In today’s fast-paced world, convenience is everything. Whether you want to book a flight or taxi, order food, reserve a table, or schedule an appointment, everything can be done in a few clicks. Now, the online booking system has become a central part of the globe. From small salons to large airlines, all are setting up their online booking option to get their customers. Having an online booking not only helps businesses get appointments faster and streamline operations but also helps customers to schedule at their convenience. If you are also planning to build an online booking app, this guide will help you from scratch.
Here, we’ll understand everything about the online book app, its types, essential features, the roadmap to build an online booking app from scratch, and the estimated cost. So that you have an exact plan to make an online booking app for your business, let’s dive in!
Latest Market Stats About Online Booking
Here are some key stats about online booking:
- 70% of travellers prefer to book online instead of with an agent.
- The global online booking software market is expected to reach $546.31 million by 2026, with a CAGR of 13.1%.
- 82% of people prefer using mobile devices to book appointments.
- Around 50% of all spa and beauty salon appointments were done online.
- 25% of all service providers booked online are made by millennials.
Read Also: On Demand App Development All You Need To Know
Types of Online Booking Apps
You need to consider what sorts of booking applications are there before you rush into making your own appointment-scheduling software. It is possible to loosely split all booking applications into two categories: on-demand and in-advance.
1. On-demand Booking Applications
On-demand apps are fast and offer resources that can meet the demands of consumers in no time. A customer selects a product or a service, orders it, controls its distribution, and receives it. The on-demand market has many sectors that benefit from it.
Examples:
- Home Services (Sears, TaskRabbit, Mr. Appliance, Serviz, Handy, Plumbal, Homee on Demand)
- Laundry services (Cleanly, FlyCleaners, Rinse)
- Taxi services (Ola, Uber)
- Dedicated delivery services (Landtran, 24-7 Couriers, ADS)
2. In-advance Booking Applications
In-advance booking applications allow you to use calendars to arrange appointments. There are several sectors which benefit from booking in advance.
Examples:
- Hospitality services
- Food and beverages(Uber Eats, Starbucks)
- Travel & Tourism (TripIt, FlightStats, Skyscanner, Maven)
- Hotels (TripAdvisor)
- Event booking (Cvent)
- Appointment app (Square)
How to Create a Booking App: 7 Steps from an Idea to App Release
Here’s the step-by-step process to build an online booking app:
Step 1: Conduct Market & Competitor Research
The very first step of proceeding with an online booking app development is to start with proper market and competitor research. You can start looking for existing online booking apps in the same industry, how they work, what they offer, and what’s not provided. This will help you identify areas where you can stand out from their apps.
Step 2: Decide on the Booking App Type
Now, it’s time to decide which type of booking app you want to build, like on-demand or in-advanced booking apps, so that you have a clear idea of what your app is going to do and its purpose.
Step 3: Identify a Unique Selling Point (USP)
Start identifying a unique selling point (USP) of your app that stands out from other apps in the market, whether it’s any feature, pricing, or options that other apps don’t offer. You can find out your app’s USP for a competitive edge.
Step 4: Choose Features for the App
Features are the essential stage, and you need to figure out a list of features you need in your best hotel booking app. You must be very clear about your app, what it offers, and what options it gives to customers.
Step 5: Design the User Experience (UX) & User Interface (UI)
Now, you can start focusing on designing the UX/UI design of your app. Try to make your app interface user-friendly and straightforward. So that users can easily interact with the app features and quickly make booking operations without any confusion. Many businesses make the mistake of adding so many features in apps, which confuses customers and causes failure.
Step 6: Develop the App
Once your app design and features are ready, start the development process. However, only some businesses have the technical expertise to build an app. So it’s better to hire a mobile app development company to let the professionals build your mobile app on time and under budget.
Step 7: Test the App & Launch
Let’s test the app thoroughly and ensure all the features are working as expected, and if any bugs arise, then the team will fix them immediately. Then, you can launch your app in the market and let the real world try your app by publishing it on app stores like Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store.
Read Also: A Step-By-Step Guide To Mobile App Development
How to Build a Booking Website
The explanation you should build a booking website is simple: a booking website offers brighter features, in-depth information, and better analytical possibilities due to accessibility.
The next step is recruiting a knowledgeable team that knows how to easily and effectively build a booking website. The following moves would be followed by your partnership with developers: The reason you should create a booking website is simple: due to functionality, a booking website gives brighter
- Defining needs and goals for consumers
- Develop the features of the product backlog collection website
- Build a web architecture for UI/UX incorporating the best practices
- Implementation of the corresponding function
- Support and maintenance post-launch
Features of a Booking App
Besides the frequency of service use, we can also consider other characteristics that are frequently part of a booking app for business:
1. Login/ Registration
This is a required segment to start with for users. Without this specific functionality, bookings are not necessary. If you feel like simplifying the lives of your customers, then incorporate the convergence of social networks. Users can log in directly from their social media accounts with this option, without having difficulty recalling their user ID and password.
2. Browsing, Filtering and Sorting Offers
All sorts of lists, division of categories, searching based on criteria such as price, availability, service type, localization, and more
3. Offer Details Screen
Displaying the offer attractively, providing all the details of the service picked
4. Online Receipt
If the user makes the payment online via the app, the payment made on their cell phones or through the user’s email will be received online.
5. Payment API
Payment APIs have been provided in this app in various modes, such as net banking, Paytm, debit, or credit cards, to ensure fast and simple payments.
6. Purchase Archive Transaction List
The option of holding tickets and records verifying our transactions links to bills, and invoices.
7. Feedback
It is a universal fact that the app is made stronger by feedback and ratings. Not only is it a helpful feature for your app, but it is also helpful for users new to your app.
You may ask them to score their experience via a tiny pop-up screen after a customer is finished with their bookings and payment. If the user has enough time and has genuinely enjoyed using your app, along with a favourable rating, they will certainly score your app with five stars.
8. Push Notifications
Any new functionality that is introduced to the app, booking confirmation information, recent discounts, and deals are given to customers through push notifications.
Read Also: Event Booking App Development
Advantages of Booking App
Here are some of the benefits of getting a booking app:
- Easy booking and scheduling
- Increased revenue
- Quick and easy up-selling of add-ons
- Promote potential bookings with push notifications
- Save costs
- Faster and easier payments
- Use geotargeting for booking reminders
- Offer loyalty points for in-app bookings
Development Cost of Online Booking App
The cost of an online booking app depends solely on the platforms you want your app to use (iPhone app/android app). It also depends on the place where the app is being developed.
The overall cost of the simple function booking app will be around $10000-$15000. But the cost may increase up to $20000-$35000 for a booking app with advanced features.
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Conclusion
There are several steps involved in building an online booking app. We hope this guide helps you understand each stage clearly and gives a complete roadmap to build a successful online booking app. Now, it’s your turn to hire an experienced mobile app development company and let the professionals build your online booking app under budget and timely.
FAQs
1. Why should I build an online booking app for my business?
An online booking app helps your business streamline operations, allows customers to book services anytime at their convenience, and increases bookings for your business.
2. What are the key features to include in an online booking app?
Some of the key features of online booking apps are a real-time calendar, easy booking interface, payment options, reminders, customer profiles, and multi-platform support.
3. How do I decide what type of booking app to build?
You can choose between on-demand and in-advance booking apps, where on-demand is required for instant bookings, like taxis, and in-advance booking apps are necessary for scheduling, like salon appointments. You can choose the type of app depending on your business.
4. Can I integrate my booking app with third-party services?
Yes, you can integrate your booking app with third-party services to add functionalities like payment gateways, calendars, maps, and other services to enhance your app’s functionality and user experience.
5. How long does it take to make a booking app?
It typically takes 3 to 6 months to develop a booking app, depending on its complexity and features.
