How to Get Customers To Order Directly From Your Restaurant

Getting an order through a third-party app can be great for discovery and acquisition, but it’s not a sustainable way to grow guest loyalty and retention.

Here’s why. 

When your restaurant gets a third-party order, it’s a real win. A new customer has discovered you — and without that third-party channel, they may not have discovered you at all. Third-party marketplaces can be powerful pathways for acquisition… but that’s only half the battle. 

The challenge with third-party marketplaces is that the customer relationships you build within them stay on the third-party app. They hold the data and communications that bring customers back, which makes it difficult for people to come back to your restaurant specifically.

This is where complementing your third-party offerings with direct ordering comes into play.

Direct ordering can give your restaurant the long-term benefits that third-party apps can’t. Stronger customer retention and lifetime value. Customer data that you actually own and can use however you want. Endless personalization so you can create the customer experience your audience deserves.

And, given that brands using direct engagement strategies saw 2.7x higher retention rates than those using non-targeted strategies, direct ordering is exactly the long-term retention strategy that can make a real, tangible difference in your business. 

A Quick Note on Collaboration

This article was written in collaboration with Deena McKinley.

Deena has 20+ years of experience helping QSR and Fast Casual restaurants create data-driven marketing and digital strategies that increase engagement and performance. Previously, Deena was the Chief Experience Officer at Papa Gino’s Pizzeria and D’Angelo Grilled Sandwiches, creating digital strategies to increase retention, guest engagement, frequency, and spend.

Currently, Deena is the Founder of Maverick Marketing Solutions, as an executive restaurant leader and growth strategist.

Benefits Of Direct Orders

There are a few benefits your restaurant can see after enabling direct orders, including: 

✔ Higher lifetime value — A 2025 customer acquisition report found that, from 2022–2025, acquisition costs have increased by 35%. As acquisition becomes more expensive without a corresponding increase in customer lifetime value, retaining and growing existing guests becomes increasingly important. So, what’s the solution to better customer lifetime value and retention? Direct ordering. With 1:1 ordering, you can better connect with your customers, leverage data-driven insights, and offer better personalization, all while creating a sustainable pathway for customer retention at the same time. 

✔ Stronger ownership and control — Direct orders give your restaurant stronger ownership and control over the entire ordering process. You’re no longer competing with hundreds of other restaurants, and you won’t fall victim to filters or ads that mean you get overlooked. More importantly, you also get to own all your customer data. Altametrics research suggests that restaurants using customer data grow ~19% faster than those that don’t, so accessing this data opens up an opportunity for real growth based on real customer behaviors and choices. 

✔ Strong revenue growth potential — Qu’s 2025 State of Digital Report shared that 40% of fast casual and QSR brands named first-party digital sales as their biggest revenue growth opportunity in 2025. This reflects a wider industry recognition that owned channels (like direct ordering) have huge potential for growth and customer retention. Instead of leaning on third-party marketplaces to generate additional transactions in the “now,” direct orders can create stronger relationships, higher customer lifetime value, and better loyalty — now and in the future. 

How High-Performing Restaurant Brands Get More Direct Orders

Here are three ways your restaurant can maximize its direct orders — and your bottom line. 

1. Make direct ordering easy for customers

The first way to get more direct orders is to make things as easy as possible. 

That typically starts with creating a mobile-friendly online ordering website or custom-branded mobile app, so customers know exactly where to place their direct orders. From there, you can simplify things even further with features like:

• Saved guest preferences and favorites
• Clear pickup timing and order tracking 
• Order histories and one-click reordering 

The easier you can make your restaurant’s direct ordering process, the more likely your customers will be to actually use it — and that convenience is what’s truly driving customer engagement right now. 

According to the NRA’s 2025 Off-Premises Trends Report, convenience is now deeply embedded in the customer experience, with features like flexible ordering and delivery becoming expected from the restaurants customers dine at. 

What’s more, customers are coming to expect that convenience in direct formats. Wunderkind’s 2025 Restaurant Consumer Insights Report found that nearly half of diners “prefer tracking and redeeming loyalty rewards via restaurant apps,” highlighting a growing demand for direct digital engagement and seamless mobile experiences. 

That’s why we recommend building a convenience-first digital foundation with a website or app so your customers can actually enjoy the ease and simplicity they’ve come to expect. 

(P.S. If you’re not sure where to start with online ordering or mobile apps, Craver can help.) 

2. Create a clear value exchange

Creating a clear value exchange can also help your business boost direct orders. 

The reality of direct orders is that your customers won’t pick direct ordering over a third-party platform just because you want them to. They need a reason to download your app (or go to your website) and order directly from you, whether that’s a one-of-a-kind loyalty program, exclusive menu items they can’t find elsewhere, or better pricing and faster pickup.

A 2025 Paytronix Report suggested one way brands are creating a clear value exchange is through specific, points-based campaigns. One restaurant brand saw a 54% lift in visits with this strategy, illustrating that targeted, high-value engagement can actually influence customer behavior. 

The same report outlines the importance of loyalty programs as a driver of customer value, especially if they’re direct, seamless, and integrated. Restaurant loyalty programs integrated with online ordering see an 18% increase in order frequency according to Paytronix data, demonstrating a direct connection between owned digital channels, repeat visits, and the benefit of clear value exchange. 

If your direct ordering experience feels the same as a third-party marketplace, your customers will just stick with what they’re familiar with — and that might not work out in your favor. 

3. Use guest data to drive repeat orders

Leveraging the guest data you have access to can also help you maximize direct orders. 

Once someone orders directly from you, the focus shifts to how you can bring them back. There are virtually endless ways you can employ data-driven strategies to drive repeat orders, but data suggests the more direct and personalized your efforts are, the better. 

According to DataDelivers’ 2026 Restaurant Guest Engagement Report, the restaurants “using direct, 1:1 engagement strategies” are the ones winning, with 2.7x higher retention than those using “broader, non-targeted” approaches for re-engagement. The brands that treat customer intelligence as a must-have at the organizational level are also seeing better results. Restaurants that embed service intelligence and personalization in their operations see up to 63% higher retention than restaurants that don’t. 

Ultimately, how successful you are with driving repeat direct orders boils down to how well you leverage your new customer insights. Or, as a new McKinsey analysis puts it, how well you “[translate] those insights into targeted actions that build loyalty and redefine the dining experience.” 

Combine direct, targeted engagement strategies with embedded service intelligence and a data-forward approach to building loyalty, and you’re well on your way to driving repeat orders and increasing customer retention — all while owning the entire process from beginning to end. 

Craver’s “How to Grow Direct Orders” Guide 

If you want a smarter strategy for growing direct orders without giving up third-party apps, this guide is a great place to start. Our “Delivery App Exit Strategy Guide” has everything you need to make the most of both strategies, including:

• Why you shouldn’t rely on third-party delivery apps alone 
• The #1 way you can start growing your direct orders 
• The difference between custom-branded apps and third-party apps

…and more. 

FAQs