Same plate, two different baskets: a 130 TL pasta on Yemeksepeti hits the customer at 165 TL after packaging, service, and the inflated menu price restaurants set to absorb platform commissions. Order directly through the same restaurant's QR menu and you pay 145 TL. Turkish Consumer Courts ruled in 2025 that this 20 TL gap must be transparent — opening a strategic window for direct channels.
How fee stacking actually works
Marketplaces layer three things: commission (25-35%), packaging or service fees (12-25 TL per order), and dynamic delivery costs. To keep margin intact at "net 130 TL", restaurants raise menu prices on the platform. The customer sees a fragmented bill that masks the total uplift of roughly 25-30%.
Because no single line item is shocking, the "cheap" perception holds. But the restaurant's direct site cuts the middleman entirely, typically lowering the customer's out-of-pocket by 12-15 TL while paying the restaurant the same or more.
Legal context in Türkiye
In 2025 the Ankara Consumer Arbitration Board ruled that failing to disclose the price differential between platform and restaurant constitutes an unfair commercial practice. A Consumer Court awarded 47,000 TL in damages in one case. The precedent makes it legally safer for restaurants to publish "net savings vs marketplace" messaging on their own channels.
The nuance: comparative attacks ("Yemeksepeti is expensive") remain risky, but transparent justification of your own price (no platform commission, no surcharge) is protected.
Communication tactics for direct channels
Add a tiny note under each product card in the QR menu: "This price excludes platform commission — 12% better than marketplace." On the checkout screen, show itemised lines (product, VAT, packaging if any). Zero hidden fields.
- Cart comparison row: "Platform price would be 165 TL — you pay 145 TL."
- 5% loyalty credit on first direct order to convert habit.
- SMS/WhatsApp confirmation: "Ordering direct means more goes to the restaurant."
FAQ
Do I need to leave the platform entirely? No — visibility is valuable. Hybrid model: discovery on marketplace, repeat orders on your channel.
Can I claim "cheaper than marketplace"? A concrete numeric comparison (165 TL vs 145 TL) is fine if verifiable. Avoid vague superlatives.
How do I fund the QR-menu shift? Half of the saved 30% commission covers direct-channel investment within six months.
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