"We are integrating WhatsApp ordering on our app" - Revant Bhate, Faasos

The food technology company has rolled out a call-to-action campaign asking consumers, "We got your food, you got our app?"

Faasos, the food technology company, with an assuring tagline 'Leave Food to Us', aims to cater to the woes of consumers who don't get to eat well-cooked healthy meals on a daily basis, and have to resort to limited food options while ordering food. It currently has operations across eight cities, including Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Baroda, Chennai, Indore and Gurgaon.

It has been in the news for taking orders through Twitter and, now, it has launched a call-to-action campaign on social media, print, outdoor and radio (e-wallet, girlfriend, khichdi and delivery). Titled 'We got your food, have you got our app?', the campaign is promoting Faasos' upgraded mobile application present across Android and iOS platforms. For the record, the app has seen three lakh downloads so far.

The Faasos app allows consumers to track their orders in real time, do cashless payments, order meals anytime and relish the food items which change daily. The campaign also brings to light the Faasos wallet feature that helps foodies store cash, which can be utilised for cashless payments during times of money crunch.

Revant Bhate, co-founder and head of marketing, Faasos, says, "The proposition of the business is to serve those people who, because of their fast-paced lives, end up not having four meals a day. Ordering food has its own set of problems, including menu, delivery time, minimum order etc. Faasos delivers four crucial meals a day, with a dynamic menu, in 20-30 minutes. The menu changes everyday according to one's location, apart from few staple items. Hence, we chose a very call-to-action campaign."

The company's TG is consumers from 18 to 34 years, hailing from SEC A and B, living away from their homes. Currently, it claims to do around 3000 deliveries across eight cities in the country and aims to solve supply chain and quality control issues through technology integration. The company has a total of 125 fulfillment centers, headed by supervisor in charge, across cities from where food is prepared and delivered.

"Customers should not have to deal with the inefficiency of the supply chain and quality issues when it comes to food. This is the problem we are addressing by integrating technology in our operations. Our entire warehouse and supply chain is linked through technology through which we can control the experience of the product till the time it comes to us and reaches the consumer," explains Bhate.

The company, instead of manual checks, records and monitors each and every aspect of the business through the mobile app.

"Operations and quality personnel as well as trainers visiting the Faasos fulfillment centers have to fill in their respective checklists, which is GPS-enabled. If he/she is present in that location, but hasn't recorded the details, it will be known. There are 10-15 points which are recorded every four hours," he adds.

The company bets big on its referral system through which its user base is expanding gradually. For every referral, a Faasos consumer gets Rs. 100 in their wallet as referral money. Although the company is investing in traditional media, Bhate says, digital continues to have maximum impact on its business, because that is where the TG is most active.

Speaking about future plans, Bhate reveals that, in order to further ease out the food ordering process, the company will be integrating WhatsApp ordering on its app soon.

Incorporated in 2011, Faasos owns and technologically operates all the three important aspects of a 'food on demand' business, viz. ordering (the most convenient ordering app in the country), distribution (availability of food across different cities) and fulfillment (delivery through the company's own logistics or delivery boys). It has secured Series A funding from Sequoia Capital in FY2012 and Series B led by Sandeep Murthy-backed Lightbox Ventures in FY2015, which has assisted Faasos in its expansion plans significantly.