With the growth of internet usage and the overall digital transformation, more and more people are now shopping online. Mobile technology has gained a lot of popularity with drastic progress in the last few years. No wonder, most of the online shopping is done using mobile apps as people find mobile shopping much more convenient than shopping on desktop/laptop.
According to Statista, by 2024, the number of mobile shoppers in the US is expected to exceed 187 million.
Take a look at the following graph to understand what would be the role of mCommerce in retail in 2021:
In the broad field of m-commerce, grocery mobile apps are increasing their sales by providing a personalized experience in the form of:
- Convenience of buying
- Mimics the in-store experience (personalized digital shelves)
- A dynamic layout that re-engineered w.r.t the consumer’s preferences and shopping habits.
Importance of Mobile Apps For Grocery eCommerce
Let’s understand what drives consumers to choose mobile apps over any technologically advanced website while purchasing groceries and why mobile apps are important for online grocery stores.
1.Building Brand Image: Gestures like swipe, pinch, tap, drag performs a certain action, respectively and these gestures increase user-friendliness. You can keep the color, design, and font of your application as per your brand.
2. Interactive Engagement: Must have features like Blogs, Reviews, Rewards, which help you increase customer engagement with your brand.
But remember, there is always a scope for betterment.
Companies these days focus on developing mobile apps that offer easy accessibility to various tasks that a customer is supposed to do on a mobile app. Offering unique features like creating shopping lists, setting reminders for shopping, etc., can result in high interactive engagement. A Highly customizable grocery mobile app could be a blessing for your online grocery business.
3. Mobile Apps Are Faster: Since mobile apps are downloaded and installed on your mobile phone, people find them quicker to use. Additionally, mobile apps are usually 1.5 times faster than websites and they also perform actions speedily because all the data required by the app is locally stored in your device.
The number of adult grocery app users in the United States from 2017 to 2022:
The Rise in Grocery Mobile App Downloads Amid Coronavirus
Grocery Mobile Apps are thriving amid the Coronavirus. The trend started when the lockdown was implemented across the nations and now people have accepted this new normal of grocery shopping.
Related: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Effects On Grocery Business
Let’s take a look at some recent statistics depicting the enormous increase in the usage of Grocery delivery apps during COVID-19:
- Since February 2020, daily download rates of Instacart, Walmart Grocery, and Shipt have seen a massive growth of 218%, 160%, and 124% respectively.
- At the beginning of April, Walmart Grocery was ranked no. 1 on the Google Play store and no. 2 on the App store
- Of the daily downloads recorded, the Walmart grocery app saw a maximum of 54,000 downloads per day, whereas Instacart saw 38,500 downloads per day since February.
How Grocery Shopping & Delivery Apps are Helpful in Pandemic-like Situation?
- Shopping Online for Grocery Promotes Social Distancing
- Streamlining the Grocery Supply Chain and Managing Product Stocks further Reduces Goods Wastage
- Supports Small-Scale Grocers by Helping Them Sell Groceries Online
- Boosts Global Economy by Generating Job Opportunities for Daily Wagers & Delivery Workers
- Quick Delivery is Possible since Online Grocery Stores are mostly running on Hyperlocal Marketplace Business Model
Types of Mobile Apps Required For Grocery E-commerce
Most of us while talking about a grocery mobile app would think of a grocery shopping app only. We often forget to consider the delivery boy app while planning our online grocery business. Let’s understand what are the important features that we require for a ‘Grocery Ordering App’ and ‘Grocery Delivery App’:
Grocery Ordering App: Must-have Features
A grocery ordering app allows customers to buy groceries and provide them home delivery services as per their preferred time. Here, I am listing the important features of a grocery ordering app (buyer app):
- Hassle-free Registration
- Smart Search Feature
- Wishlist
- Cart Sharing
- Recommendations & Reviews
- Price Comparison
- Click and Collect (Buy Online, Pick Up In-Store)
- Order Tracking
- Multiple Payment Options
Grocery Delivery App: Must-have Features
Grocery delivery app development is required to streamline the grocery delivery process.
A grocery delivery app is used by all the delivery boys to ensure a seamless and on-time delivery of the orders. Here, I am listing the important features that you should consider for grocery delivery app development (delivery boy app):
- Easy Registration
- Profile Management
- Wallet Management
- Order Management
- Email Notification
- Geo Location
- Delivery History
- Earning Status
Cost of Developing a Grocery Mobile App
Now, we have a clear understanding of the different types of mobile apps that are required for your online grocery business. Moving forward, let’s discuss how to get a grocery mobile app developed. There are 2 ways to develop a mobile app if you cannot code it yourself:
If you have the right skill set and technical knowledge, then you can develop a mobile app yourself. But, if you don’t want to do it on your own, then you can either hire a developer/team of developers to create it from scratch or use a ready-made solution. Let’s discuss both cases:
Case 1: Hiring a Developer
In this case, developing the mobile app and its cost will depend on numerous factors. Let’s take a look at the most important factors that directly impact the costing of grocery mobile app development:
- Technology Used: The cost will also depend on the platform that we are developing mobile applications. The cost of developing a mobile app for android is less than for iOS.
- Feature Integration: The level of complexity of a mobile app depends on the number of features that you want to integrate. These features are the primary cost drivers of developing a mobile app for grocery eCommerce.
- Development Team: The size of the developing team has a lot to do with the cost estimation of developing a mobile app. The price will also depend on the experience or skills of the developers involved in grocery mobile app development.
- Location: The amount charged by the team of developers also depends on the location they are operating from. For example, the charges of developing a mobile app in Asian countries are much less than in countries like the USA or UK.
- Business Model: The type of online grocery business model would impact the cost of grocery mobile app development. Because every business model will have its own unique requirements.
Case 2: Ready-made Solution
Ready-made solutions often come with fixed prices. Extra charges are only for the extensions or customizations like themes, plugins, modifications, etc. Apart from the affordable price, there are many more benefits of using a ready-made solution:
- Quick & Hassle-free Implementation
- Free Trials & Demos
- Customization
- Scalability
- User-friendly
Wrap-up
The future of online grocery delivery services is BRIGHT! Observing and analyzing the current market trends amid coronavirus, you should go with a turnkey solution to save both time and money.
Growcer by FATbit Technologies is such a one-stop platform that comes with readymade:
- Web Portals (Admin, Vendor, Buyer, and Delivery Staff)
- Mobile Apps (Buyer and Delivery Staff)
Check the grocery mobile app demo for better insights:
Content Source: Grocery Delivery App Development: Essential Features & Cost Estimation
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