Bubble tea is one among favourite food that consumers order online. — Photo from Internet
Most Southeast Asians prefer food and grocery brands with an integrated online-to-offline experience, with digital platforms now a vital part of the consumer journey, reported Grab’s 2023 Southeast Asia Food and Grocery Trends survey.
The survey, whose respondents include 6,242 users across Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Việt Nam, has identified trends and shifts in how Vietnamese users and shoppers are ordering food and groceries online in the post-pandemic era.
About 9 in 10, equivalent to 91 per cent of surveyed consumers in Việt Nam, say they have used the Grab app to discover new restaurants and stores they have never tried before.
Food delivery apps are also now the most popular way Southeast Asians are discovering new F&B outlets, ahead of food blogs, their friends and family network, as well as social media platforms.
The report also found that consumer food journeys are increasingly a blend of online and offline experiences.
More than 90 per cent say they read reviews online, over 60 per cent pre-purchased vouchers online, and over 70 per cent placed their orders digitally at tables in restaurants.
Mã Tuấn Trọng, country commercial head, Grab Vietnam, said: “Delivery platforms like Grab are playing an increasingly integral role in the everyday food journeys of Vietnamese consumers. Our aim is to leverage the reach, influence and insights we have to drive even more demand back to our merchant-partners. We hope the findings from our latest report can help our merchant-partners better understand their online customers and how to engage with them.”
The report also highlighted that in Việt Nam, one out of five of Grab's top spenders are those who subscribe to GrabUnlimited - a subscription plan that offers monthly benefits and bonus promos across Grab services.
Group Order is a feature on Grab that allows multiple people to add food items into a shared cart and split delivery fees. In Việt Nam, the number of orders using this feature were four times higher in the first half of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. Most popular at lunchtime and for deliveries to workplaces, merchants can tap into this office lunch crowd by offering bundled deals during this peak time.
Time orders between 3pm to 6pm have the highest basket value, as people tend to order snacks in groups.
In fact, 93 per cent of respondents in Việt Nam said they are likely to snack during this time. Merchants can offer bundled snack deals or boost traffic to their stores during these hours through dine-in deals.
About 47 per cent of users in Việt Nam said they are willing to pay more for sustainable brands, and 93 per cent are more likely to support brands with sustainable practices.
As consumers make more eco-conscious choices, brands can get a head start by reducing packaging, whether by removing extra layers, or opting for natural materials such as banana leaves, Grab said.
In Việt Nam, this year's trending food orders include Bún đậu mắm tôm and Cà phê muối while Trà sữa and Cơm tấm topped the search charts.
Grab said that it continues to find ways to improve merchant discovery on the app and deliver more value to GrabFood and GrabMart users. This includes a revamped Group Order experience with new functionality such as bill-splitting and Dine-In Deals that allow consumers to discover new restaurants and pre-purchase attractive in-store deals.
Merchants can also leverage GrabAds Marketing Manager, accessible via the GrabMerchant app or website, to build entire campaigns quickly and easily, to reach new customers. — VNS