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Agreed. People's reluctance to actually talk on the phone or to manage uncertainty is often overlooked in the popularity of apps like Uber, Deliveroo, Just Eat,

Agreed. People's reluctance to actually talk on the phone or to manage uncertainty is often overlooked in the popularity of apps like Uber, Deliveroo, Just Eat, et al. People will, to an extent, trade extra money to not have the ambiguity of human communications placed in the middle of a transaction.

inglor_cz 6y ago
Case in point. I love Vietnamese food, but ordering it over the phone from somebody who struggles with the local language is a challenge for both of us. Without a picture menu I can point at and without nonverbal cues, a misunderstanding can happen and happens.
TeMPOraL 6y ago
I think this is a factor, but not the major one. The major one is, you can prepay for delivery using a streamlined (and unified) interface that accepts just about any form of electronic payment you can throw at it. The direct-from-restaurant alternative to that is to be sure you have cash in small enough denominations, or negotiate over the phone for them to take a card terminal - which may not be available, or may extend delivery time significantly (there's usually one or two terminals shared by all drivers, so they have to coordinate orders), or the driver may forget and cause an awkward situation (happened to me). Or you can hope that the restaurant has an online ordering/payment form (most don't) and that it works (many don't) and accepts your form of payment (it's a wash). In my effort to not use the gig economy services, I now ensure I always have small-denominated cash at home set aside for delivery orders - which is a noticeable hassle over just paying with two taps/clicks during ordering.
asdff 6y ago
At the same time, there are real benefits to having a phone call. It's like having waitstaff at the table. You can confirm if an entree comes with rice, or ask if it contains a certain ingredient, ask how big the portion actually is, etc. A lot of times when you click "Orange chicken" on grubhub you are shooting into the dark with what you are expecting. Having to do some private eye work on yelp to get a picture of an entree is no fun.

inglor_cz 6y ago

Case in point. I love Vietnamese food, but ordering it over the phone from somebody who struggles with the local language is a challenge for both of us. Without a picture menu I can point at and without nonverbal cues, a misunderstanding can happen and happens.

TeMPOraL 6y ago

I think this is a factor, but not the major one. The major one is, you can prepay for delivery using a streamlined (and unified) interface that accepts just about any form of electronic payment you can throw at it. The direct-from-restaurant alternative to that is to be sure you have cash in small enough denominations, or negotiate over the phone for them to take a card terminal - which may not be available, or may extend delivery time significantly (there's usually one or two terminals shared by all drivers, so they have to coordinate orders), or the driver may forget and cause an awkward situation (happened to me). Or you can hope that the restaurant has an online ordering/payment form (most don't) and that it works (many don't) and accepts your form of payment (it's a wash). In my effort to not use the gig economy services, I now ensure I always have small-denominated cash at home set aside for delivery orders - which is a noticeable hassle over just paying with two taps/clicks during ordering.

asdff 6y ago

At the same time, there are real benefits to having a phone call. It's like having waitstaff at the table. You can confirm if an entree comes with rice, or ask if it contains a certain ingredient, ask how big the portion actually is, etc. A lot of times when you click "Orange chicken" on grubhub you are shooting into the dark with what you are expecting. Having to do some private eye work on yelp to get a picture of an entree is no fun.