Why is prep time important?

For partner, an article explaining how prep time impacts your business and tips on how to improve it.

Why is prep time important?

Prep time is the time it takes from receiving the food order to handing that order over to the delivery driver.  Your prep time score impacts how you rank on the delivery platforms and is also a factor in a customer's decision to order with you.

At PWB we ask you to maintain a prep time below 14 minutes. 

Too high a prep time will compromise your ranking on the delivery platforms.  A low ranking on a platform means less menu views, fewer customers placing an order, and ultimately lower sales for you and your business.  It also impacts the end to end delivery time that customers see - a longer end to end time will reduce the number of customers wanting to order from you.

That said, we also do not want you to swing too far the other way... although low prep time is good for ranking, if you are significantly below 14 minutes then this means you are likely not spending enough time on the cooking and assembly processes.  This will lead to other issues - undercooked food, incorrectly prepared food or, if you are hot holding, dry and tasteless food.

A high prep time can also risk your rider supply and there are no orders without riders!  If high kitchen prep time leads to riders waiting, it will increase the likelihood of riders rejecting your orders.

Up to 80% of orders rejected by riders are due to wait times in the restaurant.  

How can I improve my prep time?

Make sure you are ready for service:  

• Prepare all necessary food and equipment in advance - use the training guides on Partner Portal if you need to check what recommended preparation consists of for each brand.
• Kitchen Organization - ensure the layout of the kitchen is efficient with packaging ready, sauces to hand and all produce a step or two away from the assembly area.

You can find a checklist to ensure you are ready for service here.