2026 isn’t a year to play defense — it’s the year restaurants take back control.
Brands that prioritize direct online ordering, investing in their online presence, customer relationships, and margins will be best positioned to weather the industry’s unpredictability.
But there’s a built-in contradiction: to truly own your direct orders, you almost always need a third-party partner to build and scale the technology that makes that ownership possible.
Online ordering systems, websites, and mobile apps, not to mention the data and payment infrastructure behind them, require product and engineering muscle most restaurants don’t have in-house. So you need a technology partner — but pick the wrong one and you’ve simply traded one middleman for another, handing the very asset you want to protect back to another company.
In this piece, I’ll look at why direct ordering will separate the restaurants that thrive from those that struggle in 2026 and how your choice of tech partner can turn that strategy into either an asset or a liability.
Why direct ordering matters more than ever
1. It’s how you protect your margins
With direct online ordering, you typically pay a standard processing fee on each order — 2.9% + $0.30 per order when you use the DoorDash Commerce Platform. Pricing your online ordering menu items with this cost structure in mind can help you turn your direct ordering strategy into a profitable growth machine.
Bowls of Rice, an Asian-fusion fast-casual restaurant, saw about $9,000 in commission savings in their first quarter on the DoorDash Commerce Platform¹ — a great example of how doubling down on direct orders can allow you to save money. Best of all, you can use those savings to reinvest in other parts of your business to boost growth.
2. It’s how you collect customer data and build relationships
When guests order from you directly, you can collect customer data like order history, preferences, and cadence, plus their contact information. This data allows you to reach out to your customers directly and keep them informed of events, menu updates, and more.
In addition to one-off emails, you can also leverage customer data for automated sends like order reminders, winback messages, and loyalty offers. Automated campaigns like these work in the background so you can focus on day-to-day operations instead of marketing.
El Jefe's Taqueria generated $18,000 in sales in three months² from automated loyalty emails, paired with other automated email marketing campaigns available through the DoorDash Commerce Platform.
Without a strong direct ordering strategy, you won't be able to collect the customer data you need to scale communications and drive revenue from your campaigns.
3. It’s how you create habit and capture repeat customers
Repeat customers aren’t an accident. They’re the result of small, deliberate design choices that make ordering from you the obvious, easy thing to do.
A well-designed online ordering system reduces friction, making ordering and reordering easy. From saving payment information to upselling customers as they build their cart — when you own your channels, you own the levers to create and scale repeat business.
“Hemos podido retener a muchos más clientes al ofrecerles una experiencia más fácil de usar con Órdenes en línea”.
Why the partner you choose is the difference between success and sunk cost
Many restaurants that invest in direct ordering fail to capture the full value because they picked the wrong partner: one that looks great on a sales deck but creates more work, makes customer data inaccessible, or locks them into high or hidden fees.
Here’s what you should look for:
Transparent pricing: Look for simple pricing and clear economics so you can model ROI from day one.
True ownership of first-party data: You need access to order data, customer emails, and the ability to export or use that data — not a black box where the vendor keeps the keys.
Automated marketing built for restaurants: Tools that send reorder nudges, winback campaigns, and targeted offers without heavy lift turn data into repeat visits. A good partner brings proven playbooks you can activate quickly.
Branded web and mobile experiences: A responsive, search-optimized website and the option for a mobile app allow you to scale engagement and build your brand.
Fast, low-friction setup and support. The best partners get you live quickly and support you operationally, not just technically. Ongoing customer success matters.
Transparent, scalable contracts. Watch for long lock-in, opaque fees, or revenue share terms that escalate as you grow.
The bottom line
Direct ordering isn’t just another box to check in 2026. It's the foundation of long-term resilience and growth, and how you'll ensure you're bringing your 2025 customers with you into the new year. Restaurants that take control of their digital presence, customer relationships, and margins will be the ones that stay competitive no matter how the industry shifts. But control doesn’t come from going it alone — it comes from choosing a partner that empowers you.
The right technology partner gives you the tools, data, and economics to turn direct ordering into a revenue engine that compounds over time. The wrong one puts you right back where you started: dependent, constrained, and wondering who your customers are.
As you plan for the year ahead, invest where it matters most: in platforms and partners that give you true ownership, transparent value, and the ability to build lasting customer relationships. The restaurants that win in 2026 will be the ones that don’t just participate in direct ordering but partner with the right technology company to scale their growth.
¹Based on DoorDash internal data, Jul 2025 to Sep 2025
²Based on DoorDash internal data, Jun 2025 to Sep 2025
