The number of mobile apps grow so increasingly, that perhaps soon there will be no sphere for which a mobile app won't exist. One of the spheres where mobile apps became a must-have for the users is taxi ordering.
No more phone calls, no more obligatory cash payments to drivers – you choose your driver, you pick special requirements the driver must hold by, just in a couple of taps on your phone! Uber, Easy, Lyft, Hallo, Cabify – this list of online taxi ordering apps is far from being exhaustive, and gets longer and longer with the time.
GrabTaxi – is one of the online taxi services that gained good reputation and popularity, and many people who wish to start their taxi business, are interested in how to buld their own taxi grab app. As the team which developed an also successful online taxi app, working for taxi business in Switzerland, 7Likes Taxi, we probably have the sufficient expertise to share with you some advise. In this particular article you will read about:
- How the GrabTaxi app works;
- Elements of the Grab Taxi App system;
- Architecture of the system;
- Technologies used;
- Convenience of interface and app natuveness;
- App publishing;
- How much this all costs.
How the GrabTaxi app works?
Like with most of the apps of this type, working with Grab is very simple for the customer, and can be resumed in a couple of taps on your phone screen:
Inputting a pick-up and drop-off addresses – typing in address fields or using a map;
When the app finds the nearest driver – confirm the order. And starfting from this moment you can track the driver's location and see the approximate time of his arrival to the pick-up location.
Aside of the taxi service (GrabTaxi), Grab also offers 9 other services, such as:
- GrabCar – when you hire a driver for all day long or several hours, to drive you to multiple places;
- GrabHitch – when, to get to your address, you are ready to share the cab with other, not acquainted to you, people;
- GrabShare – when you let your pals share the ride with you. The ride fare is also shared, accordingly;
- GrabCouch – useful when you plan a ride for the group of more than 10 people. Grab offers buses for 13, 23 and 40 seats;
- GrabShuttle – the service is analagous to an ordinary bus – you order just a seating in the ordinary bus, which drives you to your destination;
- Family – service that offers very comfortable conditions to ride with young children;
- JustGrab – when not only taxis, but regular car driveres can execute your order;
- GrabNow – for instant ordering a taxi ride, for special Grab rewards;
- GrabRental - you can even rent a car for yourself, choosing from different car types, for a day, month or even a year!
Elements of the system
As any taxi ordering service, the app of GrabTaxi has the standard structure:
App for passengers – where anyone can conveniently order a ride;
App for drivers – the work tool for drivers who execute the orders;
Administrative panel – the control web-panel to manage drivers and orders.
The basic features of the Grab app for passengers
- Registration/login: through email or social media;
- Menu to place an order: to specify a pick-up and destination addresses, pick a taxi driver;
- Tracking driver's location in real time;
- See the ride price before ordering;
- In-app payment;
- Push notifications;
- Feedback and reviews on the service;
- Booking history.
The basic features of the driver app
- Registration/login: through email or social media;
- Menu to place an order: to specify a pick-up and destination addresses, pick a taxi driver;
- Tracking driver's location in real time;
- See the ride price before ordering;
- In-app payment;
- Push notifications;
- Feedback and reviews on the service;
- Booking history.
Admin web-panel
The admin web-panel serves as the tool to manage and control all the processes of the application.
Through the admin web-panel drivers' performance can be seen, along with the statistics of their incomes, information on the customers, their complaints. Also through this tool the drivers can be added to or deleted from the service, as well as their accounts suspended or terminated because of breaking the rules or negative feedback.
Architecture of the system
To provide the good-quality work of the taxi ordering application, not only the mobile app interface matters, but also the "back-end" part. It is about the server application which receives user data, processes it, sending to the certain services and apps. This back-end part actually makes the communication between different elements of the mobile app system possible.
The architecture can be explained as the 3 levels of the system work:
Servers;
Applications on servers (back-end part);
Admin panel and mobile apps (front-end part).
The communication between system elements is possible thanks to the API.
The system faces challenge when it's the high load. To cope with it successfully and show good speed of work, the architecture should be optimized:
Structurize well the data on server;
Define the maximum system load;
Choose the technologies that will help to cope with the load;
Choose suitable servers for a location;
Test load before launching the app.
Choosing the platform: iOS or Android?
Between the two platforms must be chosen the one which is closer to the audience. In situation with a customer taxi app, it is reasonable to develop the product on both of the platforms. However, concerning the apps for the more narrow audience – for example, drivers – there could be the more "favorite" platforms, as in case with the 7Likes Taxi app, where all the drivers happened to be iOS users.
The more understandable and intuitive the interface of the app is, the more successful the app is. When the Grab app on a mac does not differ much from the rest of the programs in the system, it is easier to find the functions and menus needed. The Grab app developed for iPad should not differ much from the other apps on this device. The same is about Android devices. This is called nativeness.
App publishing
When the app is fully developed, to meet with the audience and start working, it needs to be published – on Google Play or (and) App Store. To do this you should:
Prepare materials for publishing (icon, description, screenshots);
Pay registration fees;
Control if the app matches the Google Play and App Store regulations;
Upload the app at the App Store and Google Play.
Push Notifications and SMS
Timely notifications play important role in acquiring and retaining new customers. To provide push notifications work you should provide your developers with:
APN (Apple Push Notification Service) - when you deal with Apple devices;
Google Cloud Messaging Service – when it's about Android devices.
To provide SMS notifications it's needed to refer to a cellular mobile operator.
Payments
It's one of the main commodities of the taxi apps – to pay via your credit card, right from your phone. To get this commodity into your app, if you are from the US, your app must satisfy Payment Card Industry Security Standards. At the mobile payment market there can be such partners, as Braintree, Stripe, Card.io.
Analytics
To get the objective feedback on the system work and plan campaigns, it's reasonable to use analytic tools. We recommend Firebase and Google Analytics.
Feedback and support
These features must not be ignored in any case while developing the mobile app. You should show your customers that you are ready to communicate with them! The customers should be provided with the opportunity to estimate the service, give it a mark, leave the review on a driver. This influences the overall rating of the app very much!
Registration of a profile
To keep the history of all the bookings, remember the gained bonuses and payment details – this all is conveniently made with the help of the registration of a user profile. Such an option simplifies customers' lives, and is a must for the apps where the mobile payments are introduced.
Technologies behind a taxi app
Of course, a taxi app cannot live on its own, and is based on a stack of technologies. In particular, a taxi app is impossible without these technologies:
Geolocation;
Push notifications and SMS;
Mobile payments.
How much does Grab Taxi cost?
It is impossible to speak about the cost of a mobile app in fixed universal prices, as this thing depends on multiple factors, such as the complexity of work and the speed of work of the specialists, and, of course, the price per hour of the specialists. To count the price of the project, it should be divided into compartments:
- Design;
- Native app development on iOS and Android;
- Development of the backend;
- Web development;
- Project management;
- Quality assurance.
Speaking about the time cost:
- App for drivers (iOS) - 148 hours;
- App for drivers (Android) - 148 hours;
- App for passengers (iOS) - 196 hours;
- App for passengers (Android) - 196 hours;
- Administrative panel - 440 hours.
Hourly rates of the specialists vary from $20 to $150. An approximate total cost for the iOS application is around $30,000, and of an Android app cost - $35,000, what gives for both platforms - $65,000 in total.
