Order pickup is a critical element of the online sales process, as eighty-five percent of shoppers have increased curbside and in-store pickup orders in comparison to pre-pandemic rates. However, many businesses struggle to optimize their order pickup process, which directly impacts staff efficiency, on-site wait times, and satisfaction scores from customers.

On the other hand, companies that utilize Flybuy to optimize order pickup see a noteworthy increase in off-prem sales, speed, and satisfaction. What’s the secret?

To discuss the vital role of location intelligence in optimizing order pickup, we sat down with Emily White, director of product at Flybuy, to discuss perfecting the order hand-off experience and how Flybuy Pickup uses Mapbox technology to power its location-based solution.

What Is Flybuy?

Flybuy uses location technology to help automate staff operations and improve the customer experience across industries including restaurant, grocery, and retail. Flybuy includes a suite of products that streamline staff operations for improved order pickup, in-store dining, and customer loyalty.

Flybuy Pickup helps businesses optimize curbside and in-store pickup through intelligent location-based technology. When eCommerce customers order online, they may choose to pick up their order at a nearby store location. By utilizing customer ETAs to gain insight into their whereabouts, brands can meet these customers in exactly the right location precisely when they arrive at the store.

Companies that utilize Flybuy Pickup include Five Guys, Applebees, Chipotle, SpartanNash, Giant Eagle, and Ahold Delhaize. In total, Flybuy facilitates over 20 million unique customer pickups per month.

The Importance Of Order Pickup Optimization

Flybuy believes in the philosophy of “order ahead, pickup anywhere.” And their belief is backed by a fact: brands that enable four or more ordering channels experience twelve percent higher sales volume, as shared in their Mapbox customer webinar.

Giving the customer flexibility with multiple pickup channels  increases satisfaction, repeat visits, and sales. By offering distinct distribution channels such as in-store pickup, curbside pickup, drive-thru, delivery, and dine-in means customers can choose their preferred way to access products and services. However, multiple distribution channels means more complex systems, putting extra pressure on staff to be highly organized, communicative, and efficient at processing orders.

This is where Flybuy helps businesses excel. By organizing the order pickup process, Flybuy is able to reduce customer on-site wait times by eighty percent––an accomplishment that snowballs into a variety of upsides. Here are a few examples:

Customer Satisfaction

Businesses that use Flybuy average one minute and thirty-six second wait times for customers picking up their order on-location. These customers are much happier than those stuck sitting outside in their cars for five to ten minutes. 

The statistics speak for themselves: For businesses using Flybuy Pickup, customer satisfaction increased to 4.87 out of 5 stars, and customers became three times more likely to shop again.

Staff Efficiency

By getting customers in and out of a store location quickly, businesses are then able to serve more customers. A store averaging one sale every five minutes would only complete twelve sales per hour, while a more efficient store averaging one sale every two minutes would complete thirty sales in an hour.

Companies working with Flybuy Pickup saw a twenty-two percent increase in order volume for in-store pickup and curbside pickup.

Product Freshness

For restaurants using Flybuy, communication between the staff and the customer allows workers to begin preparing an order at the perfect time to ensure that food is not sitting around and waiting for the customer to arrive. A fresher meal leads to a better dining experience.

According to Zerrick Pearson, VP of Restaurant Technology at Five Guys, “Having visibility into the customer journey is key for us to provide fresh fries and cold milkshakes quickly for to-go orders.”

Environmental Sustainability

Pickup and delivery optimization allows businesses to become more eco-friendly. With Flybuy, curbside pickup and drive-thru idling was reduced by eighty percent, significantly reducing carbon emissions. Food loss and waste was slashed by forty percent due to cutting down on expired orders and mistakes.

Increased Sales

Each of these specific benefits leads businesses to capturing their ultimate result: An increase in sales. After implementing Flybuy, brands experienced a seven to ten percent increase in sales.

How Flybuy Pickup Builds With Mapbox

Flybuy Pickup uses the Mapbox Directions API to power its customer ETAs, ensuring accurate arrival times through real-time traffic updates. Flybuy also uses Mapbox GL JS for its staff dashboard map, enabling workers to view all relevant information, including the customer’s location on one screen. 

Customer Journey

When a customer places an order, they receive a text message from Flybuy notifying the customer that their order is ready for pickup. The customer then shares their location and pickup details with the store, and clicks “I’m on my way”. At that point, a customer ETA is shared on the staff dashboard.

Once the customer arrives, they may receive a notification welcoming them to the store and informing them where to park. If the customer waits on-location longer than a few minutes, there is an option to send them an automatic notification reassuring them that their order is being worked on. Flybuy will even send an alert to notify the customer if they arrive at the wrong store location. 

When the order is delivered to the customer, they will receive a message thanking them for their business and providing an option to leave a review or a comment.

Staff Dashboard View

After a customer provides their location and vehicle information to Flybuy, it becomes visible on the staff dashboard. Accurate ETAs are vital as staff members monitor the dashboard to know when, where, and how a customer plans to arrive at the store. To achieve maximum freshness, the restaurant may only begin cooking the order when the customer ETA shows that they are ten minutes away. Flybuy also offers the ability to “tag” orders that contain specific order items that may require timely preparation, such as fries, shakes, or last minute items. 

The next step in the process is the customer’s arrival to the store. Flybuy’s dashboard map includes predefined pickup zones and custom premise boundaries that inform the staff if a customer is nearby, on site, or in a specific pickup location. The wait timer automatically begins once the customer arrives. Once the pickup is successful, departure tracking is used to automatically close the order. Flybuy analytics provide information such as “average delivery time”, which ultimately drives improvements in the delivery process.

Flybuy understands that flexibility is essential when building successful platforms. With the help of Mapbox, their clients have the option to build their own custom staff dashboards according to their brand’s look and feel.

5 Stars All Round

Customers consistently provide positive feedback to Flybuy, acknowledging the precision and reliability of their ETAs, powered by Mapbox. By allowing Mapbox to handle the thorny issues such as geospatial data, live traffic, and accurate ETAs, the Flybuy team is free to focus on the specialized order-pickup features that make their solution invaluable to their customer base. 

For more information on the Flybuy and Mapbox partnership, check out the full webinar.