November 22, 2021
By: John Tomblin, Senior Solutions Architect
PhoenixBizz, a division of Sofvue, LLC
Printed with permission of Data Titan, Sofvue LLC, and the author
There are two major, and dare I say, “revolutions”, underway in the retail and wholesale sectors. The first is massive pent-up demand by consumers who (a) want to shop online using their smart devices and (b) have everything delivered to their front door in less than 24 hours. The second is a shift by retailers and wholesalers who, like consumers, want to place orders for their supplies and parts directly from their smartphones, and see their deliveries arrive at their business’ service entrance or back door, preferably, yesterday.
According to Mobile App Daily, 86.5 million Americans have used an on-demand service, spending more than $57.6 billion annually, and given the 2020/2021 pandemic, this trend will not see any slowdown anytime soon, especially given the fact that, according to retail touchpoints, 88% of consumers are willing to pay more for same-day delivery. As an example, I just personally placed an order for a new spare part for one of our company computers with a company in Europe, and the delivery is guaranteed to arrive at our office 48 hours from now.
These numbers indicate that by building an on-demand delivery app for your business, you can both grow your customer base and boost your company’s revenue. Now the question becomes, how to get started? How do you build an on-demand delivery app for your business, successfully?
Let’s jump right in.
Types of On-Demand Delivery Apps
Let’s look at the different types of on-demand delivery apps you can create, along with their future growth projections.
➤ Food Delivery App: The online food delivery market has seen rapid growth in the last few years. The revenue in the food delivery segment is projected to reach $401 Billion in 2025, up from $270B in 2021 (growing at a CAGR of 10.39%).
➤ eCommerce App: In 2020, over two billion people purchased goods or services online, spending over $4.2 trillion. The number is expected to grow to $5.4 trillion in 2022.
➤ Grocery Delivery App: Almost 10% of all grocery sales in 2022 will be made online. By creating a grocery app whose focus is rapid delivery, you can be a part of a fast-growing market segment, and acquire significant, early adoption, market share.
➤ Medicine Delivery App: The telemedicine industry is anticipated to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate CAGR of 25.08% between 2019 and 2026. However, building a telemedicine app requires a significant understanding of federal oversight, county, state, and federal regulations, as well as a deep understanding of HIPAA regulations.
➤ Milk Delivery Apps: We’ve come full circle. Milk was delivered directly to homes every morning in the ’50s and ’60s, but then became cost prohibitive, but we’re back. Milk is one of the most vital necessities of our lives. Getting it delivered right to your doorstep in the morning has gained a resurgence of popularity, opening the door of opportunities for on-demand apps.
How to Build an On-Demand Delivery App?
Now that you know about some of the various types of on-demand delivery apps gaining in popularity, here are the steps to building them.
#1 Do the Research
Before you begin developing your on-demand app, you need to understand the market. Here are a few questions to help you get started:
✅ Is there a need for the product in your area?
✅ Are there any other on-demand delivery apps operating in your area? If yes, what kind of response are they receiving?
✅ Who is going to use my services the most, and how do I produce adoption?
✅ Are there any legal requirements for this specific type of on-demand service?
✅ How will I monetize while providing the best possible service to customers?
✅ These questions will help you lay the foundation of your app and reduce the chances of failure.
#2 Decide on the Features
The working principle of on-demand delivery apps is pretty simple: a user places an order, makes the payment, and you deliver the product/service.
However, depending on the type of product or service you’re delivering, you need to add various features to your app to make the user experience work.
For example, a food delivery app should have these features:
◾For Users of the app:
✅ Sign up/login
✅ Integration with maps
✅ Order tracking
✅ Set-up pick-up location and destination options
✅ 24-hour delivery option
✅ In-app payment options
✅ Ratings and reviews
✅ Push notifications
✅ Saving credit card details
✅ Search & Advanced Search
◾For Merchants, the app must include:
✅ Inbound order receiving and tracking
✅ Accept/reject order option
✅ View route to the delivery location
✅ Check purchase history
✅ Logistic delivery options for “out of area” delivery
◾For the Administrator Interface:
✅ Inbound order tracking
✅ List of drivers, driver history, driver performance, and their delivery history
✅ Manual and automated payout controls
✅ Significant reporting tools
✅ AR/AP and taxation reporting for local, regional, and national
✅ Matching algorithm to intelligently match nearby drivers for the delivery
#3 Design the Layout
The next step is designing the UI of your app. You need to make sure your app is easy to navigate and allows users to do the desired task without issue.
From signing up to the checkout, the entire process should be seamless and repeatable. If you’re not sure how to design the layout of an app, you must consider hiring a professional UI designer to create the required application’s architecture.
#4 Develop the App
Once you have the App’s MSD, it’s time for coding. Decide whether you want to build an Android, iOS, or cross-platform app. Note: For retail apps, developing a cross-platform goes without saying. For B2b apps, it varies.
Also, note that developing Android and iOS apps separately comes with higher costs than cross-platform solutions, but it also offers a better experience than cross-platform apps. For more information on this point, give us a call. The context of this decision is beyond the scope of this article.
#5 Test and Launch
Once you’ve developed your app, you need to test it on various devices to determine any issues. You should also ask friends and family to download the app from the Apple Store and Google Play and “run it through its paces” to identify bugs and gather feedback. Depending on the type of app and the marketplace being served, you might need to incentivize people to join the beta. Another option is to hire professional QA testers to quality check your app and find potential issues that might impair the user experience.
Best Practices for Building Your On-Demand App
The smartest way to build your on-demand app is by hiring a local mobile app development firm in Phoenix. At Phoenix Bizz, our team of developers can custom design a cost-efficient solution that meets the unique needs of your business, as well as build a mobile app that your customers will love to use. To learn more about developing your app, contact us at 623-845-2747 or email us using our contact form. One of our business consultants will contact you to learn more about your next great project.
You may also like to read: Understanding the Features and Development Costs of an On-Demand Beauty Service Mobile App
Re: Mobile App Daily
https://www.mobileappdaily.com/on-demand-changing-business
Re: Retail TouchPoints
https://retailtouchpoints.com/resources/88-of-consumers-will-pay-for-same-day-delivery
Re: Statista
https://www.statista.com/outlook/dmo/eservices/online-food-delivery/worldwide
Re: Statista
https://www.statista.com/statistics/379046/worldwide-retail-e-commerce-sales/
Re: Fortune Business
https://www.globenewswire.com/en/news-release/2021/04/30/2220445/0/en/Telemedicine-Market-Size-2021-Is-Anticipated-to-Exhibit-a-CAGR-of-25-08-and-Hit-USD-396-76-Billion-by-2026.html
Copyright © 11-20-2021
