The service industry in the aspect of ordering food has scored a significant development in recent years. Nowadays, the ability to purchase a meal from a restaurant to your home is not limited to calling the establishment directly and settling with the food supplier. It is becoming difficult to find a FoodTech company that doesn't allow its customers to order food online or via a mobile app. What's more, options for billing via a digital wallet have also increased, giving users more options than before.
Table of Contents:
- What is a Digital Wallet?
- How does a Digital Wallet work?
- Capabilities of e-wallet integration in FoodTech applications
- Digital payments can bring benefits to entrepreneurs in the food service industry
- Who is the Digital Wallet feature aimed at?
- Railwaymen's Digital Wallet: A Game-Changer for Alamar Foods Application
- Learn about the process of creating an e-wallet
What is a Digital Wallet?
In the dynamic world of FoodTech, where convenience meets culinary innovation, digital wallets are paving the way for a seamless and efficient dining experience. Digital wallets are nothing more than electronic payment solutions that allow you to take a variety of actions related to payments and making transfers or storing funds in your account. Currently in the market you can find several leaders focusing on the development of e-wallets. Google Pay, PayPal, or Apple Pay are names that are probably familiar to anyone who makes any transactions in the digital area. What then is the role of FoodTech companies in this process? Well, the creation of the digital payments space allows restaurants not only to diversify their payment methods, but also to streamline the delivery process for suppliers without having to settle for cash.
How does a Digital Wallet work?
A digital wallet is a kind of virtual locker used to store payment information, but also to process any transactions ordered by the user. To launch an e-wallet, all you need to do is download the appropriate application and during setup integrate it with your preferred payment methods along with your payment cards or bank accounts. Any information shared is collected in an encrypted format so that it cannot fall into the wrong hands.
During payment processing, users indicate the digital wallet as the settlement method. A token or encrypted code is then generated to prevent transmission of the actual payment details. The next step is to authenticate using fingerprint recognition, facial recognition or PIN entry. All these methods are intended to ensure the legitimacy and awareness of the transaction made. The result of the actions taken is communication with the payment process to verify user credentials and authorize the transaction. Users receive confirmation of transactions in real time, and the digital wallet collects data from them for record-keeping and expense monitoring.
Capabilities of e-wallet integration in FoodTech applications
In addition to the benefits of a convenient form of monetary transactions between the customer and the provider of food services, the digital wallet can be interfaced with many functionalities. Examples include loyalty programs, often used among food service restaurants. The ability to collect points and exchange them for rewards, as well as receive information about discounts and unique promotions, are just a few examples for which digital payments can be supported. An equally popular integration is to connect the payment system directly to the kitchen. Such a solution makes it so that as soon as payment for an order is received, food handlers can immediately prepare the dishes indicated by the customer. In this way, the delivery time as well as the food itself becomes shorter than in the standard process without the e-wallet.
Digital payments can bring benefits to entrepreneurs in the food service industry
Digital payments using a functional application also contribute to improving the standards offered by catering establishments. By collecting information about transactions carried out, it is possible to adjust the menu, prepare appropriate supplies, and generate invoices. Entrepreneurs, by using a dedicated application, can influence not only the comfort of their work, but also gain an advantage over competitors on the market. Food lovers, due to the digital payment option, can also reward service through tips, which in many countries are considered an expression of gratitude to the service provider.
Who is the Digital Wallet feature aimed at?
As you can see, the ability to make payments from within the app allows many parties to benefit. The scheme of this type of solution most often gratifies three parties: the customer, the restaurant establishment and the supplier. In the case of this service, the customer can process orders and payments from anywhere and is not limited by the need for cash. In addition, all of his transactions take place through prior approval, so he is aware of both the cost and the time spent on meal delivery.
The second beneficiary is food service entrepreneurs. Developing a functional application allows them to expand their business by adding another sales channel. A well-composed tool can provide the necessary analytical information, and also helps in the case of collecting financial records. The last entity that gains from the e-wallet function in FoodTech applications is the supplier. All orders to be delivered are displayed in one place, he does not have to support himself with knowledge of the city's topography thanks to the presence of the customer's location, and he also has the ability to communicate with the recipient in case of any delays.
Railwaymen's Digital Wallet: A Game-Changer for Alamar Foods Application
Railwaymen also has digital wallet realizations in its project portfolio. One such example is a project implemented for Alamar Foods, the leading restaurant chain in the GCC Region. A franchisee of such brands as Domino's Pizza and Dunkin' Donuts asked us to develop its application with an additional function in the form of implementing an e-wallet through a backend API. This realization was all the more demanding, as our client's area of activity concerns several hundred food service outlets enjoying considerable interest among consumers. The basic version of the e-wallet included an API and an administration panel for managing payments.
In the later stages of development, we expanded the app to include marketing functions that allow app owners to generate promotional coupons for orders, and we also developed a customer service department. In the case of the latter functionality, we wanted to create such an environment for app users that if any inconvenience occurs, they can contact the service and present the problem. Moreover, if the complaint is approved, Alamar Foods can return the customer's funds to the digital wallet or assign a discount to the account for subsequent orders as compensation.
Learn about the process of creating an e-wallet
If you're curious about what the process of implementing an electronic wallet into the Alamar Foods application looks like, please visit our Case Study, where we have detailed the entire process of our cooperation. This is a great example showing how digital transformation can translate into the development of existing services.
