Google expands tools to help businesses impacted by COVID-19
https://techcrunch.com/2020/05/27/google-expands-tools-to-help-businesses-impacted-by-covid-19/
Google is rolling out a series of updates aimed at helping local businesses adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic while continuing to serve their customers across Google Maps and Search. Since the outbreak, Google has made it possible for businesses to communicate to customers things like their revised operating hours or temporary closures, among other things. Now, it’s adding and expanding a set of features that will allow businesses to support themselves, including those focused on gift card sales, fundraising or by marketing their virtual services. Restaurants will also be able to point to their preferred delivery partners, so customers can choose to order through the third-party the business recommends.
That latter item addresses what’s been a particularly sore point for restaurant owners amid the pandemic. Already, restaurants found food delivery apps’ large commission fees difficult to swallow. Now, these apps are profiting from the industry’s collapse as the pandemic rages on.