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On-demand food ordering apps have taken the world by storm and are among the most popular apps used by people across the globe. Any restaurant can increase its revenue by at least 20% if it used an on-demand delivery platform. Whether it is the customer side of an app or the delivery agent interface, the unique features of food ordering and delivery systems offer a great experience to the consumers at large.
DoorDash, GrubHub, UberEats, Zomato, and Swiggy are the just tip of the iceberg and there are many regional and local on-demand food delivery apps available that are enjoying a windfall at the moment. These apps are fun and convenient and each has created a unique experience and niche.
Before we get into the must-have features of the food ordering and delivery system, let us take a look at some interesting statistics about the online food ordering industry.
Image 1: Revenue forecast for the Online Food Delivery market worldwide from 2017 to 2024 (in million U.S. Dollars) | Image Source
Keeping these numbers in mind, we can safely assume that every restaurant can increase their revenue by at least 20% if they used an on-demand delivery platform to expand their reach.
As an entrepreneur, this is a great opportunity for you to create a niche-based or extensive on-demand food delivery system to bring together more brands under your app’s umbrella.
“Great numbers and it is always great to discuss food ordering app features, but what are the major benefits of investing in this sector? Isn’t this segment saturated enough already?” You might ask.
The on-demand food ordering business does have a lot of competition but despite that, we see new food ordering apps and websites pop up every now and then. That is a sign that there are still gaps in the market that you can exploit and niches you can cater to.
Take the example of Supper, an online food ordering app in London that delivers food from top-rated and Michelin-star restaurants in London. Once criticized National television with quotes like ‘if it works, it will automatically fail’, is now a booming business and has experienced 1200% growth since its inception.
So, before we dive into the must-have online food ordering website features, here are some benefits of investing in an on-demand food delivery business:
Mobile users are increasing at a rapid pace today. It means they will be spending more time on their devices and it is upto you to grab their attention with a good marketing strategy.
You can easily reach new milestones by setting up your own ordering platform without writing the code from scratch. With NetworkON you can have your restaurant delivery app up and running in no time. How? Find out more here.
Low investment, higher returns, and a smooth operation is always an attractive deal for the investors. If you have a way to acquire a solid user base, then you can add-on to the list of services you can offer through your platform and secure more investments to help your business grow.
On-demand apps are also a great way to acquire new customer data and understand their preferences by analysing their purchase behaviours. With valuable customer data at your disposal, you can easily achieve the following:
Now that you are familiar with the benefits of investing in an online food delivery business, let’s take a look at the features of a food ordering system that you must incorporate into your website and app.
There are three parts of a successful online food ordering and delivery system. The customer app, admin app and the delivery team app.
Let’s call it the trinity of a food ordering app as the three of them go hand-in-hand. Miss out on one app and you don’t have a food ordering app anymore.
What food delivery app features does each one need? In the following lines we discuss what features you must have in all three parts of the app to make it perfect, starting with the customer app.
This is the app that the end user is going to use to order food online and search for restaurants nearby. While there are many features that you can incorporate into your app, here are the ones that you should definitely have.
First impressions leave a lasting impression and your users should always have convenience as their ally when interacting with your app. Allow them login easily using their gmail or facebook ids apart from the typical profile management form.
Allow them to customize their profile later and give recommendations based on their journey within the app. Do not ask for details that don’t matter and assure them that information about their linked cards and wallets are safe in the app.
Make sure all the restaurants are listed smartly on your app and the users don’t have to keep navigating aimlessly without success. Organize everything in the best possible way, by cuisine, food item, rating, etc.
Use smart lists and detailed filters to make the customers’ lives easier on the app and share recommendations with them based on the cuisine, food type, rating, dish and more.
Customers take time selecting the dishes they wish to order and it is a good idea to enable add to car features with a single click. They can change the items several times before finally placing the order and this feature comes in handy.
Additionally, you can make things more convenient by offering an order scheduling feature. It allows them to get food delivered at a specific time.
Incorporate as many payment options as possible in your app. Apart from being simple and convenient, payments should always be completed in a secure manner.
Integrate payment methods like PayPal, iOS Wallet, Stripe, Credit Cards, Internet Banking and more to delight your customers.
Once an order is placed, give the contact details of the delivery executive to the customer. It enables communication between the two parties and any one of them can contact each other in case of any issues during the delivery.
Apart from having the contact information about the rider, customers should be able to track their orders in real-time. It reduces the anxiety and gives them a clear estimate about when the order will be delivered.
Of-course you will need a good route optimization feature in your app to be able to do it successfully. We will discuss the feature later in this article.
Customers love to be heard. Let them rate their experience with the order after the delivery is completed. It helps you in building a detailed view of the restaurants’ service and lets you know about any weaknesses in your current delivery system.
While customers are the face of your food ordering system, the admin panel is the backbone and brains behind the whole operation.
It is an absolutely crucial part of your web-based application and is primarily used to accept, manage and dispatch orders successfully. Here a some food ordering app features for the admin side that you cannot afford to miss:
Similar to customer apps, the admin panel has its own profiling feature to work with an aggregator model. From here, you will be able to register new restaurants into your system, manage their menus, and work on the pricing model for the app.
Also, you will need a centralized dashboard to get all the required information about the orders, deliveries and payments.
To deliver the best user experience, you should always update the content on a regular basis. In an aggregator model, restaurant owners should be able to update information like their address, change in menu items easily. In case of any discrepancies, you should be able to support them from the backend.
Restaurants should also be able to manage their payments, order count, delivery dispatch routine, etc. from the admin dashboard.
Apart from the features mentioned above, here are some minor but important features that you can incorporate into your admin dashboard:
The most important people in the mix are the logistics team a.k.a. the riders. Although they don’t need access to a lot of features, there are some that are critical to the business operation. Let’s take a look:
Every rider needs to be registered on the app properly and their profile should be verified by the logistics team owner. Registering riders adds safety and accountability on part of the rider and the company employing them. It is only after a security check that a rider should be allowed to deliver orders.
It is absolutely necessary that you integrate your app with a GPS tracking system. It can be used to help riders navigate around a geolocation.
Not only does it assist them in delivering orders, but it also helps the customers keep track of their orders in real time. As a business owner, you can use route optimization to improve the efficiency of your staff and reduce the fuel costs by offering shortest routes.
Once an order is delivered, the rider should be able to close it and send a notification to all parties involved. Status updates notification include, order received, food being prepared, order out for delivery, delivery to the location.
The app should keep a record of a rider’s successful deliveries and have an attached rating system with it. Since many delivery platforms use ratings they receive to issue financial incentives, it is a smart way to encourage riders to do their job diligently every time.
Now that you have a clear understanding of the most important features of a food ordering and delivery system, you can implement the knowledge to start your own. As you progress through, you always integrate more complex but effective features into your app.
Some of these ideas include:
There is no ready-made path to success, but there is a ready-made solution to start your own on-demand food delivery business.
If you are planning to invest in an on-demand food delivery business, then you need not spend thousands of dollars to develop an app from scratch.
Get started with NetworkON today and create a completely bespoke, branded app for your food delivery business. Our solution offers the best of all online food ordering website features and is always FREE to start.
To know more about getting started with the best food ordering app features, get in touch with our experts over a consultation today. For more information email us at info@networkon.io or visit our website.
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