In the world of eGrocery, new companies are introducing convenience in new forms; Contactless Delivery, Click and Collect (BOPIS), Cart Sharing, etc. These flexibility-offering features along with hyperlocal grocery delivery service, become quite popular. The latter type of business model focuses on providing instant delivery of groceries from nearby grocery stores.
One such renowned company, based on the hyperlocal grocery business is Shipt.
Shipt is an American grocery marketplace owned by Target Corporations. It enables quick delivery of fresh groceries and other household essentials. Similar to the Instacart business model, Shipt also provides an on-demand grocery delivery service that pays shoppers to shop for customers and deliver their orders at doorsteps.
Shipt offers an annual subscription for $99, which comes out to $8.25 per month. This membership includes unlimited orders of $35 or more from the participating stores in the local area. The buyer can also use the service without a membership but, in that case, they have to pay $9.99 for each delivery.
How to set-up Online Grocery Delivery Business like Shipt?
The most critical driving factor for the hyperlocal business model is the efficiency to make deliveries to the end-users at rocket speeds. While following the hyperlocal grocery business model, the eCommerce grocery marketplace is required to collaborate with local vendors for fulfilling orders.
Here are the important elements of a hyperlocal grocery business:
Building any kind of marketplace requires a good amount of time, effort, and financial resources. There are three ways to build an online grocery marketplace or delivery app like Shipt:
- Code it yourself
- Hire website developers
- Use a ready-made solution
It is important to choose the right digital capabilities to build an eCommerce platform. Out of the above-mentioned methods, the first two options are quite expensive and time-consuming. But, in the case of ready-made grocery hyperlocal marketplace platform, a marketplace similar to Shipt can be launched within a few days. The additional charges occur when you want customizations/add-ons.
A readymade grocery hyperlocal marketplace software comes with web portals of the marketplace, sellers, and buyers. Further, to streamline the process and to provide seamless user experience, it is also equipped with mobile apps for buyers and delivery boys.
Must-Have Features of a Grocery eCommerce Marketplace like Shipt
The features of an online grocery marketplace like Shipt can be categorized further based on the user — Admin, Seller, Buyer, etc. Let’s understand the importance of each of the following features:
ADMIN FEATURES
These are the features that are useful for the admin/owner of the marketplace. These features are used to manage the products, orders, and analyze how the marketplace is performing. The admin features are,
- Product Catalogue System helps to manage the products and product information in an effective manner.
- Advanced Reports & Statistics helps the admin to get insights about the overall performance of the website.
- Advanced Order Management System helps to manage the flow of the order.
- Multiple Revenue Channels vendor subscriptions, commissions, and advertisements are integrated for augmented income generation.
SELLER FEATURES
These are the features that help sellers keep track of their business. The seller/vendor features are,
- Shop Management features enable the sellers to manage their shop profile (supervise products with its descriptions, discount coupons), activate or deactivate the store availability, etc.
- Inventory Management feature is used to monitor stocked goods regularly with precise inventory forecasts.
- Tax Management features help in categorizing taxes effectively.
- Rating & Review System helps the seller know about the customers’ experience regarding his service.
MUST-HAVE FEATURES FOR A MOBILE APP LIKE SHIPT
When you are launching an online grocery shopping/delivery marketplace, then you need two different types of Mobile Applications — one for the buyers and one for the shoppers/delivery staff.
Here are the must-have features for both mobile apps:
Wrapping up
The impact of Coronavirus on the grocery industry has opened doors to multiple opportunities for aspiring entrepreneurs. Starting an eGrocery business in 2020 like Shipt might turn out to be a profitable investment. Growcer is one of the grocery solutions that you can consider as your technological partner for the venture.
Originally published at https://medium.com/@akankshachandan/how-to-build-a-grocery-delivery-app-like-shipt-df0782a696ef
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