Aggregators or your own delivery? Run the numbers, then do both
Aggregators bring volume you could not reach and take a margin you cannot ignore. The mistake is treating it as a choice rather than a mix you manage deliberately.
Product·24 August 2026·6 min read
Every restaurant owner in Pakistan has had the aggregator conversation, usually loudly. The commission is high, the customer belongs to the platform, and the discounting is relentless.
All true, and they still deliver orders you would not otherwise have. So the useful question is not whether to use them, it is what each channel is actually worth to you.
Work out real margin per channel
Take one representative order. Subtract food cost, packaging, the commission, any promotion you funded, and, for your own channel, the rider cost.
Most restaurants find the gap is significant but smaller than they assumed once they include the cost of running their own delivery honestly. That is the number to plan with, not the commission percentage on its own.
Aggregators are for discovery, your channel is for retention
- New customers who have never heard of you: aggregator, and worth the commission.
- Repeat customers who already like your food: your own channel, every time.
- Peak volume you can absorb: aggregator, because incremental orders on covered fixed costs are still profitable.
- Loyalty, feedback and reordering: your own channel, because you own the customer relationship.
Converting takes a system, not a wish
The insert in the bag is where it starts: a card with a QR to your own ordering page and a reason to use it. Then the ordering page has to be fast, work properly on a phone, and remember the customer.
Track conversion honestly. If the incentive costs less than the commission you would have paid, it is working even at modest conversion rates.
Do not let channels fragment the kitchen
The operational risk of running both is a counter covered in tablets, each beeping, each needing transcription into the POS. That is where orders get lost at peak.
Every channel should land in one ticket stream, in one queue, printed or displayed the same way. If the kitchen can tell which channel an order came from only by looking at the packaging, the setup is wrong.
Measure both properly
Orders, average value, margin after all costs, and repeat rate, per channel. Then decide where to push, rather than arguing about commission percentages in the abstract.
Meerub POS keeps online orders, delivery, QR and dine in on one ticket stream with per channel reporting, so the kitchen sees one queue and the owner sees which channel is actually paying.
Use the aggregators for reach and your own channel for the customers who come back. Measure margin per channel, keep the kitchen on one queue, and make the conversion deliberate rather than hopeful.
Frequently asked questions
Should we leave the aggregators?
Almost never entirely. They provide discovery you cannot replicate, especially for a new location. The better strategy is to keep them for reach while deliberately converting repeat customers to your own channel, where the margin is yours.
How do we get customers to order directly?
Give them a reason and make it easy. An insert in the bag with a QR to your own ordering page, a small incentive that costs less than the commission you are paying, and a channel that actually works on a phone. Repeat customers convert; first timers usually do not, and that is fine.
Should our menu price be the same on both channels?
Many restaurants price aggregator items higher to offset commission, and customers increasingly notice. Whatever you decide, decide it deliberately and consistently, and make sure your reporting shows margin per channel so the decision is based on numbers rather than resentment.