How To Build An App Like Zomato?

Generally, it is believed that more people love eating than cooking. Everyone likes to be foody and eat a delectable meal every day, but comparatively prefer not to cook. And with the changing pattern of lifestyle and work culture, even the most passionate cooks prefer to get their food delivered to them warmly and fresh after an exhausting day. To them, Zomato is a blessing. And analytically speaking, it has proved to be a blessing for as many as 32.1 million customers worldwide.

Its whooping success has opened doors to companies to explore the realm of online food delivering business. Companies like Swiggy, Food Panda, Uber Eats, and many more are tapping this lucrative market. This market is predicted to grow at a rate of 10.3% each year, which means that by 2025, this venture will be worth around US$200 billion. Based on an endless pool of demand, the booming profitability will become one highly competitive market, inviting many other stakeholders for investment. It calls for the attention of mobile app development companies in Dubai to assess the pioneer of this market, Zomato. Why specifically Zomato? It is because, since its launch in 2008, the online food service giant has hit a valuation of $5.4 billion. It is currently operative in 23 countries and receives funding from multiple venture capitalists of $250 million.

Now, with its success and the steady growth of the online food sector, mobile app development companies in Dubai have to be ready for the demand of creating similar platforms for those who seek to leverage from this boom. But, for that, they have to decipher the accomplishments of the pioneer company first.

The success lies in the nitty-gritty of understanding the current market share; that is how Zomato-like apps operate in the sphere and the nuances of building such an app.

Zomato doesn’t have a single restaurant or any physical form. Still, it bridges the gap between restaurants and customers and provides food on their doorstep. Therefore, it coordinates with three parties, the customer, the delivery personnel, and the restaurateur. For example, in a typical online food delivery transaction, a customer puts an order in a particular restaurant; this information is then relayed to the restaurant, nearby delivery person, and the platform owner. Therefore, Zomato operates on a threefold model.

Zomato’s business model is:

• For the Customer
• For the Admin (owner of the platform)
• For the Delivery

User app 

First coming to the user end, the app has extensive inbuilt features like:

• Integration System of Social Media Account
• Search Option
• Call Restaurant
• Call Delivery personnel
• Track Delivery personnel
• Multiple Options to Pay
• Real-Time Restaurant Availability
• Notification of order status

Admin’s app 

At the Admin’s end, the app built has the following characteristics-

• Admin Dashboard
• Analytics
• Live Reporting

The app takes account of the following on record-

• Admin Log-In
• Restaurant Management
• Application Management
• Order Management
• Technical Payment
• Payment Management

Deliverer’s app: 

On the Delivery personnel’s app, the following features can be seen:

• Information of the trip
• Navigation to the destination
• Route Optimization
• Contact of the orderer
• Start/End-Trip

Zomato’s best features: 

To provide the customers with an extensive and best service, the app ensures that:

• It provides the customer scanned menus, restaurant pictures, location, contact number, user reviews, and ratings to make the best decision.
• Provide local search for nearby restaurants, cuisines, outlets, and cafes to explore options from their neighbourhood as well.
• The real-time status of the restaurant’s operation, with time details, tells a customer whether a particular restaurant is serving or closed.
• Advanced booking feature helps customers make a booking in a restaurant based on the real-time availability of the tables before they go, to save time in waiting and availability.
• The application supports payment options through multiple platforms such as debit cards, credit cards, and online payment gateways such as PhonePay, Google Pay, Paytm.
• It also maintains a record of all the reservations and orders made in various restaurants by the customer.
• It shows the availability of restaurants 24/7
• Not just table reservations in advance, one can also make orders in advance and then get it delivered later as per their convenience.
• Users can quickly sign up in multiple ways, from Google account, mobile number, or their social media accounts as per their preference.
• One can give special or specific instructions to the delivery personnel for their order.
• The user can also track the delivery person, help him navigate their place, and get minute to minute status of their order being processed by the restaurants.
• The app is user friendly, and it allows users to sign up through their social media account so that users can easily share and explore cuisines, dishes, restaurants, suggestions, and critiques.
• The customer can also give special instructions to the restaurateur regarding ingredients, cutlery, palette and more.

Some of the best features of the application which makes Zomato different from others in the food delivery business –

(1) Table booking – This feature is beneficial for the customers to book the restaurant they plan to go to since it saves them a seat, time and inconvenience.

(2) Exploring food outlets nearby helps a user know their locality better and provide suggestions based on distance so that one never runs out of options to choose from.

(3) Zomato Gold – This subscription offers many perks to the customers, like exclusive discounts, coupons, vouchers and other perks on home delivery, dining out or drinking.

(4) It has different models to help restaurants, and small outlets optimize their resources and reach out to more customers.

Although the parties themselves communicate and complete the order, Zomato manages its logistics and employs its distribution personnel independently.

To serve all the three stakeholders well, that is, the platform owner, the delivery person and the customer, the app does not leave any end undone, and any other player who wants to make hay while this market shines, must also undertake additional features for efficient operation.

Crucial features of an food delivery app:

• Clean and smooth UI/UX
• Easy and thorough navigation for each page
• Safe and secured payment gateways
• 24/7 helpline for all three stakeholders
• Provide ratings, reviews, feedbacks and suggestions of the users.

Parameters of determining cost of building a food delivery app 

Now, the cost of building a Zomato clone application differs on the following parameters opted by the developer:

• Application Platform
• Size of the App
• Design of the application
• Development

One has to employ resources to create three apps for both iOS and Android operating platforms. The more advanced features are used, the more the cost increases cumulatively.

Difference between each stakeholder’s app: 

App for each stakeholder has its share of needs-

• The app for the Admin: must be able to track every ongoing activity and transaction.
• The restaurant: it should show the complete instructions and information of the customer regarding his order.
• The app for the driver: it must have robust navigation and map facilitation
• The app for the user requires the most advanced features since the better the quality of this app is, the more users will rely on it for all their food ordering.

Cost of building a food delivery app: 

In summation, generally, developing a mobile app development cost in UAE with basic UI/UX is roughly around USD$12,000 to USD$25,000. However, building an app as dynamic and advanced as Zomato might cost as much as USD$50,000 and more.

The division of the cost for iOS and Android as in 2021, varies as such:

Note: The above price is for hiring native developers, and the cost of hiring react-native / flutter developers would be 20-30% less as the same code would be used for android and ios so the total cost of developing the app would be reduced by 30%.

A basic structured app: 

For building a basic food delivery application, you will need:

• A UI and UX designer
• 2-4 developers
• Testing engineers
• Backend developer
• Project manager

An advanced app: 

Meanwhile, if you want to build an application that is as competent as Zomato, you will need

• A Project Manager/Team Manager
• 2 UI/UX designer
• 3-5 developers
• Testing Engineer
• 3-4 backend developers
• Admin panel developer

To ensure that you get the best mobile application developer to assemble, first do remember to do the following prerequisites:

• Make a list of all your requirements- what all features do you want in your application to be included that caters for each stakeholder well:
• Search mobile app developers through reliable sources.
• Do not compromise on the experience of the developers, and choose the ones who have expert knowledge of the same market.

Zomato in UAE is as successful as its precursors in other regions. With the multifaceted services, cost-effective subscription plans, and flawless delivery, it has grown in leaps and bounds in the UAE region. Zomato in Dubai helps customers leverage the best offers from various restaurants operating in the city and get their favourite delicacies delivered at their doorstep. Suppose you are someone who wishes to bear the virtues of this booming market. In that case, you must contact a reputed and competing app development company in Dubai. In addition to that, you must be clear from the very beginning about what all features and advancements you would like your application to constitute since one may not have all. Still, it is essential to serve the stakeholders well and effectively so that your ideas do not represent clutter in front of an app developer in Dubai. Zomato is an example that only a specific, authentic, transparent and insightful project actualizes into something highly impactful in the business.