5 Key Takeaways from foodpanda Partner Summit 2023

Although the event was primarily intended for foodpanda's merchant partners, foodpanda has compiled valuable insights to share with a wider audience.

foodpanda firmly believes that the takeaways from the foodpanda Partner Summit 2023 will prove beneficial for business owners, marketers, and brands alike.

And here are the 5 key takeaways that various brands can leverage to enhance their businesses.

1. Video Content Inspires Conversion

Video content has become an indispensable element in today's marketing strategies. According to the latest data from Meta, there are currently over 3.7 billion users on the Meta platforms, like Facebook and Instagram, with more than half of their time spent watching videos on the platforms.

A study conducted on over 12,000 users across 9 markets in 2022 revealed that Reels have a significant impact on purchasing behaviour. After watching Reels, 3 out of 4 people follow brands, 2 out of 3 make purchases, and 1 out of 2 send messages to brands.

This impact is even more pronounced among Gen Z users (aged 13-17), with 79% following brands, 72% tagging brands, and 69% making purchases after watching Reels. Thus, creating video content is not only vital for building brand awareness and consideration but also serves as a powerful tool to drive conversions and purchase decisions.

For restaurant owners, utilizing video content to promote their businesses can be highly effective. A combination of still images and engaging videos can convey detailed information and capture the audience's attention, thereby increasing the follower count.

Such video content can be created and shared across various platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. The key is to carefully select the platform that aligns with the target audience for effective communication.

Furthermore, tapping into the growing trend of live streaming for product sales can be another fruitful strategy for business owners. Understanding and effectively utilizing these video content strategies can lead to positive marketing outcomes.

2. Fun, Simple, Accessible, and Unfiltered Content are Keys to Captivating Audiences

The crucial question for any video content strategy is how to keep viewers engaged for as long as possible. To achieve this, there are three key elements that should be present in engaging Reel videos:

Entertaining: Incorporate music, visuals, effects, and storytelling techniques that evoke emotions, provide unique perspectives, offer unexpected angles, or even feature twisted endings. This will keep the viewers captivated and entertained.

Concise: Get straight to the point within the first 2-3 seconds, addressing what viewers want to know, and use the "showing rather than telling" approach, along with captions or voiceovers, to enhance the message. This will ensure a concise and impactful delivery.

Relatable: Keep the content simple and unfiltered by featuring ordinary people in familiar situations. This approach allows the brand to establish a closer connection with the viewers, making the content more relatable and authentic.

These days, everyone knows TikTok, and the reason why video content on TikTok captures people's hearts is because of its unfiltered and authentic nature. There is no need for grand TVC-style productions; instead, it provides an experience of real-life moments that connect with daily life. By using these simple techniques, this type of content garners more attention. Additionally, elements like subtitles, voiceovers, and background music play a crucial role, while engaging with trending hashtags helps increase visibility.

3. No Matter Small or Large the Business, Insights and Data Are Essential

Owners of small businesses may mistakenly believe that utilizing data requires a substantial investment and is challenging to grasp. However, they could not be more mistaken! As long as Google is used daily for keyword searches, trying out Google Trends is a straightforward process. In today's business landscape, failing to understand the behaviour of target audiences can lead to missed opportunities.

For example, Pau-Pau, who wants to open a bubble tea shop, decides to leverage Google Trends to assess the frequency of searches for the keyword "bubble tea" on Google over the past year. This enables Pau-Pau to compare the popularity of "bubble tea" searches with other beverage types, such as "coffee." Upon analyzing the data, Pau-Pau discovers that "coffee" is more frequently searched for in Province A, while "bubble tea" garners higher search volumes in Province B. Armed with this valuable information, Pau-Pau gains insights into which type of beverage to invest in and which region holds potential for higher sales.

Thus, Google Trends proves to be an invaluable online marketing tool, providing an overview of search term popularity over time. It enables comparisons between various search terms and the exploration of search patterns across different regions, provinces, or geographical areas. And the best part is, it is available for anyone to use at no cost.

4. Visibility Can Be Enhanced through Google Search and Google Maps

Another highly effective strategy for increasing business awareness is by establishing a presence on Google Search and Google Maps. Nowadays, it is rare for someone to physically walk around looking for a new restaurant; instead, they simply search for "restaurants near me" on Google. The search results provide a list of restaurants in the area, complete with their locations, ratings, and images of their food and atmosphere. This critical moment, coined by Google as the “Zero Moment of Truth” (ZMOT), presents a valuable opportunity for business owners to capture potential customers before they physically visit the establishments.

According to Google, searches for "restaurants near me" have doubled over the past five years, emphasizing the ongoing relevance of its ZMOT theory. Therefore, to create a strong ZMOT, business owners must provide all the necessary information customers seek, including contact details, comprehensive store information, reviews, menus, and ideally, convenient call-to-action (CTA) options for reservations or orders. By offering this information, businesses can significantly enhance their chances of achieving successful sales.

5. Choosing the Right Tools Elevates Businesses to Success

Many business owners have limited budgets for online advertising to increase visibility and drive conversions. Thus, selecting the most cost-effective and successful channels and tools suitable for target audiences becomes crucial. For restaurants and merchant partners affiliated with foodpanda, there are various marketing tools available through the foodpanda app.

 
The marketing tools on the foodpanda app are developed based on the analysis of the Marketing Funnel, emphasizing understanding customer behaviours to gain comprehensive customer insights. It covers different stages, starting from generating awareness, triggering considerations, driving conversions, and ultimately fostering customer loyalty. The three marketing tools offered by foodpanda, namely "pandabox", "pandaclick", and "Discount" work together to achieve optimal performance, catering to the Marketing Funnel needs of foodpanda's merchant partners.

These are the five key takeaways from the foodpanda Partner Summit 2023 that everyone must be aware of in the digital world. foodpanda firmly believes that these insights will drive its partner merchants towards strong and sustainable growth while ensuring exceptional food and grocery delivery experiences for customers in the future. This reaffirms foodpanda's position as the leading food and grocery delivery platform in Asia.