How to Develop a Grocery Delivery App?

Since social distancing measures started, people have dwelled on a fundamental question: “Do we have online grocery services near our locality?” Well, the truth is, nowadays, online grocery services are always near you.

With the rising demand for doorstep deliveries due to the pandemic, thousands of grocers eye for first-mover advantage by providing speedy online grocery services to big cities and small towns. The result? A tremendous rise in the number of grocery apps that promise futuristic shopping experiences.

Most consumers who earlier avoided online grocery shopping because they love examining fresh food from the market have now started using grocery apps with stay-at-home orders in place. An eMarketer survey shows that over half of Internet users (i.e., 52.9%) have purchased groceries online in 2020. A Statista report also indicates that grocery app users in the US are likely to grow to 30.4 million by 2022.

These optimistic forecasts have led many grocers to shift to digital to remain nimble amid evolving consumer preferences. On the other hand, the retail behemoths are already racing to be better with online delivery and better customer service to have a leg up on the competition.

Movers and Shakers in the Grocery Industry

AmazonFresh Customers can order from over 500,000 products from AmazonFresh and even get same-day delivery.

Shipt Shipt caters to people from more than 250 major metros in the US.

FreshDirect FreshDirect partners with locals farms, fisheries, and dairies to deliver over 3000 products, along with time slot reservations.

Kroger Kroger recently launched a new app version that saw a whopping 92% increase in digital sales.

If you’re looking for aggressive growth strategies in this competitive market, create a grocery app that serves your customers with products at their doorsteps. How to develop such an app? Well, the steps below will give you an overview of the same:

How to Develop a Grocery Delivery App?

• Choose Your Business Model

  First, choose a business model before jumping into the development process. You can choose either of the following:

  Marketplaces Marketplace apps have their menus and delivery staff to take orders and deliver at doorsteps, for example, BigBasket in India.

  Aggregators Aggregators list the nearby stores and menus and affiliate delivery drivers. However, product fulfillment depends on individual stores, like the Instacart in the US.

  Grocery Chains Big grocery chains like Walmart and Kroger have their apps where customers can order groceries and get it delivered at their doorsteps.

  Single Stores Single store apps are usually for regular customers of the store. These apps list menus, deliver orders, collect payments, etc., and don’t require vendor management.

• Select the Key Features to Make Your App a Winner

  Serve your customers with a grocery app that increases order frequencies and improves customer loyalty. A combination of the following built-in features can help you achieve that:

  Easy Registration No one likes a lengthy login process, so integrate social logins to make this step user-friendly.	Extensive Store List Enlist all local grocery stores in your app to simplify the overall grocery shopping experience.	Smart Filters Integrate smart filters to help buyers search from a wide array of grocery stores within minutes.
  Detailed Product Pages Allow buyers to view individual product pages with detailed descriptions of grocery items, prices, quality, quantity, etc.	Accurate Calorie Counters Let your customers count calories and track the nutritional values of grocery items they order.	Plan a Meal Orders Help users plan a gourmet meal and fetch fresh ingredients required for it through this feature.
  Comprehensive Order History Encourage customers to repeat their orders by checking their order histories in the app.	Real-time Order Tracking Integrate GPS tracker to help customers track the estimated time of their product delivery.	Timely Notifications Inform users about new arrivals, fresh stocks, and price drops through in-app alerts and notifications.
  Advanced Delivery Options Attract more customers by adding advanced delivery options wherein they can choose delivery slots, as per their preferred time.	Easy Checkouts Add multiple payment options like e-wallets, cards, net banking, etc., to offer ease and flexibility during checkouts.	Attractive Loyalty Points Keep your users attuned to your app by providing rewards, coupons, festive discounts, loyalty points, etc., when they reach a specific shopping limit.

• Keep the UI Straightforward and Simple

  Create a stunning user interface without cluttering it with unnecessary items. Make it easy for buyers to navigate across app pages by keeping the design layout simple and straightforward. In this competitive market, grocers hardly get a second chance to make a first impression. So, make sure your app interface is beautiful and ticks all the right boxes in terms of user experience and technical requirements.

• Monetize Your App

  Leverage monetization strategies to turn your grocery app into a sustainable revenue stream. The following monetization models can help you enable commercialization opportunities:

  Advertisements You can charge the food & beverage companies or banks for featuring their products on your app’s banner space.

  Membership You can let your premium customers pay yearly subscription fees to unlock benefits from time to time.

  Delivery Fees You can levy a surcharge for faster deliveries during peak shopping hours.

• Conduct End-to-end Testing before Release

  Maintain the highest possible app quality through end-to-end testing and rule out all errors before the release. Run a myriad of tests of any length or complexity to ensure your grocery app meets stringent quality standards.

Capital Numbers as Your Grocery App Development Partner

Leverage Capital Numbers’ multi-year mobile expertise to create an impeccable grocery app that brings business value and meets customers’ growing needs.

Our seasoned engineers can develop an app to help you establish a firm foothold in the grocery industry.

Drop us a line, and we’ll get back to you with a no-cost consultation.

Also, check out unique business challenges we’ve solved for thought leaders and enterprises worldwide.

Share