How to build an app like Deliveroo

The concept of food delivery isn’t new. Some days, nothing can beat a crime show marathon coupled with some Chinese delivery. Or treating yourself to pizza on long, exhausting work days. But the approach to food delivery has certainly changed since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. 

While earlier, ordering online for food delivery was more popular amongst lazy students, hungry introverts or tired office-goers at the end of the day, now it is more the law. More than 6 months after it all started, restaurants are only slowly opening up in selected cities with stringent social distancing. One wonders, “Why go through all the trouble when I can just order in with a zero-contact food delivery provider?” 

And so, restaurant aggregators and food delivery apps like Deliveroo are taking off.  

Research and Markets, the world’s largest market research store that even companies like Microsoft and Ikea rely on, recently published a report titled, “Online Food Delivery Services Global Market Report 2020-30: COVID-19 Growth and Change”. Here is what it says:

“The global online food delivery services market is expected to grow from $107.44 billion in 2019 and to $111.32 billion in 2020 at a growth rate of 3.61%. The slow growth in 2020 is mainly due to the economic slowdown across countries owing to the COVID-19 outbreak and the measures to contain it. The market is then expected to grow and reach $154.34 billion in 2023 at CAGR of 11.51% and $200 billion by 2025.”

Another reason for this growth may be the recent proliferation of delivery models and fleet types: same hour, same day and next day delivery; single fleet, multi-fleet, crowdsourced fleets and in-house fleets; delivery from store, curbside pickup, delivery from robotic warehouses...the list would never end as brands continue to innovate and find ways to dazzle customers. 

Domino’s Pizza captured the Twitterverse when it started letting customers order through tweets. Not long after, they launched their Facebook messenger bot called Dom that lets people message Dom and request food with a single word or emoji. Dom also replies to customer inquiries about vouchers and the latest deals.

You see, to say that the competition is stiff is a massive understatement. But even then, equally massive is the market potential that has big and small brands fighting for a piece of the pie. 

So, whether you own a restaurant and are looking for a food delivery app builder or are simply looking to invest to build a takeaway-delivery app, we can tell you one thing: the timing couldn’t be better!  

We bring you the soup to nuts on how to build an app like Deliveroo: 

How do food delivery apps work?

Hungry customers access the website or app of the food delivery service on their phones or laptops. They are only shown restaurants near their current location because for the service, it is logistically feasible. Next, customers place an order for the food they crave via the app or website. The restaurants are alerted of all new orders and start preparing food. As the food gets ready, a rider reaches the restaurant to pick up the order and drops it at the customers’ doorsteps. 

All of this can happen in as little as 30 minutes! 

Now, the more important question is, let’s say you build your own restaurant app. How do you make money? 

1. If you have a robust order placement-delivery system in place, then you could turn your app into an aggregator for local restaurants and generate extra revenue by providing cafés, diners, and bars an opportunity to publicize on your platform. 
2. You could charge a small fee for delivery or offer a subscription service for regular customers if they like free delivery.
3. You could launch exclusive memberships for customers giving them priority booking, discounts and more with a small monthly fee. 

Now you see why it makes sense to build an app like Deliveroo? 

How much does it cost to develop a food delivery app like Deliveroo? 

The answer to this would depend on the partner you choose to build your app with. Big software development companies charge a hefty downpayment even before the project starts. With freelance software developers, quality may be a big concern and SaaS companies will always take a cut of your profit and never give you autonomy of your app code. 

Let’s talk about Builder Studio Store now. Depending on where you live, it only costs $500 or ₹9,999 per month. This includes building your restaurant app (which you’ll get within 12 weeks), maintaining it and even cloud capacity to run and scale it. 

How to code a delivery app

You don’t have to, thanks to food delivery app builders today. Before low-code/no-code platforms happened, restaurant app development meant tens of thousands of dollars and more-than-a-few months spent in just getting a basic prototype ready. Today, with the right partner, food delivery app development would take you as little as 8 weeks. For instance, with our own app builder, Builder Studio Store, if you need to create a food delivery app, we make it simple (and quick). That’s essential whether you’re a restaurant owner who suddenly needs to offer delivery, or you’re an artisan food producer whose shops are only possible online, now. Unlike other services which take a cut of your sales, once you build your food delivery app, all that profit is yours. And right now, we know that’s vital.  

How to build an app like Deliveroo?

Easy. Say you want an app like Deliveroo? Other than standard restaurant delivery app features, let’s see what more Builder Studio Store has to offer: 

1. Safe food service: The industry has been hit and massively changed so let us help you adapt. By the end of 2020, restaurants are expected to lose more than $240 billion (in the US alone*). But you’re not powerless. As people travel less, a loyal customer base becomes more valuable. Enter this award-winning app. Get yours in 12 weeks, with essential COVID features and the cloud to run it too.
2. Social distancing handled: Send notifications to your customers before their visit, checking if they have symptoms and explaining the safety measures you have in place. Use push notifications to keep staff safe and informed too. Once they arrive, customers sign into the app and then it sends them warning messages if they stray too close to others. If 2 people move closer than 2m (or whatever spacing you set up) they’re both notified.
3. Contact-free orders: Customers can order through your app, this order goes straight to your kitchen and you can link it with any existing order management software you already have. They can also pay through your app minimising face-to-face contact with your staff and removing any need to handle cash. And, as your app allows you to take deposits, this helps you to reduce the number of cancellations.
4. Virtual queuing: Your customers can use this either to pick up takeaway food or reserve a table to dine in. They can pre-order food and notifications tell them when it’s ready. Removes the need for queueing inside or outside your premises – it’s not only safer but a much nicer experience for everyone.
5. Kitchen management: In the app, you set how many customers you can serve at any one time. This limits how many people can reserve a table, so your kitchen is never overrun with orders. As everyone signs in to your app when they arrive, diners can see how much of a crowd there is before they get to your restaurant – and if there’s space for them. 

The bottom line:

Build your own takeaway-delivery app because once your app sits on your customer’s phone – its icon reminds them of your delicious food every time they scroll past. Other food delivery apps won’t give you access to the valuable customer insights you’ll get from your own app. After 2 years the app is yours. Unlike other monthly app building subscriptions, you’re not tied in and can host it anywhere you like. All that data remains yours to help you grow your business. Additionally, send push notifications – these can be based on location too, so you can send your lunch offer at 11am if they’re just around the corner, or a promo for tonight’s special on quieter days. Instead of giving your profits to a tech giant, send a little love back to your customers and reward them for inviting their friends. And of course, with your own restaurant app, you make it easy for customers to leave reviews and customers are much more likely to (their phone is in their hand, your food in their belly). 

Whether you want to build your own restaurant app or a marketplace for food and restaurants, we recommend getting a free, no-commitments demo with us. With Builder Studio Store, for a low monthly fee you get your own app – the only branding customers see is yours – and all the features you need to run your restaurant in this unusual time. You also get Builder Care (our aftercare service) and Builder Cloud (cloud capacity to run your app is included too!).

Interested in a demo? Have questions you’d like our experts to answer? Click here and have it all. We hope to welcome you to the Builder family!