How Startups can Leverage the On-demand Economy? Key Steps and Strategies!

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Today, the market is flooded with a variety of on-demand apps and services. Consumers can order groceries, food, etc., or even hire the services like beauty, healthcare, repair and maintenance, taxi service, etc. instantly from these apps. Besides, during the pandemic situations, the on-demand economy has proved to be a game-changer for both- consumers, as well as startups or business entities who are creating top-grade on-demand applications.

Here are some astounding numbers.

According to Harvard Business Review, more than 22.4 million consumers are using the on-demand services per year. Besides, the total expenditure on the on-demand economy is estimated to be $57.6 billion. These reports depict that the future of the on-demand economy is bright. Owing to this, several on-demand app development companies are emerging at a fast pace globally.

So, this post is meant for the startups and mobile app development firms who want to leverage this economy to convert a business idea into an exemplary on-demand app. Here, we have first outlined the immense benefits of the on-demand economy for both consumers and app owners. Later, we have explained the steps and strategies to design a modern-day on-demand application. Let’s get into the details.

On-demand Apps: Benefits for Consumers

• Ease of ordering the required services just in a few clicks
• Flexible payment options like Cash-on-delivery, Advance payments through net-banking, mobile wallets, and even cryptocurrencies
• Real-time tracking of orders to get a clear picture of the progress of the order
• One-click cancellation or re-ordering/re-scheduling, in case something goes wrong

On-demand App Development: Benefits for Startups or App Owners

• Effective communication with consumers through the apps
• Higher customer satisfaction due to flexibility and convenience of ordering
• Increased business ROI
• Competitive advantage, strong online presence, and brand awareness
• Numerous business opportunities as on-demand apps can be created for diverse businesses
• Better user engagement and retention
• Highly scalable apps as startups can mold the apps into a huge marketplace in the future.
• Generation of intelligent analytics regarding consumer behavior, services/products that are more popular, their preferences, etc.

Things to Consider and Vital Steps to Follow for On-demand App Development

In this section, we will first highlight various business models meant for on-demand apps. Then we will shed light on some factors that startups and every on-demand app development agency should consider before starting the mobile app development process. Lastly, we will outline the steps to design an advanced on-demand app.

Details of On-demand Business Models

• B2B Model: This is Business to Business Model for on-demand apps where one business connects with the other through the on-demand app for services.
• B2C Model: This is the Business to Consumer Model, the most popular one, where the on-demand apps are meant to provide products or services between sellers and consumers directly.
• C2C Model: This is the Customer to Customer Model. This type of on-demand app acts as a platform for exchanging products/services between different customers.

Factors that Startups must consider before starting On-demand App Development

The Objective of the On-demand App: What is the concept or idea or purpose of your on-demand app? Deciding on this factor is the most significant step.

Research and Analysis: Do a thorough research of who your target audience is, what is the region where you want your app to be marketed, whether your app will solve some meaningful problem or not. Analyze whether people will be interested in your app idea or not.

Market Exploration: Study the market well and make sure that a similar app is not existing in the market already. Also, study the latest trends, and your competitors as well.

MVP or full-fledged App: Before beginning with the on-demand app development, you should decide on whether you want a basic version of the app or a feature-rich app with all functionalities. For startups, it is good to initially go with an MVP model as this will keep the budgets in control.

In-house development or outsourcing: The startup team should also brainstorm on whether they want to hire an in-house team for app creation or whether they want to outsource the project.

Steps and Strategies to Create a New-age On-Demand Application

Strategizing: Once your research is completed, plan on designing the product roadmap, wire-framing, prototyping, how to implementing the design, hiring the required team/company, how to develop the app with relevant features, and how to finally launch the app.

Technology Stack and Platform Selection: Select the technology stack and a scalable platform for developing the app, define the technical architecture by choosing the right back-end technology, APIs, and front-end technologies for the app.

Secure App Development and Testing: Along with your development team, begin the app development and review the codes, features, screens, etc. from the initial stages to ensure they are free of bugs and secure. Next, perform thorough quality assurance testing for the app. Test the app from several perspectives- user experience testing, performance, and functional testing, device and platform testing, and lastly, security testing.

Launching the first version: Next step is the deployment of the beta version i.e. MVP of the on-demand app. Deploy it on respective stores- iOS or Android. Let the consumers use the app and provide feedback for further improvement. The analytics related to user engagement will help you know about the scope of your app.

Maintenance and Upgrading: As per the response from the users, keep the app updated, add new features and make the required modifications. This will help you to keep your app relevant to the current trends.

Concluding Thoughts

On-demand applications are designed to provide efficient services at the doorsteps of consumers. Such ease and comfort by a few clicks on their smartphone, has driven the consumers crazy and they are accepting numerous types of on-demand applications instantly. So, looking at the market scenario, it can be said that on-demand delivery app development has a bright future and this economy is going to stay here for long. In the coming years, it will enter several new industrial domains too. It is a great opportunity for Start-ups and they must leverage it to the fullest.

So, did you find this post insightful? Do comment below or drop us a line to let us know your thoughts about the on-demand economy and the on-demand apps.

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