First Party Growth Playbook

15–30% of every marketplace order goes to commission. Treat that as your customer acquisition cost — then stop paying it on the same guest’s tenth order.

Guests already prefer direct. DoorDash’s own data showed 43% of its customers would rather order from a restaurant’s website or app. The demand exists — the job is removing friction and giving a reason.

The winning model is hybrid. Keep marketplaces for net-new discovery. Move known guests, loyalty members, pickup, and high-ticket orders to your own channel.

Put an offer in every 3P bag. Inserts, box stickers, and QR codes with a discount redeemable only on your app or website turn each marketplace order into a conversion opportunity.

Cover the switch cost. Waive delivery or discount the first direct order — a one-time 10% offer beats a recurring 25%+ commission every time.

Code it by channel. Unique promo codes per marketplace let you measure exactly how many DoorDash vs. Uber Eats guests converted.

Differentiate the menu. Price higher on 3P to cover commission, keep 1P prices lower, and reserve full menus, customization, and exclusives for direct channels.

Wall the value inside your ecosystem. Points, tiers, and perks earned only through your app and web ordering build habit around direct — not the aggregator.

Loyalty guests order 3x more across their lifetime on Lunchbox. Match structure to visit frequency: tiered banks for high-frequency concepts, clean spend-X-get-Y for the rest.

Bridge in-store and online. Scan-to-Pay and receipt-based earning mean guests never lose value based on how they order — the app becomes their identity with your brand.

Layer in energy. Double-point days, wallet drops, birthday rewards, and surprise-and-delight freebies keep the program active between orders.

Audit your links. Google Business Profile, Instagram/TikTok bios, Yelp, and your website should all lead with your direct ordering URL — never a marketplace link.

QR everything. Register signage, receipts, packaging, and table tents route to one app-download landing page with an incentive attached.

Sell direct on social. Make a meaningful share of posts about ordering direct — mix soft sells (food + link) with clear calls to action, plus geo-targeted ads in your delivery zones.

Automate the lifecycle. Welcome series, reorder nudges, 30/60/90-day win-backs, points-expiring alerts, and abandoned-cart flows across email, SMS, and push – all available through Customer.io

Personalize or don’t bother. Use order history to tailor offers. A couple of well-timed pushes per week drives engagement; blasting everyone the same message drives deletes.

One-tap reorder, saved payment, digital wallets. 3P apps win on convenience — your channel has to match or beat it, or guests default back.

Deliver on parity. Dispatch integrations put direct delivery on par with marketplaces — and direct orders arrive faster and allow fuller customization. Market that.

Give exclusives a home. Direct-only bundles, LTOs, and early access give guests something that exists nowhere else.

Route high-ticket orders direct. Catering and group orders (coming soon) never belong on commission (ezCater) — larger checks and repeat corporate buyers make catering one of the highest-ROI direct channels.

Track monthly: 1P vs. 3P order mix · 3P→1P conversion by promo code · loyalty enrollment · repeat rate and days between orders · campaign-attributed revenue · app download → first order conversion. Sequence the rollout: perfect the direct experience, launch loyalty, run conversion offers, then layer automated marketing.