid and very relevant point. Yelp is not exactly known for fair negotiation.
- mbrameld 6y ago
  That's a little disingenuous. They don't HAVE to pay for those calls, but if Yelp's system decides an order took place then they get charged for the call. Based on some experimenting done recently by a podcast I listen to (can't remember which one right now), that decision boils down to "if the call was longer than 45 seconds and food was discussed, then an order took place". It's then up to the restaurant owner to reconcile and dispute any charged calls that didn't end in a sale. That means listening to the recording of every call that was charged and requesting a refund for each one that didn't end in an order.

whimsicalism 6y ago

> i would bet 99%+ of all calls to restaurants from grubhub end in a sale, thus making this law meaningless. How do you prove it ended in a sale though?

azernik 6y ago

Grubhub itself, in this article, claims only 35%.

impendia 6y ago
After reading the article I don't feel particularly inclined to take Grubhub at their word.
- azernik 6y ago
  Yeah, but if they're lying they'd lie on the high end, not the low end. If it's actually 99%, they'd say 99.999%. If it's actually 10%, they'd say 35%.