Doordash and other food delivery services have made it easy to order takeout from a variety of restaurants. But not every restaurant is willing to partner with these services. Some may not want to share their menu information, or they may not want to give the delivery company access to their customers’ personal contact information.
If your restaurant isn’t currently partnered with a delivery service and you don’t want to give out your customer data, there are measures you can take so that customers cannot place orders through Doordash or another similar service. It will take some upfront costs and preparation time, but these strategies will block DoorDash customers from being able to view or order from your restaurant on their app.
Block DoorDash and Other Food Delivery Services
The simplest way to block Doordash customers is to block DoorDash and other food delivery services completely. Disallowing online ordering through a restaurant’s website and/or menu will prevent customers from viewing, let alone ordering through your menu on the DoorDash or other app. There are a few ways to do this. You could create a separate website that redirects to your main menu and blocks DoorDash from accessing your menu.
Alternatively, you could add a disclaimer to your website menu that says your restaurant does not offer online ordering. This will prevent customers from ordering through your menu without blocking your menu from the entire internet. You could also block DoorDash and Doordash through IP address blocking. Most restaurant POS systems will have an IP blocking feature. This will block specific IP addresses from ordering through your menu, though it is important that you maintain a current list of blocked IP addresses to make sure your restaurant doesn’t block customers.
Add a Disclaimer to Your Website and Menu
If you’re not ready to block DoorDash and other food delivery services completely, you can add a disclaimer to your website menu. This will not prevent customers from viewing your menu or ordering through the website, but it will alert them that your restaurant does not offer delivery and that they cannot order through Doordash. Disclaimers can be as simple as “We do not offer delivery.”
You could also add a statement about how you value your customers’ privacy. Some restaurants may not be partnered with DoorDash or other delivery services because they are concerned about personal customer data or the amount of commission they lose by partnering with the service.
Block Through IP Address Blocking
Some restaurant POS systems will have an IP address blocking feature. This will block specific IP addresses from ordering through your menu, though it is important that you maintain a current list of blocked IP addresses to make sure your restaurant doesn’t block customers.
If your restaurant’s POS offers this feature and you’re confident you can maintain a list of blocked IP addresses, it may be a good option for you. This method prevents customers from ordering through your menu without blocking your menu from the entire internet. This allows customers to view your menu, but they will not be able to place any orders. This method is the most efficient, but it requires some maintenance in order to stay updated with the latest IP addresses for DoorDash and other delivery services.
Ban DoorDash Customers Through Constant Repetition
While you can’t prevent customers from placing orders through Doordash, you can prevent them from ordering from your restaurant. You can ban customers who order through Doordash through repetition. This may be the most extreme method of blocking DoorDash customers, but it’s also one of the most effective.
If someone places an order through Doordash at your restaurant, politely ask them to leave. Then, the next time they place an order, ask them to leave again. The next time they come in, ask them again to leave. When they try to order the fourth time, they’re likely to get frustrated and give up. This method is risky because it can lead to a lot of conflict, but it’s also one of the most certain ways to block Doordash customers.
Conclusion
If you don’t want people ordering delivery through Doordash, you’ll have to block DoorDash. There are a few ways to do this. You could create a separate website that redirects to your main menu and blocks DoorDash from accessing your menu.
Alternatively, you could add a disclaimer to your website menu that says your restaurant does not offer online ordering. You could also block DoorDash and Doordash through IP address blocking. Most restaurant POS systems will have an IP blocking feature. This will block specific IP addresses from ordering through your menu, though it is important that you maintain a current list of blocked IP addresses to make sure your restaurant doesn’t block customers.
