Did you know that the world’s online food delivery segment generated the revenue of $82714 million in 2018? Talking specifically about Indian online food eCommerce business, it is expected to reach $2.7 billion by 2019.
How is it happening?
Food is the major necessity of life, and most of the world’s population find it extremely convenient to order food online that gets delivered in less time at reasonable prices. Any service or business offering freedom of choice to the consumer, greater ease of accessibility, and adaptability to fit into the tight schedule of the consumer, gets closer to success and growth. On-demand food delivery apps such as Swiggy, FoodPanda, and Zomato have made lucrative investments and faced a lot of challenges to deliver amazing services to premium consumers before becoming so popular.
Setting up an online food-delivery business venture requires a thorough understanding of consumer preferences and a channelized delivery management system developed by top mobile app development companies to make it more convenient for users. Several things need to be considered include the type of business model, features, versions of the app, and challenges to establish a successful food-delivery venture.
Let’s take a look at a detailed view on how to build customer-friendly food delivery app.
Start-up Business Models of Food Delivery
The current food market is based on two major start-up business models that are not only convenient for the users but are also beneficial for the restaurants and food joints.
The Aggregator Business Model
This type of business model helps start-ups to work as a third-party vendor whose job is to manage consumers as well as restaurants. They help in giving exposure to consumers with different restaurants, saving records of food orders, consumer details and so on. This business model is based on the traditional method of food-delivery in which the consumers can go through the list of restaurants, their cuisines, menus, reviews, ratings, and prices once they register themselves on the app. When the order is placed from the consumer's send, the details are sent to the restaurant by the aggregator. The dispatch and delivery of food are further processed by the restaurant itself. One of the most popular apps that follow this business model is Zomato.
Food-delivery with Logistics Support Business Model
This model is entirely different from the aggregator model as it provides partnering restaurants with complete logistic support. The benefit of opting this model is that it is not only profitable for small food joints and restaurants but also home delivery services. Start-ups are benefited the most who lack resources and do not have the bandwidth to have a delivery system in place. Once they start following this business model, they need not manage deliveries, maintain vehicles, delivery personnel. The typical examples of apps that support this food-delivery business model are UberEats and Swiggy.
Crucial Features of a Food-delivery App
Though success and the future performance of an on-demand food-delivery app rely on various factors such as the quality of food and variety of cuisines offered, it also depends on the app features provided to the consumers that make the food-ordering process convenient and less time-consuming.
Data Accessibility
Data is the most crucial part of every food-delivery app. To engage users, add information about different restaurants, cuisines, nutritional content, calories, ingredients, and delivery time. This information helps users to place their order easily and quickly. The information and the details related to food and restaurants can easily be accessed through API used in the mobile apps.
Online Payments Integration
Majority of food-delivery app customers like to pay online for their placed order rather than cash on delivery. It is not only convenient and easy for the users but also eliminates the worry of having enough money or change required at the time of delivery. Almost every food-delivery app such as Zomato or UberEats has integrated online payment feature to accelerate the process. Therefore, it is advisable to incorporate as many preferred payment options as possible such as Visa Checkout, Stripe, and Paypal.
Food Delivery Time
Fast delivery time is something that every user looks for while placing their food orders. Therefore, it is advisable to add a feature of estimated delivery time that can help customers to be patient and reduce their anxiety levels effectively. It might seem daunting in the beginning but is possible with the use of machine learning and contributory parameters that are taken into account. Make sure that the time displayed on the app is accurate or close to it as it will help in building the reputation of the food-delivery app in the longer run.
Food-order Tracking
Order tracking is the most popular feature these days in food-delivery apps. It helps users to know the actual location till where their order has reached. GPS is extensively used by food-delivery apps to offer the best experience to the customers.
How does it work?
It works by identifying the user’s verified location. It is a two-way tracking which means that the customer can track their order and the movement of the delivery personnel, whereas, the delivery agent can track the location where the order has to be delivered. Integrating great API’s such as Google maps and Mapkit can help in making the app more advanced and useful.
Feedback
Either the food is being delivered by the restaurants or the freelance drivers provided by app organizers, it's important to keep a check and monitor their jobs timely to ensure they are not doing something that could be harmful to the company’s reputation. The most efficient way is to take the customers feedback in the form of reviews and ratings based on their experiences. Make sure to build the feedback system quick and straightforward so that every user fills it and do not skip it.
Three Versions of Food and Restaurant Delivery App
Food-delivery app is certainly different when compared to Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. It is not just a single app made for consumers to place their orders, but the app has two more versions for restaurant managers and delivery personnel.
1. Consumer Version
The consumer version of the app includes registration of the customer to initiate the process of placing food orders. This version of the app must allow the user to go through the following steps:
- Registration
- Order information
- Payments
- Location/tracking
- Feedback
2. Delivery Personnel Version
This version of the app must include the information required for delivery of the placed order:
- Registration/Profile development of delivery personnel
- Managing Orders
- Updating the status of the orders placed, pending, or skipped
3. Partner Restaurant Version
This version help restaurants owners or managers to keep the consumers updated regarding the menu, location, orders received, and processed. It includes:
- Registration
- Admin panel
- Content management
- Order management
- Receiving payments
Challenges and their Solutions
Every business face challenges whether it is an online or offline business. It is advisable to be prepared for the challenges with their appropriate solutions. Some of the common challenges that can come up while developing a food-delivery app are as follows:
Identifying the Target Audience
Apart from delivering tasty meals, it is essential to determine the target audience first. It seems a bit daunting but is not a hassle once you have set clear targets. Think whether it is going to target busy professionals who like to have healthy food, college-going students who want to party every Saturday or for people who want to grab a quick, delicious bite while hanging out with friends. Set the app USP and deliver food accordingly that adds value to the business as well as the audience.
Determining the Business Requirements
- Promotion via social networking sites
- Developing three app versions
- Get a list of food options
- Tie-ups with restaurants, food-joints, and delivery services
- GPS integration for navigation and tracking
- Database
Some tasks require experienced professionals such as GPS integration and developing apps. Just acquire a team of app development solution providers who can help overcome these challenges.
The UI/UX
It is crucial to develop an interactive online food delivery application to lure in the customers. Also make sure it perfectly fits any screen be it a smartphone, desktop or a tablet. Add features like:
- Login through social media
- Provide relevant information
- Real-time tracking feature
- Safe and secure payment gateway
Few Parting Tips
Once, the application is all set to get introduced in the market, start following different business approaches to make it successful and worth. Expand your user base, delve deep into the market analysis, retain your old customers and courier services, gain useful insights from your competitors and serve delicious food to your potential customer.
