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How To Become A DoorDash Merchant [Step-By-Step]

Unlock more profits as a restaurant owner with DoorDash Merchant. See how to join the program to reward your customers and get more orders.

Key Takeaways

  • Access a vast customer base and enhance your restaurant’s online visibility.
  • Enjoy features like sponsored listings and marketplace access for growth.
  • Benefit from financial support through DoorDash Capital for eligible merchants.
  • Easy signup process and a comprehensive Merchant Portal for management.

As a restaurant owner, partnering with DoorDash brings your menu to the attention of thousands of customers online.

That’s not all, though, as the platform has an exciting offer for traditional dine-in outlets and modern restaurants that deliver take-outs while prioritizing access to the customers who spend more on average.

Here’s what you need to know about becoming a DoorDash Merchant and how joining can benefit your business.

What Makes Being a DoorDash Merchant Attractive?

Being a DoorDash Merchant goes beyond listing your offerings on its delivery platform.

This program provides you with several tools to help you attract new customers and increase your order size and volume.

While liquor stores, flower shops, pet stores, and grocery stores can all benefit from being on the program, restaurant owners can enhance their menu listings on the DoorDash storefront. As a DoorDash Merchant, you can create promotions and reward your favorite customers with timely discounts.

With 24/7 support accessible to you, you can also partner with DoorDash on its capital funding initiative to help your restaurant grow further.

What You’ll Get as a DoorDash Merchant

Here are some of the advantages of being a DoorDash Merchant:

1. Sponsored Listings

Sponsored Listings lets your business get discovered on DoorDash, as you get priority on the platform’s homepage and relevant search results within your location.

This feature is designed for busy merchants with different levels of advertising experience and comes with a guide to help you start your ad campaign. After your ad goes live, you can seamlessly make adjustments and see how it performs directly from your Merchant Portal (more about this below).

Best of all, unlike regular pay-per-click ad models, Sponsored Listings operates a pay-per-order model, helping you get maximum value on each ad placed.

2. Marketplace Listings

When you become a DoorDash Merchant, you unlock an active customer base by offering pickup and delivery services on the DoorDash app, also known as the Marketplace. This feature is designed to help restaurant owners drive more profits and real results to take their businesses to the next level.

You can look forward to increased sales when you tap into DashPass subscribers, a set of customers who spend at least $12 on orders, more than regular DoorDash customers.

There are various customizable solutions for your business, including the capacity to switch your menu and operating hours in real-time.

Customers will be able to find you on the Marketplace and order for pickup or delivery, which you can manage through a POS integration or a tablet.

After you’ve accepted and streamlined the orders, you can use the Merchant Portal to set up delivery via your driver employees or Dashers. 

3. Storefront

As part of each Marketplace subscription plan, DoorDash Merchants who own restaurants get access to Storefront. It’s an online ordering system that allows you to convert website visitors into customers.

There are no commissions or monthly fees, just payment processing, and orders made through it are sent straight to your POS or DoorDash tablet.

You can add Storefront to your email newsletter and social media pages, helping you turn all your online channels into avenues to convert visitors into paying customers. You can also customize the header image, logo, color scheme, favicon, fonts, and more.

4. Promotions

With Promotions, you can attract new and loyal customers with incentives to encourage them to spend more on each order.

You can entice them by covering their delivery fees or giving them a discounted item from your offerings.

As a DoorDash Merchant, you get a $100 credit for each store to sponsor promotions for deserving customers, after which you’ll be charged for subsequent campaigns.

5. DoorDash Capital

DoorDash Capital helps you manage your business with much-needed financing thanks to a partnership between DoorDash and Parafin.

Provided you’re eligible, you’ll be able to see a pre-approved amount in your Merchant Portal, which you can receive within 48 hours. The capital you can access typically ranges between $5,000 and $15,000, but you can get more.

There’s no recurring interest, prepayment penalty, or hidden charges. Repayments are deducted as a portion of your sales on DoorDash. You can select the percentage to be deducted, including the payment period (usually between 6 and 9 months).

How to Become a DoorDash Merchant

The first step to getting started as a DoorDash Merchant is to log in via the relevant portal on the website.

If you don’t have a DoorDash account, you can create one by signing up to become a DoorDash partner.

  1. Navigate to the login page.
  2. Enter your business name, contact details, email address, and business type.
  3. Click on “Get Started.”

After completing this signup process, you’ll be able to create an ordering protocol for receiving food orders.

You’ll then wait for the DoorDash team to send an email welcoming you to your Merchant Suite. There, you’ll be able to access, view, and manage financial statements, store overviews, sales, customer insights, and more.

What Are the Requirements?

To be a DoorDash Merchant, you have to provide:

  • Basic information about your business, such as owner name, business name, and location.
  • Your EIN to validate your culinary entity.

You also have to subscribe to one of DoorDash’s partner plans with zero payment processing fees. Except for when you have Storefront activated on your Marketplace subscription plan, you’ll be charged a small commission on orders.

The available plans are:

  • Basic: $0 for 7 days, 15% commission per delivery order.
  • Plus: $0 for 30 days, 25% commission per delivery order.
  • Premier:  $0 for 30 days, 30% commission per delivery order.

Each plan also comes with pickup ordering, where you can offer a pickup option for your customers and pay a reduced 6% commission rate for each order.

How Long Does It Take?

While it varies for each restaurant, it takes about 3-5 days on average to get started as a DoorDash Merchant after applying.

What Is the Merchant Portal?

We mentioned the Merchant Portal several times above. The portal is where you can schedule deliveries with Dashers, entering all the details required to complete the delivery.

Here are some of the things you can do on the Merchant Portal:

  • The capacity to include specific pickup instructions for Dashers and customers.
  • An overview of your menu based on different categories and how well your menu has performed, including your most popular items and total sales for each.
  • Editing the listed items and their descriptions, adding photos, or marking them as out of stock.  

Wrapping Up

Restaurant business can be one of the most competitive around, and traditional dine-in outlets have begun to see the sales potential that online menus bring. With the DoorDash Merchant program, you bring your offerings to the attention of teeming customers who are more than happy to try out your dishes.

Being a DoorDash Merchant makes it possible to manage a restaurant business, especially if you have multiple outlets. It can take your restaurant to the next level and drive more revenue, as well as assess customer experience, analyze sales and operations, track orders, and schedule deliveries through the portal.

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