8 Important Factors to Consider When Developing a Food Delivery App

Are you a bold startup founder, a restaurant owner ready to scale, or a seasoned pro in the food game?

You've likely seen how apps like UberEats and DoorDash dominate in food ordering and delivery applications. Now, you're ready to launch your own or level up your existing platform.

But success doesn’t come from just having an idea. It comes from execution. And that means getting your strategy and your app foundation right from the start.

In this blog, we’ll walk through 8 important factors that every successful food delivery app development journey must include.

Whether you're building from scratch, switching platforms, or scaling up, these are the principles that will set you apart.

Statistics that support your decision of food delivery app development

The numbers speak for themselves. The demand for online food delivery is exploding:

• The global online food delivery services market is projected to reach $192.16 billion by 2025.
• The food delivery app industry is set to hit a $165 billion market size by 2029.
• In the United States alone, the market is expected to surpass $500 million by 2027.
• Overall, the industry is growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.5% from 2021 to 2026.

These statistics validate how significant it is to make a food delivery app. The numbers also validate that investing in food delivery app development is not just a good idea. It is a strategic move.

As more consumers order online and expect seamless experiences, having a custom food delivery app development strategy in place is critical to stand out.

So what exactly drives this incredible growth? Let’s explore the key factors behind it.

8 Important factors to consider while developing a food delivery app

1. Decide your business model

Remember, your business model is unique. Before you start the process of on-demand food delivery app development, you need to identify what model your business comes into.

Usually, there are two types:

Restaurant to customers - In this model, Restaurants and customers are directly connected from ordering to delivery. Customers order directly from restaurants and restaurants offer a complete service from accepting food orders to delivering hot meals on time to customers' doorstep.

Platform to customers - Here, the customer orders food using a platform like UberEats. The platform is responsible for serving the customer including delivery.

2. User-friendly design of your app’s interface

How many apps have you downloaded and uninstalled just because of the bad design, complex navigation and poor performance? Well, you don’t remember or are many, right?

In the same way, if your app does not have a user-friendly interface, your customers will uninstall it too. Having a user-friendly interface is one of the most important factors you need to consider.

Your users prefer a simple and intuitive design with clear calls to action.

Research says that, on average, every $1 invested in UX brings $100 in return. This is what you can get by providing a good UX with a simple yet intuitive app interface and getting an ROI of a whopping 9,900%.

Vice versa, if your app has a bad design and customers are having bad experiences, 70% of customers may abandon purchases from your app.

A well-crafted UI/UX covers these 4 factors that will help your users come back for more.

1. Intuitive and user-friendly app navigation
2. Clear and visually appealing food menu layout
3. Seamless order placement process
4. Easy payment options and checkout process

If you are covering all these core factors in your online food delivery software and making your customer navigation super easy like a walk to his drawing room from his bedroom, you will record a high ROI.

3. Real-time order tracking

For you and your customers, it is one of the most important features of the food delivery app. This feature helps you ensure transparency to your customers and also improves the overall experience.

UberEats, Zomato and other popular companies already have this feature in their application.

With this feature, you can provide:

• Real-time order tracking for your customers
• Live status updates for order preparation and delivery

You can also keep track of your drivers. Measure the time taken by your delivery boys.

Live order tracking is one of the highly appreciated features by customers. And when your customers love it, you need to have it in your food delivery dispatch software. Because the customer is always right.

Ensure security in payment and data

In this digital era, hackers are the new thieves. Not just your customers but we all worry about paying online. No one likes to share or reveal their personal payment information like credit or debit card or another mode of online payment.

In your app, you should have an iron-shield payment security for your customers. Remember, ensuring robust payment and security measures is the cornerstone of trust between customers and businesses.

Here is what you need to know about the security and what your app should offer:

• Integrate only the secure payment gateways and encryption
• Ensure data privacy and compliance with regulations

5. Performance and scalability

Performance and scalability are the twin pillars that determine the success of your food delivery app. Performance refers to how quickly and efficiently your app is processing tasks and data.

Scalability is how you adapt your app to handle increased demand and growth. If your app is optimized for performance and scalability, you can deliver a seamless experience that will keep your customers coming back for more. They may also do mouth publicity for your app.

6. Legal and regulatory considerations

There are crucial legal and regulatory aspects that your food delivery software for restaurants must adhere to. If your business fails to comply with these regulations, you may have to face some severe consequences like legal liabilities, fines, and reputational damage.

Let's explore three key areas of concern:

• Compliance with food safety and hygiene regulations
• Licensing and permits for food delivery operations
• Terms and conditions, privacy policy, and user consent

7. Know your customers with analytics

UberEats, DoorDash and other popular brands make their business decisions based on their customer behavior. They know who their customers are, what they are doing, what often they order, how often they order, what is their favorite dish, and other information.

They get all this information with the “Analytic feature”. With this information, they organize data well, analyze it and use it to make informed decisions. And this is how they are the favorite of their customers. Which ultimately leads them to earn massive profits.

In the same way, when you plan to develop a food delivery app, make sure your app has this feature called “Analytics.” This will help you do all that popular brands are doing. You will also be able to know your customers from close. And will become capable of making result-driven decisions.

8. Build your website

Limiting your online presence to just a mobile app is not enough. Remember, the internet is free and your customers are consuming it more than the food. They are also using a big screen - A laptop or desktop.

Hence, you cannot afford to lose those customers too. To attract this traffic, you must create a website reflecting your brand's taste. Accessible to all your big screen-using customers. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly as the majority of your customers will view websites via their mobile phones.

Create a website that is unique, niche-based, and easy to use for foodies.

How Yelowxpress can help you with on-demand food delivery software?

Yelowxpress offers comprehensive on-demand food delivery software for restaurants that cater to the unique needs of your food delivery business.

With a range of powerful features and benefits, Yelowxpress's software streamlines your operations, enhances your customer experience, and boosts your business growth.

Conclusion

In conclusion, developing a food delivery app requires careful attention to user-friendly features like real-time tracking secure payments and more discussed above.

If you are looking for rapid growth at a low cost, choosing ready-made SaaS-based food delivery software is the smarter option.

Recent stats show that SaaS solutions lead to a 63% reduction in operational costs and a 55% faster time-to-market. "Time is money," and white label software saves both.

It offers tailored solutions which allow you to focus on customers and core operations. By investing wisely in white label SaaS software, you can conquer the competitive food delivery market efficiently and speedily.