On-Demand Courier App: Types, Key Features & Its Benefits

On-demand delivery applications are the new trends in the delivery sector. It is an evolving concept that has been consistently growing since its introduction. 

On-demand applications such as Airbnb, and Uber are integral to human life. Integrating such features will add simplicity to fulfilling your customer’s needs and will improve their standard of life. 

These delivery applications are not just restricted to cab or hotel services, but you can also implement this model with your healthcare, grocery, and food delivery operations. 

It is a modern-day business approach, and if you intend to turn around your delivery business with on-demand service integrations, you must get an insight into this model’s types, features, and benefits. 

What is an On-Demand Delivery App?

On-demand delivery apps are for customers to order goods and services instantly. This business model operates on supply and demand. 

Earlier, on-demand applications were only prominent with taxi services. But with time, things have grown diverse, and today, home services, food, travel, and healthcare sectors can also operate with on-demand models. 

If you are running a successful delivery business or are willing to start one, you must know that on-demand delivery services empower people to access everything they need in just a few clicks. 

If your business is adaptable to provide such a level of customer satisfaction and experience, then go ahead to learn more about its features and benefits. 

Types of On-Demand Delivery Apps

With time, the on-demand delivery service model got categorized into three types. Different services were tagged with different models, which include:

1. Business to Business on-demand app

Business to Business (B2B) on-demand delivery apps are responsible for fulfilling the requirements of a business by another business. In this model, you will be the service provider, but your client is not the end consumer. Both service consumers and service providers are facilitators in this model. 

2. Business to Consumers on-demand app

Business to Consumers (B2C) on-demand delivery apps are responsible for fulfilling end consumers’ requirements. In this model, you will be the service provider, and your clients will be the end consumers. Some examples of on-demand B2C delivery apps are Dominos, Zomato, Starbucks, and others. 

3. Consumers to Consumers on-demand app

Consumers to Consumers (C2C) on-demand delivery app is responsible for connecting the end-users with the end-users. One user makes or develops some products and offers them as goods or services to other users for purchase. Your business application will act as the mediator to bring together the prospect sellers and buyers. For instance, OLX is one of the most renowned C2C applications. 

Features of On-Demand Courier Delivery Services

An on-demand delivery app is made on three fronts or parts; end-user/customer, admin, and driver/delivery. 

There are three dashboards for different departmental operations of your business. Each of these portals has its features, which include:

1. Customer app features

The customer front of the on-demand apps is designed for the people availing of your services or products. The features embedded in a customer application are:

• Order placing
• Delivery Scheduling
• Service/product searching
• Real-time GPS tracking
• In-app customer support chat or call function
• Automated notifications
• Order history updates
• Order editing
• Geo-location search
• Payment integration
• Rating and review feature

2. Admin app features

If you are the admin or have hired someone to take the designation, you will be using this part of the application, which is loaded with features such as:

• Customer support
• Order management
• Content management
• Real-time tracking
• Business Analytics
• Driver management
• Customer management

3. Delivery/Driver app features

This part of the on-demand delivery app is for the field employees handling the delivery jobs. The features in such apps are:

• Order management
• In-app call/chat feature
• GPS route support
• Earning tracker
• Order fulfillment history
• Time planner

Benefits of On-Demand Delivery App

To help you better understand the efficacy of on-demand delivery application, here are a few of its benefits for your business:

1. Business affordability

On-demand delivery apps are profitable for business owners as they mostly don’t have to invest much in transportation. It is because the on-demand business model proposes independent drivers or contractors use their own transportation for fulfilling the delivery service. 

2. Versatility for all businesses

The best thing about on-demand services is that all types of businesses can use them, depending on demand in the area for your respective goods and services. Irrespective of the size of your company, you can start your on-demand delivery services with just a few easy steps. 

3. Easy tracking of courier or parcel

It is one of the most evident benefits of an on-demand delivery app. You can track your drivers and monitor the parcels until they reach your customers’ destination. The admin team will have information on all aspects of a customer’s order. As a result, you can enhance your customer’s satisfaction quotient. 

4. Faster deliveries

Getting good reviews and ratings with on-demand delivery services is easy. The time gap between the supply and demand is reduced as people can place an order depending on their immediate requirement to deliver it in just a few minutes or hours. 

5. Easy way to acquire customers’ feedback

You can easily acquire feedback from your customers with on-demand deliveries. Upon completion of the delivery, the company can pitch for feedback. As the on-demand orders are very frequent, you can immediately work on negative feedback and improve your services to ensure customer satisfaction. 

Best Apps for On-Demand Courier Delivery

Are you a tech-savvy entrepreneur planning on starting an on-demand delivery business? But, are you confused about what would fit you to start a business? If yes, then here are a few on-demand courier delivery applications that earned their market reputation in a very short span of time. It will help inspire you! 

1. Soothe- On-demand massage delivery services

Soothe is an on-demand massage delivery business available in over 50 cities. All massage therapists working with them are certified, licensed, and insured while offering their services. 

With Soothe, you just needed to book your massage appointment an hour ago, and a licensed masseuse will be appointed for the service. 

The negatives of their business are that they don’t accept health insurance claims and have high penalty cancellation policies. 

2. Seamless: On-demand food delivery services

The customers get to choose their cuisine based on cost, preparation time, and other factors to satisfy their taste buds. This on-demand delivery app has a great interface and is easy to use. 

The availability of restaurants is less in the areas with less population. Hence, this forces the customers to be limited to only the restaurants that have signed up with Seamless.

3. Roadie- On-demand package delivery services

Roadie is an on-demand delivery platform that takes up services to deliver packages all across the operating cities. It has an easy sign-up for customers and can also track their packages while in transit. The company offers free insurance on all products that are above $500. 

But, the downside is that they charge a $10 penalty if the senders cancel a booked delivery service. The customers’ account gets canceled if they deny the service required more than three times. 

How Can Upper Route Planner Help You with Your On-Demand Delivery Business?

On-demand delivery service needs to be fast, as it is the whole motto of this business model. So, to help fulfill this requirement for your business, we are bringing you an automated route planning solution to let you add multiple stops in a single route. 

Upper Route Planner is one of the best route planning software to help you streamline the delivery operations. It will help your drivers follow the shortest route possible to reach the marked destinations. Hence, this will help you deliver the goods and services early and get you good reviews and repeat customers. 

Our 7-day FREE trial is available for you to test them. Sign up to Upper Route Planner and avail your free trial before you decide on completely integrating it with your business operations. 

Summing Up

By now you must already know what your on-demand delivery service will be. Starting your delivery services is easy with an on-demand business model. But eventually, you will have to take certain measures to scale it in the future. 

You will have to invest in marketing, collaboration with local businesses or partners, optimization of routes, offering discounts, personalization, and customer support. When you master these aspects, you will have thriving on-demand delivery or courier services. 

In the pursuit of growing your business, Upper Route Planner can help you fulfill one aspect of growth: route optimization.