How to Build a Food Delivery App in Easy Steps

There's nothing new in food ordering. Mobile applications have improved the smoothness, speed and convenience of ordering food on request. The food supply app sector is also well known. It is estimated that the market will be $154.34 billion by 2023. This article is perfect for you if you intend on developing an app like UberEats or Swiggy or Zomato.

The globe is moving and there has been a considerable rise in demand for services in recent years. The on-demand food distribution service is one of the areas fully transformed. Food supply software like Zomato, Food Panda and Uber Eats satisfy the needs of millions of people. Today consumers do not have to deal with small choices of food delivery restaurants; if it is midnight or hunger cramps early in the morning, people get their food from where they want it to.

The working of a Food Delivery App

Applications of food supply promote the supply of local foods. Online food supply applications allow consumers to order with a single tap in a cell phone from a number of establishments. Call to put an order and either go to the restaurant to collect it or wait when the couriers arrive, without specifying specifically when it will be delivered. Customers can check their favourite restaurants and food through online resources.

Why build a food delivery app

Let us ass the industry and why on demand are food applications so common before we start the specifics in the nitty-gritty of how to build a food supply app such as Swiggy or UberEats. With one click you can order a many dishes from numerous restaurants. You can order it from restaurants and you can pick it up or just wait for the delivery. These applications are a perfect way for customers and restaurants to connect. And it's actually a profitable enterprise. The annual food delivery demand is estimated to hit $108 billion, representing 1% of the food industry as a whole and 4% of the food served in restaurants and markets.

Let’s get through the step-by-step process to develop a food delivery application

Step 1: Decide your business model

Four common models are available.

1. Order-only model -In applications such as Delivery Hero, JustEat or Grubhub you might confront this model. This means that you only supply the restaurants with a software layer. Restaurants can use the app to draw consumers, customers can make orders and provide all tech resources, but restaurants are worried with logistics, distribution and couriers. Your technology simplifies and simplifies contact between eateries and customers.

The customer orders on request. This order is obtained and told by the restaurant. The restaurant delivers via special service or in-house courier once the order has been filled. This model requires no further preparations and is very scalable for ordering. You focus totally on the restaurant in this model and can manage the delivery process.

2. Order and delivery model - This is an enhanced version of the previous version, as you may have guessed. Uber Eats, DoorDash and Zomato are used for that purpose. The service not only offers a smartphone device in this model, but also logistics and communications technologies. For the eateries the website is very useful to make orders and distribute, so they can provide only dishes without further questions regarding shipping, courier payments and other facilities. The suppliers of this model will charge extra shipping fees and raise the sales price at maximum hours. In the application, the restaurant uploads the menu. The customer will select meals, order and pay for them. It can be accepted or denied when the restaurant sees the orders. It is shipped to the nearest courier when the order is ready. The final step is consumer distribution. Because of distribution, the service provider can charge a higher amount. This is even better for hotels, and helps you to have a larger range and a bigger audience.

3. Cloud restaurant model - Cloud restaurants mean that the restaurant has no location for customers and just operates for delivery. The customers can access, make and accept orders from the menu. So you can't go to dinner at this pub. Such grocery stores use or outsource them to food supply applications in-house. This is a decent way to launch a company with a minimum of investment for the restaurant. Applications for food supply often communicate and assist with cloud restaurants. The job process is the same as in earlier versions. The distinction is that such a restaurant couldn't be visited. As we said, it is a successful way to continue with minimal investment in restaurants. The Delivery App Service is a way to locate a modern, low-priced restaurant (because such restaurants do not require huge real estate areas and can save rent costs) and draw new clients as we said, it is a successful way to continue with minimal investment in restaurants. The Delivery App Service is a way to locate a modern, low-priced restaurant (because such restaurants do not require huge real estate areas and can save rent costs) and draw new clients

4. Meal kit delivery model - It's not a traditional food source. The customer does not get the dish in this situation but has all the ingredients required to cook a dish. The whole meal package arrives with the recite from restaurants. The buyer does not purchase goods himself and his proportions, since all ingredients are supplied in the proper quantity. Customers can select from a selection of meals, collect the whole meal package and prepare at home.

The customer orders the ingredients and the recipe was made by the restaurant. Messenger service accepts the order and gives it to the customer. The customer cannot prepare at home the meal. Normally, the subscription fits on that model. The provider thus has many ordinary clients and the sales per consumer are very high. It is almost convenient for the restaurant to offer an extra service and the guests can prepare the favorite dishes at home. It is readily available.

Step 2: Select the revenue model

Below are the most common templates for revenues:

Shipping Charges: In this scenario, the services for food distribution charge a delivery fee. The price can be set or can depend on where and how much. For instance, Uber Eats has a fixed price and now count the price according to the distance.

Sharing profits: A significant number of delivery providers tend to offer a commission on any order. The fee rate can be set or depend on the order. It is normally between 15% and 40%.

Products advertising and marketing

Applications for food procurement may also be a restaurant publicity site. The ads, posters or top search lists may be paid with payment

Price Surging

It's a price paradigm that is scalable. In busy hours or holidays you can set higher rates. Uber Eats, Zomato, Grubhub, DoorDash and others are used in this manner.

Deals & Offers

In this situation, the service of food supply collaborates with restaurants and provides exclusive food discounts. Customers can then only buy anything with a discount.

Step 3: Check out the latest trends

Food supply services are very common, and the standard of competence is therefore high. If you want to progress, the latest developments should not be missed out. The two latest developments are to order via social media and chatbots. For e.g. some food ordering companies let the user make an order through social media, like say a Twitter or Instagram lets you make a food order for yourself. The chatbots are the next big thing. It is really easy for us to order food from chatbots, so we use messengers every day. This is an ideal way to receive orders and remind customers of promotional deals, promotions, and so on. Companies also use Alexa as their robotic assistant. In GrubHub, Just Eat, and other distribution services you can order food with the help of Alexa.

Step 4: Choose the attributes in the application

In your application, you can have a range of features. Identify and reflect on the most critical issue. The software will normally be composed of four panels: admin, client, restaurant and driver. The last one is not acceptable if you're not working for the distribution. Any panel we shall clarify below.

USER PANEL

Some features to be included in the User Panel are

• Profile management:

You need to register step by step, and you can also add registration through social networks.

• List of restaurants:

It is reasonable to have the restaurants list in which users should order in the food supply application.

• Review and rate

Restaurants can be reviewed and reviews left by users. This allows other people to select the best food or food

• Delivery Address

This role will decide the location of the customer and save some distribution places.

• Geolocation Tracking

This role allows users to watch their deliveries and see the position of the courier.

• Homepage

It helps to see all the things the customer would like to purchase. Particularly in order to order products from various countries, it is a very handy function.

• Payment Options

A wise choice would be taken to incorporate various convenient and secure ways of payment such as credit cards, digital wallets.

• Promos and bonuses

It helps support restaurants and deals rentable offers to customers.

• Time scheduling

This function allows users to schedule the exact time before delivery and not waiting.

• Order History

Users will display the history of their instructions with this function and replay them if appropriate.

• Multiple Filters

This feature helps to make the dishes and restaurants easy to browse and sort. The more food you have in use, the more this role is requested.

• Push Notifications

This feature aims to let users know about updates for purchases, seasonal deals, best offers, and more.

• Customer Support

Users should be able to communicate with the client support staff to address their program and order issues.

ADMIN PANEL

Some features to be included in the User Panel are

• Dashboard

This is the primary panel on which the boss can control all of the application's features

• Profile Monitoring and Registration

The administrator can view and maintain user accounts (customers and restaurants)

• Customer Management

The manager can monitor the accounts of customers and views the account details (contacts, name, address, etc.)

• Restaurants Management

As with users, restaurant profiles may be handled, inserted, modified, or deleted by the administrator

• Management of payments

This functionality lets administrators handle purchases and transactions, including returns in the program

• Orders Management

Administrators will monitor deliveries, follow their status and decide on a company

• Delivery Management

If you provide distribution services, this is an essential function. It serves the communication between the delivery person and the customer

• Feedback Management

The administration should be able to administer consumer ratings if your app has a feedback feature

• Administration of campaign and discount

This functionality aims to supply the application with discounts, purchases, incentives, and other marketing events

• Notification Management

Administrators may collect multiple updates and deliver them via the application.

• Passwords Reset

If the password has been forgotten by the user (customer or restaurant), the admin should be able to reset the account and send new access details.

• Reports and analytics

The administrator will make prognostics and critical decisions for the organisation using real-time details.

RESTAURANT PANEL

• Dashboard

The feature indicates the number of orders, their statuses and acts with each order (new, shipped, completed, and cancelled)

• Management of Orders

Restaurants should be able to accept proposals, refuse them and complete them in the request. They will need to get real-time updates and information on any order

• Payments Management

The restaurant has to be able to remove money from the order. It should also be in a position to edit, handle and monitor consumer payments.

• Restaurant Profile & Menu

Each restaurant should have its own profile, in which material can be edited, new recipes included, menu listings and prices included.

• Managing the brands

If there are a few positions in the restaurant, they can each have access to application and order management

• Exclusive Offers

This functionality helps handle incentives, exclusive deals and concessions for consumers

• Customer Support

This feature allows easy and effective handling of customer and restaurant orders.

Step 5: Decide the Technology Stack

You should pick tools and utilities for its deployment because you have a shared understanding of application type and functionality. They focus on the organization model and the functions picked.

There are various tech stacks available for you:

• Payment Options - PayPal, Braintree, Square API, Stripe;
• Geolocation - Google Maps, Google Places API, Core Location Framework, Routific, MapKit
• Registration - Facebook SDK, Gmail SDK, Auth0
• Storage - Google Cloud Storage, AWS, Azure, Digital Ocean
• Reports - Google Analytics, FireBase

Push Notifications - Amazon SNS, Firebase Cloud Messaging, Urban Airship

How much does the food delivery app development cost?

All the measures and functionality required for a good mobile application have been addressed. And last but not least, how do you spend to start a supplier company? The production price depends on various variables such as the platform (Android, iOS, Windows Mobile) and the business model. Even the production team's position is significant.

In the initial stage, it typically takes time to establish a roadmap and growth plan. It's time for the UI/UX design. The back-end construction phase can take quite some time, just as it may take production and testing. However, you must realize that these calculations will rise and fall due to the difficulty of the project.

To Wrap-up

In short you should start to prepare a food delivery app wisely. You must hire the staff, notify restaurants, publish and above all create the correct food application. Find your scope and work on a broad scale for your local quest. Discuss your proposal and brainstorm the right thing with the food delivery application development company. Aim to build trust with promotion, highlight the USP and specifically state the deals. This is the only way to attract clients longer. So, did you understand how you would make an app for food delivery application?