Have you ever asked yourself how food delivery services like Uber Eats and DoorDash manage to deliver food to customers so quickly? Ever wanted to offer your customers quick and hot deliveries like them every time? —‘Zone Management’ can help you achieve just that!
In this blog, I will show you how zone management works in the food ordering and delivery industry. I will also explain how it operates, why it’s important, and talk about its benefits and challenges.
What is Zone Management?
Zone management is a way to split a business area into smaller sections called “zones.” Each zone has clear boundaries and can cover neighborhoods, streets, or specific parts of the city. This helps delivery services manage their deliveries better, so food gets to customers quickly and stays hot.
The main purpose of zone management is to connect customers to their nearby restaurants and deliverymen. When a customer wants to place an order, only his nearby restaurants will be displayed in his browser or app. The reason behind this – if the customer places an order to a restaurant that is too far from his location, the food may not stay fresh when the deliveryman reaches his door. This is why it’s very important to specify zones for food ordering and delivery business.
For faster delivery, it is very crucial to know whether the deliveryman is near to the location of restaurant and customer. The reason behind this – if a deliveryman’s current location is far from the restaurant, it will take him much longer to reach the restaurant and pick up the food for delivery. It will also take more time to deliver it to the doorstep of the customer.
So, the overall idea of zone management is to connect customers with their nearest restaurant and deliveryman.
How Does Zone Management Work?
Zone management works with some important factors. Operations of food ordering, delivery, costing, promotions etc. are dependent on zone management. Now we’ll learn how zone management works in the food aggregator business.
Dividing the Area: At first, we have to split the targeted business area into different zones. These zones are created based on how many people live in each area, the layout of the city, and how busy each area is.
Imagine a city with a busy downtown area where lots of people work and shop. This area might be one zone. Then, there are quieter neighborhoods on the outskirts of the city where fewer people live. Each of these neighborhoods could be a separate zone.
Enlist Restaurants: Secondly, we have to define which restaurant is under which zone. For example, there are three different zones in a business area – zone A, B, and C. Now, The restaurants located in Zone A – will only receive orders from customers of Zone A. Restaurants in this zone will not receive orders from Zone B or C. Same goes for the restaurants of Zone B and C. They will only receive orders from customers in their own zone.
Assigning Drivers: After that, we also have to define which deliveryman will work in which zone – just like defining restaurants. Let’s take the same example again. Deliveryman from Zone A will only receive delivery orders from Zone A customers. He will not receive orders from Zone B or C customers.
Define Delivery Charge: We need to define the delivery charge in the Zone management system. Delivery charges may differ based on location. For instance, urban areas may have higher delivery charges than rural areas. We can define the range of delivery charges from minimum to maximum.
Receiving Orders: When customers search for food using a food delivery app, the app checks which zone they are in. Then the app shows a list of which restaurants within that zone have that food available. Customers can order from those restaurants only. When customers select the food and confirm their order, that specific restaurant starts preparing the food. This is how a restaurant receives an order from a customer in a specific zone.
Why is Zone Management Important?
Effective zone management is important for food aggregator services to run smoothly and efficiently. This not only benefits their customers but also enhances the working experience for their drivers and optimizes resource use. Let’s explore the key reasons why zone management is so important.
Faster Deliveries: By dividing a large city into smaller zones, delivery drivers can work in specific areas. This means they don’t have to travel far between deliveries. As a result, food arrives at customers faster, and it stays warm and fresh. Shorter travel times also help avoid delays, making the delivery service more efficient.
Offers: Admin can offer different types of promotions in different zones. Suppose there are two different zones – A and B. Now he can offer a 10% discount to Zone A and a 20% discount to Zone B.
Better Customer Service: When food arrives quickly and in good condition, customers are happier with the service. This good experience can lead to positive reviews, more repeat orders, and a better reputation for the food delivery company.
Efficient Use of Resources: When delivery zones are managed well, companies can use their resources more effectively. Drivers work in their specific zones, and routes are planned to avoid extra travel. Planned and limited routes save fuel and reduce wear on vehicles. Better planning also lowers costs, making the service more affordable and better for the environment.
Scalability: When a food delivery service business grows, zone management makes it easy to expand. You can add new zones and adjust existing ones based on demand. So, you can handle more orders smoothly.
Data Analysis and Strategy: Zone management helps you to gather useful information about what customers like, how often they order, and when they order the most within a zone. You can use this data to improve marketing, work better with restaurants, and offer menu items that match local tastes.
Improved Relationships with Restaurants: As the admin knows which zone has which restaurant, he can sort his communication messages accordingly for those restaurants. This will help him to communicate better with all those restaurants.
Marketing Materials: In every zone, customers have their own languages and preferences. If the admin uses that language and preference for marketing materials for that specific zone, it will bring him more profit.
Challenges of Zone Management
Zone management plays an important role in optimizing food delivery services, but it comes with its own set of challenges. Here are some common challenges that businesses may face with zone management:
Changing Zones: Cities keep growing and changing. Zones that work well today might not work as well in the future. Companies need to update and adjust their zones regularly to keep up with these changes.
Balancing Demand: Some areas might be busier than others. Companies need to make sure they have the right number of drivers in each zone so that all customers get their food on time.
Technology Needs: To manage zones well, companies need good technology. To track orders, drivers, and deliveries, food delivery companies must use reliable apps and systems such as:
- GPS tracking and mapping software
- Routing algorithms
- Order management systems
- Communication tools
- Data analytics, etc.
Without these technologies, it’s hard to keep everything running smoothly.
Features and Tools Used in Zone Management
Effective zone management relies on multifunctional features and tools that are necessary to improve delivery efficiency. Here are some key features and tools used in zone management:
GPS and Mapping Software: These tools help companies to define and manage different zones. They show the best routes and help drivers navigate the city easily. This ensures that deliveries are fast and efficient.
Dispatch Management: These systems automatically assign orders to drivers based on their location and the delivery zone. This is a great feature to optimize the delivery process and reduce wait times.
Analytics and Reports: Companies analyze data to understand which zones are the busiest and need more drivers. This helps them make smart decisions about where to send more drivers. It ensures that customers in busy areas get their orders quickly.
Mobile Application: All the applications related to the food delivery business – user app, restaurant app, and deliveryman app – should be compatible with detecting zones automatically and functioning according to the zone.
Need a Practical Example?
If you still have confusion and need a practical example, here it is.
Imagine a city where pizza delivery is divided into three main areas: North, South, and Central. In the North Zone, the neighborhood is calm with many houses and a few apartment buildings. It’s a peaceful area with a steady but not too busy flow of pizza orders.
The South Zone, on the other hand, is bustling with many restaurants and offices. This area gets a lot of pizza orders, especially during lunch and dinner times, which makes it a very busy place.
The Central Zone is the heart of downtown, where things are always happening. With numerous restaurants and a constant stream of people ordering food, this area is the busiest.
The pizza delivery company knows this and plans accordingly. They assign more drivers to the Central Zone to manage the high number of orders. In contrast, fewer drivers are needed in the North Zone because it’s not as busy.
When a pizza order comes in from the Central Zone, the delivery app quickly locates a driver already in that area. This driver picks up the pizza and delivers it swiftly, ensuring the customer receives their hot meal quickly.
In the quieter North Zone, fewer drivers are needed, so the company assigns just enough to handle the orders. Even though the pace is slower, the service remains efficient.
This system helps the company cover all areas effectively, making sure that every customer gets their pizza hot and fresh in the shortest time possible.
Looking for a Market-Ready Solution?
If you’re looking for a market-ready solution with an excellent zone management feature, StackFood will be your ideal choice. It is a complete food ordering and delivery solution that gives you the ability to create multiple zones or areas for your business. It has been used and loved by numerous food aggregation businesses worldwide. It is designed to handle all the complexities of zone management seamlessly.
Benefits you will get from StackFood:
- A map drawing tool to create a zone.
- You can configure the delivery charges.
- Zone-wise incentives for deliveryman.
You can customize the delivery charges by –
- Setting the minimum to maximum amounts.
- Adding a per-kilometer charge
- Specifying the maximum amount allowed for cash-on-delivery orders.
- Option to increase delivery charges for specific reasons
StackFood comes with all the essential features, web panels, and mobile apps for popular operating systems—all in one package. StackFood is made with Laravel and Flutter frameworks and is regularly updated to keep it at high quality. This solution comes with fully-built source code and all the essential features and ready-to-use panels.
Ending Thoughts
In this blog, I’ve talked about how important zone management is for running a successful eCommerce food delivery business. Food aggregating businesses can make their service faster and more reliable by dividing cities into manageable zones and using technology to assign drivers efficiently.
Understanding zone management can help you make better decisions. It will also improve your service, cut costs, and build stronger customer loyalty for your business.
As you have learned everything about zone management, start using it in your food delivery business now and take your business to the next level without wasting time.
FAQs
How does zone management make deliveries faster?
Zone management makes deliveries faster by letting drivers focus on a specific business zone. This helps them find addresses quickly and avoid traffic. With less confusion, food gets to customers faster and stays warm and fresh.
Can I set different delivery charges for different zones?
With zone management, you can set different delivery charges based on the location. You can set delivery charges from maximum to minimum amount per kilometer. You can have the option to increase the charge and fix that increased amount based on unusual situations like – (rain or stuck in traffic) situations.
How do I choose the right number of zones for my city?
The number of zones you should choose for your city depends on several factors, like how many people live in the area, how many orders you get, and the city’s layout. Looking at past delivery data can also help you decide better.
What should I do if a zone becomes too busy?
If a zone gets too busy, you can consider adding more drivers to that area or adjusting the boundaries of the zone. This will help you to manage the high demand and keep delivery times reasonable.
Say hi to the enthusiastic technical content writer, Fattah! Turning complex topics into daily narratives and playing with words are his favorite hobbies. He uses his natural storytelling ability to convey information so that his audience can get an easy understanding. In leisure time, he enjoys listening to music and reading books.