Top 3 types of on-demand delivery platforms- pros and cons

Mobile applications are now an inseparable part of our lives. Can you guys imagine a day without the smartphone? There are around 2.5 billion smartphone users in the entire globe.

This report is generated by Statista. On an average, there are 60 to 90 mobile applications in a smartphone. A smartphone user spends around 2 hours 15 minutes a day (on an average) on mobile applications.

That is a huge time! The reason behind this massive usage of apps is the growing features apps are providing to the end users.

Initially, a decade ago, the apps were used mainly in the form of games, messengers, and entertainment.

Later, the new ways were explored which optimized the potentials of mobile apps. Mobile apps are now used in every stage of routine tasks such as ordering food, traveling, studying, etc.

Ever wonder why users are so prone to mobile apps? Anything that can be done through websites is preferred to be done through mobile apps. Mobile apps offer great flexibility and ease to the users.

These are designed in such a way that even an uneducated, senior citizen and small children can operate. Almost all apps store the personal information of the end user and offer personalization.

Personalization includes analyzing user’s data and figuring out what can be the best offer for that particular user. Apps are the new stream of conversations.

Apps collaborate with other apps to deliver great customer experience. One good example of this is while buying anything from a food app like Foodpanda, the buyer can pay using Paytm.

Foodpanda and Paytm are two different apps but are connected. Another great feature an app can offer is notifications. Apps can notify the user of certain updates, new offers, messages, etc.

This feature help user focuses more on other important tasks and he or she need not open the app every now and then to check the updates.

We all know what benefits are offered to the companies that launch their own apps. Apps are developed for branding, marketing, promotions, customer engagement, content generation, displaying information, etc.

But there are some apps that are extremely useful for the users and the number of downloads of such apps is huge.

Have you heard of on-demand delivery platforms? These are the platforms or types of apps that are known to deliver something on demand.

In simple words, when a user demands a particular thing, he or she will search for it in the app and order it. This item is meant to be delivered within a short span of time.

Just imagine a situation where you have worked really hard for the whole day and till evening, you are left with complete zero energy.

But still, you cannot sleep starving! Would you have the courage to get up and cook for yourself? No! Then you simply take your smartphone, go to the food ordering application, select your favorite meal from the nearest restaurant and place the order by paying online using e-wallet app.

In less than half hour, the food is at your doorstep! Sounds great right? How about a situation where your car has gone for servicing and you need to reach office on time for an important meeting? Standing in the queue at the bus stop will take a lot of time and you do not want to be late.

Simply go to the cab booking app in your smartphone and book a cab. The cab driver will pick you up from your house and will drop you at the office on time. All these examples are of "on-demand delivery platforms".

So now you must have got the exact meaning of on-demand delivery platforms. Let us see what are the three types of on-demand delivery platforms.

In this article, we will also discuss what are the pros and cons of these three types.

1. Online Food Delivery Chain:

Nowadays, ordering food is as simple as playing some video games! Even a small kid can order food online.

The mobile app developers have made it so simple and easy and hence the popularity is increasing day by day.

The food industry is not just limited to developing apps through which you can place orders; it has also started involving some amazing technologies such as artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and virtual reality.

Developers use AI to collect user data and analyze it properly. These apps use on-demand delivery platforms.

These on-demand platforms are built in such a way that you can select the restaurants, food items and pay for the food items in real time.

It is obvious that these apps are internet based. The architecture of these apps are developed in such a way that orders are tracked using GPS and communications is done using internal messenger systems.

Pros-

• You can decide what is good for you

• You can order as per your mood

• You can order as per the occasion

• You can check the ingredients and decide whether you want to eat or not

• You can read the reviews

• You can put your own reviews and posts

• You can see the estimated delivery timings

• Online payment option is available

Cons-

• Ordering food online can be a bit costly

• It includes a lot of charges such as a number of taxes, packaging charges, delivery charges, etc.

• Plus you are not sure about the size of the food item. Also, no guarantee of taste and quality

• There might happen some misunderstandings or system failures

• 2. Online Pet Food Supplies:

This is another cool concept called online pet food supplies. There are a lot of people who treat their pets as part of the family.

These pet owners tend to take extra care of these pets. Many times, the upbringing of pets require special attention as well as special food nutrients. Owners might not have time to get the food every day.

Also, it might happen that the owner has no idea what food is healthier for the pet. In such cases, online pet food supplies are extremely helpful.

Just the way you order food online for yourself, these apps work the same way. These kind of apps are very popular in the UK.

Pros

Tasty food delivered home

• Food cooked especially for pets

• Higher shelf life and can last for 2 to 3 years depending on the brand

Cons-

No guarantee of the higher nutritional value of food

3. Ridesharing apps:

These are the mobile apps in which the user can not only book the cab but can also share the cab. Booking a cab for a single person for a long route might not be feasible.

The ridesharing feature introduced by many well-known service providers is getting popular this day. These apps work on the basis of on-demand delivery platforms.

The app tracks your rides and assigns you cabs which are having passengers that are going to get down at our destination or somewhere on the route. This is an amazing concept.

Pros-

• Cost effective

• Available for 24x7

• Customizable

Cons-

• It might take a bit of your time Shortage of cabs

Conclusion

There are a lot of amazing innovations in the world of mobile applications. Top app developers are trying to bring out more and more useful things from apps.

As discussed, AI, AR, and VR are also becoming part of mobile apps. The on-demand delivery apps are becoming famous and the reason is that they serve the end user in real time.

After all, technology is used to save time and money. These apps are doing it with so ease. These apps are easy to use and are extremely efficient too.

My name is Hemendra Singh. I am Managing Director and Co-Founder of The NineHertz, a Mobile App Development Company. My ideology is that, a clear vision and hard work builds a great company.