Digital ordering and delivery have grown 300 percent faster than dine-in traffic since 2014, according to Upserve. Thinking of isolating production lines in your restaurant to better accommodate off-premise traffic? Chili’s is seeing the value of it. The brand changed its kitchen structure to allow for better production-line preparation of menu items, and pared down its menu to include more profitable items. It has generated consecutive quarters of double-digit off-premise sales increases as a result. As restaurant operators contemplate how to adjust their business model to accommodate off-premise sales, companies continue to spring up to offer solutions. While ghost kitchens and cloud kitchens have made headlines, alternatives to those alternative spaces are becoming available. One example is KitchenPodular, a new company that develops modular, portable kitchen kits that contain electrical and plumbing, sinks, a walk-in cooler, and a ventilation hood and offer the option of a drive-through or walk-up window — operators supply their own oven and stove. The kit (each costs an average of $150,000 and ranges from 206 to 430 square feet in size) can be set up in a restaurant’s existing parking lot, on the outskirts of a city as part of a hub-and-spoke structure, or placed in another preferred location. KitchenPodular CEO Mike Manion, who was featured on a recent episode of The Takeout, Delivery and Catering Show, said these kits can provide restaurant with a turnkey solution for isolating production lines and churning out food to different customer bases more effectively. While they may not be for everyone — as The Spoon points out, they’re still facilities that need to be managed and staffed, and they don’t offer any shared labor for cleaning and dishwashing that one might find in a cloud kitchen — it’s another option to consider if you’re looking for a way to adapt on an ongoing basis to new streams of traffic.

In the first quarter of this year, 46 percent of consumers who ordered Uber Eats in the U.S. also ordered from one of its competitors, according to the data research firm Second Measure. That’s despite these companies offering incentives to keep customers coming back. As a result, Vox reports, third-party delivery companies are currently engaged in a price race to the bottom. But before long, these companies won’t be able to continue their streak of losses and will need to charge higher prices. Their relationships with partner restaurants and customers will be all the more critical. As vendors risk getting weeded out, restaurants may wield some leverage.

Consumers like a limited-time offer: Whether it has to do with short attention spans or a desire for something new and different, there has been a 64 percent spike in LTOs in the past five years, according to Technomic. Their research also found that a majority of female consumers and millennials are drawn to innovative dishes, new flavors and menu launches when they choose a restaurant, and 30 percent of quick-service customers would visit a restaurant they wouldn’t normally visit if it meant taking advantage of a unique LTO. Restaurant Business advises operators to consider several factors when developing an LTO to attract guests. First, set a goal you’re hoping to achieve and design your LTO around it. (An LTO that will bring in guests for several weeks or months will need to have broader, more mainstream appeal than an LTO designed to generate a lot of buzz for a short time.) Second, consider your demographics and let your data guide your decisions. Preferences will vary across generations and genders, so consider everything from your LTO’s ingredients to its portability when anticipating how guests are likely to perceive your offer. Finally, use language that describes the sensory experience of eating what you’re selling (e.g. think “crunchy” vs. “breaded”) and promote the health-conscious aspects of your LTO. Words like “fresh,” “local” and “made from scratch” tend to score especially well with consumers.

New research from the National Restaurant Association found that delivery, drive-thru and takeout food are on track to comprise 63 percent of restaurant sales this year – and many industry insiders see off-premise sales as the industry’s key growth engine. Recent consumer data demonstrates the potential. For example, Foodable reports that more than 80 percent of consumers younger than 35 are using on-demand food ordering apps about twice a week, and Food On Demand reports that delivery sales are 75 percent higher than in-store sales. At the same time, a declining percentage of consumers want to talk to others when visiting a restaurant, according to a recent study from Harvard Business Review. Clearly consumers still crave a restaurant experience but the best way to engage those people may no longer be via an in-person conversation. Harnessing technology to drive off-premise sales is key to tapping into the off-premise opportunity. Do you have a technology blueprint for driving off-premises sales? As of this writing, we were a few weeks away from the 5th annual Takeout, Delivery & Catering Symposium, which will gather industry leaders to forecast what’s ahead for off-premise sales, as well as how operators can use customer analytics to drive sales and engagement, and how technology can make a restaurant operation more efficient. Stay tuned for details from the event in the coming weeks.

The popular guidance on offering restaurant delivery can sound a bit counterintuitive: Find a way to make delivery work, despite the economic challenges it can create, or lose relevance with consumers. A new report in the Washington Post emphasized that point, indicating that the most recent industry earnings calls demonstrated the dramatic impact (positive and negative) of digital ordering and delivery on restaurants. Domino’s, for one, indicated that despite strong sales growth, it felt pressured by the “aggressive marketing of third-party aggregators.” Delivery is also having a big effect on Chipotle, which saw digital sales skyrocket more than 100 percent from the same period last year following a delivery promotion. The demand for digital ordering and delivery is clear. But as third-party delivery companies vie for business with enticing offers, how can you make delivery work for you financially? Consider raising your prices. If recent operator experiences are any indication, the extra cost won’t deter customers who value convenience. A report in Restaurant Business said when Habit Burger launched delivery last year, it increased the cost of delivery orders by 25 percent. Initially, third-party delivery companies were against this move, fearing pushback from consumers. But that has not occurred and delivery companies have softened to the idea. As you flex your business to accommodate more delivery orders, you may be surprised at consumer flexibility on price.