What does it take to develop a mobile app like Uber?

uber-app-development

Taxi booking service is mushrooming everywhere and has emerged as one of the reliable way to commute within or outside the city. When we talk about taxi service, Uber is one of the name that has become synonymous with it.  Since it’s inception, Uber is pleasing users across the globe and the only point of contact between passengers and Uber is mobile app. Although there are hundreds of taxi booking mobile apps but what has evolved over a period of time, since the inception of Uber, is technology development on the booking front.

With the current scenario in the market, Uber is boosting more and more entrepreneurs with the idea to repeat its feet and create something similar. However, developing a Taxi mobile app like Uber and going live on app store and play store is just not that easy and two separate application with different functionality:

  • Passenger app – for those who looks to book taxi
  • Driver app – Get orders and they ride passenger to their destination

Its features plays vital role; let’s zero down some of the basic ones:

Basic features of passenger app:

  • Register/login: You can provide varied options to register like social media integration, e-mail etc.
  • Booking Interface: Here customer needs to add address, select a cab type and set the pickup location
  • Tracking: Track driver’s location, status updation during or after a ride
  • Fare calculator: Calculates the estimated cost from source to destination before booking
  • Payments: Cashless, plain cash , can pay automatically via plastic money and invoice is received to phone or e-mail
  • Push Notifications: Keeps the user updated on order status, estimated time, taxi arrival, car model, driver’s contact number, car number and much more
  • Messaging, ratings and reviews, booking history: Messaging driver for the perfect pick up, feedback and ratings given by the customer for the service provided, displays the details of previous booking

Basic features of driver app:

  • Register/profile/status: Required to provide extra verification details like taxi number, licence during registration, status functionality helping them to adjust the schedule and availability
  • Booking: Options to accept or reject the incoming order, information of customer location, booking history etc.
  • Push Notifications: For order alerts, taxi booking data, for order updates and completion of ride
  • Navigation: Google Maps integration to get optimal direction of customer’s destination
  • Cost estimation and reports: Provides the estimated cost with discounts and offer the insights of trip status, payroll, history etc.

Furthermore, to streamline process and driver from the central point, a web app is required to manage and review all in-app activity like interactions, ride routes, payments and much more.

How Uber Works?

Passengers let the Uber know that they need a ride; Uber asks you about the location; finds the nearby driver and notifies the duration of driver’s arrival. After completion of ride, cost is automatically charged from your card and then passenger needs to provide feedback about the ride.

uber-infographic

So to build such paradigm, what technology stack does Uber rely on?

It relies on some giant foundations like:-

Geo-location: The cab providing service like UBER depends on GPS (Global positioning system) technology to track the current position of the customer. When Uber started its venture, the technology wasn’t that progressive, but today the things have become easier. The geo-location depends on:-

  • Identifying a device’s location: To identify the location of the customer, Uber app for iOS uses CoreLocation framework which provides classes and protocols to configure and schedule delivery and send location event to the server. This framework also enables the Uber to define geographic region and track the device moments as it crosses the boundary.

The Uber app for Android uses Google’s Location API which can manage underlying location technology meeting all the needs to tailor the app when integrating location-based features.

  • Providing the right direction: For developing iOS app, MapKit is used to display point-to-point directions on map. It registers the app as routing app then makes direction available to the Map apps and other mapping software.

For developing on Google, Google Maps Android API is used to make routes and directions possible.

  • Integration with mapping software: Uber implemented Google Maps for both iOS and Android version and to avoid paying Google for access of their solutions, Uber opt for mapping technology companies to solve the logistic issues.

Messaging or Notification: After you order a ride, Uber sends you a couple of notifications like when driver accepts the request, driver is few miles away, cancellation of ride etc. Uber text messages are powered by the Twilio telecommunications provider and you may choose to receive these messages either via SMS or through the push notifications. To implement push notifications in the iOS app, Uber uses Apple Push Notifications Service, and for the Android app Uber uses Google Cloud Messaging (GCM).

Payment Integration: For calculating fare, Uber looks for the factors like base fare, cost/mile and cost/min. Uber promotes a cashless system which means you can pay via plastic card, e-wallets or use a promo code which removes error prone human-to-human cash transfers. Uber chose to partner with Braintree, one of the leaders in the mobile payment market, to accept card payments and also uses PayPal’s Card.io service for credit card scanning on iOS.

The iOS users can make of the Apple Pay for making the payment and the Android users can use the Google Wallet for the same purpose. It is better to collaborate with some online payment company to make the experiences better and faster.

Advantages of Uber like app

  • Reduce the number of drunk drivers
  • Saves your money for commuting
  • Provides opportunity to make extra cash for the driver
  • Makes the way to the customer’s destination really beautiful

Advantages of having mobile app

  • Having a white label mobile app gives your taxi business a broad visibility and an automatic customer boost.
  • Reduces the overhead costs generated by managing everything manually and connecting passengers to the drivers in real-time enables the business to grow smartly in autopilot mode.
  • Leads to the higher profit as the taxi service provider can develop their own app and save on the commission paid to the cab platform.

How much does it cost?

Well it depends! There are several factors affecting the total cost

  • Your budget
  • Number of features
  • Design of UI/UX
  • Backend development
  • Web development
  • Security

If you wish to develop a basic taxi service app then it will cost around $15,000 USD to $20,000 USD; Uber like app $20,000 USD to $35,000 USD. It takes 2 to 3 weeks approximately to design the app and 10 to 12 weeks approximately for development process. Lastly, the cost varies according to Toronto app development company you hire to get your job done.

mobileapp-development-team

The 5 Steps of Successful influencer Marketing Strategies

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Marketing is a realm where you have no place for dreamers. It is a practical world not one where you sow and harness the power of dreams. So much so, the tipping point in marketing comes from the influencers who are convinced that your product is the right one for them. If they decide, they can set the ball rolling in the marketing sector and you will not have to spend too much money on advertising.

Isolate the influencer

So, get the influencer and bring the ball! It is not that easy because we do not know who the influencers are. That is the hard part of the Influencer Marketing Strategy. That becomes the first step of our marketing strategy –isolating the region of the influencers. This is relatively simple, we can find that most of the marketing decisions emanate from one sector of society. Then, we put the rest of the plan into place.  If on the other hand, we know who the influencer is, say a popular public figure, then we can get him or her to endorse the products and achieve marketing success. influencer marketing is also part of digital marketing.

Initiate the action

The action of the influencer is by building something around their idea and igniting community passion and seeking collaboration with the people of their community. This operates entirely on trust and goes on to become a brand engagement. To do this one must have a story to tell. This story will speak of the values and help the viewers adopt the right standard to make the improvement in their lives. It could be how being poor need not stop one from succeeding in sports.

Also check this info-graphic of Cheat Sheet hope you love it.

influencer-marketing-strategies

Build the story on the social media

Once you have the influencer and the story, it is time for the wild bushfire to spread through the countryside. Here, we are not marketing the brand through the social media; we push the story of how the influencers are reacting through the social media.

The people will do the searching for themselves and then remain convinced that they were not influenced to buy the brand. People who have implemented successful selling programmes for their company will know how much the success depends on the intrinsic values of the product. This is why we need the influencer.

Improve sharing of ideas related to the product

This is pure social media marketing. And a lot more besides but you have to involve the common man in it. They need to have a stand point about the product. And since this must not be negative, you need to have the advance story about how the poor will succeed. In your marketing campaign, include incentives for people who share the story the most or help in distributing it.

Keep a grip on the values

You do not want to compete with the rest of the field. You want to create a dent big enough for them to fall through. Your values must remain clear and distinct from those of the rest.

Undoubtedly, the last step is the most important. But, it will not work without the rest of the steps, so start from the top.

Step-by-Step Guide To Building Your First Mobile App

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To be able to build an app might sound fancy! But unless the app works successfully either for you or for others there is no point putting in so much of an effort to build your app. Hence, it is important that you keep certain things in mind while building your first app along with the technical steps that is imminent to launch a successful mobile application. When you decide to build a mobile application the first thing that you ought to consider is the reason for building that application.

Step 1 for Building First Mobile App

The first step of building a mobile application is to get an idea of the problem. You must have seen that successful entrepreneurs have used their brains and come out with innovative solutions for our day to day lives. For example, for a busy person a grocery app that allows you to get your daily supplies delivered right at your doorstep makes quite a sense. Similarly, you need to make a list of the many problems that we come across every day and then shortlist the ones which makes the most sense.

Step 2

As you get an idea to build a mobile application the next step involves validation of the problem. Google keyword planner is a helpful tool that helps you determine whether people requires the solution that your app is about to provide. The validation of the idea could also be done with the introduction of a landing page that gives a broad idea of the application and you can ask people for email signup.

Always Suggest To Read : Advantages Of Custom Mobile App Development

Step 3

Once you have received validation of the app idea the next step involves laying down the flow and features of the mobile application. It is recommended that you give a detailed idea of the features and the ways in which the users will navigate the app so that it will be easier for the developer to build your app. Unless there is clear understanding one may not be able to come out with a successful application.

Step 4

After documenting all the features of the mobile application that you plan to build it is a better idea that you remove all the non-essential features from the document. It is good to offer only the core features of the app. The features which are “nice to have” can be added at a later stage when the app has already conquered the market. This will help in keeping down the cost of building the app lower.

Step 5

As an entrepreneur when you have finished documenting all the essential features of the mobile application that you want to build, the next step involves hiring a professional who will be able to do justice to the work. At the same time, they might help you with some valuable tips.

Last but the not the least, the building of your first mobile application should have a structured approach if you want success.

Content Marketing Tricks Must Showcase your Brand Value

content-marketing-banner

Content marketing can lose focus on a brand’s core purpose if marketers overemphasis editorial independence and assume their offerings are not interesting enough. Strongly communicated brand values and reflecting customers’ needs should lead to interesting and effective content.

We all are aware of the fact that content marketing forms an integral part of the entire marketing platform. But one ought to keep in mind that content marketing is not just about creating enough content rather it is more about creating content that is really good and not just good. The new era of content marketing emphasizes on telling a true story really well instead of just telling a story. Content is still king in SEO.

Videos should definitely be an essential part of your strategy this year. Even the facts say so. An average website user spends 88% more time on a website if it has a video and visitors who watch video are 85% more likely to buy your products than visitors who don’t. Also, 46% users say that they are more likely to search about a product if they watch a video. That’s the kind of impact of video on your consumers! Studies also tell that 74% of all internet traffic will be video centric by 2017. Statistics indicate 52% of marketing professionals worldwide say that video content brings in the best ROI. Clearly, videos are essential to reach the masses.

content marketing 2017

To put in simple words the content marketing tricks of recent times must showcase the brand value. In order to achieve that there are certain factors that requires immediate attention.

Let us have a look at those

Your content should tell the real :

Story : In fact, the content that is created should show and not just tell. The main objective of the content should be to show the way the product exists in the real world. It should contain customer stories, perspectives from the customers. There should be a special mention as in how the product adds value to the life of the customer.

There should be greater usage of data :

Always keep in mind that data gives credibility to a particular content. In fact, facts, figures, and data should form the foundation of your story. The best way to put across this content is data before declaration. If you are trying to sell potential customers your thought process it is imperative that you let them know the reason as to why you think so.

Citing of sources also lends credibility to content :

When you are preparing content for marketing purpose always remember to cite the exact sources. This adds value to the content. For example, if you are using info graphics from a particular survey, it is better to give credit to the sources. At the same time, if you are using idea of a particular person it is recommended that you mention the name accordingly.

Try to mention that other perspectives do exist :

As you try to make your content go viral; keep in mind that it is important to mention that various perspectives exist to a particular issue. When you do so potential customers have the opportunity to think and independently and pick out the best. Here comes in the subtle marketing that your content should do.

You should keep things simple :

It is quite obvious that business can become quite complex at times. But when you are writing content you should aim at breaking down the complexity completely. The content must be written in accessible terms.

Last but not the least; try to make visual value addition to content because you are writing for the web and a story with visual elements easily catches the fancy of the target audience.

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