Taxi Apps – Surpassing The Traditional Taxis
Let us digress a bit and think about the last time we ‘called’ a taxi. Parallel to this, think about the last time when you waved your hand at a random taxi and took a ride to a place of your choice. Actions like these seem like good stories to tell the children of tomorrow, don’t they? Taxi applications have surpassed their traditional counterparts in the number of trips taken.
Let us not even talk about the revenue – the difference is bound to be humongous. What made this transformation possible? How did the landscape of cab transportation get completely transformed within a decade?
The Factors That Contribute To The Growth – The Bright Future
To understand the science and signs behind this growth, we will have to travel back in time by a decade and a half, but without a DeLorean. There were taxies present in cities like New York, Sydney, London, and even Calcutta. People had to go to the so-called taxi stand and get a vehicle from there to travel to a particular destination. The destination can only be vaguely described to the driver. This might result in variations in the cost of the trip. Therefore cabs were not a mainstream transportation option.
Fast forward 10 years and cabs have turned out to be one of the most preferred modes of transport for the urban population. What happened in this gap of 10 years is nothing more than the smartphone revolution. The flawless (or perfectly flawed) execution of genius of a few minds helped create a business out of this new lifestyle.
To understand the contribution of smartphones in the on-demand cab evolution, let us look at the process involved in booking a cab.
The Process Involved In Booking The Cab
- A user takes their mobile phone and opens the cab booking app. With the information obtained, the app immediately tracks the location of the user and shows the availability of cabs.
- The user can choose to enter their destination or even book a cab without specifying the destination. The next step to choose the type of ride that is required. Finally the booking is confirmed from the user’s end.
- The request for the cab by the user is sent to the drivers who are nearby. One of the drivers can accept the request and start driving their cab towards the location of the user.
- As soon as the user boards the cab, the driver initiates the trip. After specifying the location the app shows an optimized route based on the traffic at that time of the day.
- Once the specified destination is reached, the driver can end the trip. The cost of the trip is displayed in the customer panel as well as the driver panel.. The user can make a payment by using online payment methods or cash.
- Both the driver and the user are given an opportunity to rate each other on a scale of 1 to 5.
The Process Of Creating A Taxi Booking App
The process of booking a cab seems simple but it is quite contrary to the process of creating an app to book a taxi. There are a lot of factors that need to be taken into consideration before you embark on the with taxi-business.
The common word around the entrepreneurial world is to make use of a ready-made app solution like Uber clone app to develop a taxi app. This would eliminate the indefinite hours of time being spent on research and development.
There are different verticals in which you can offer your on-demand transportation service. We have outlined below a few aspects that you need to take into consideration before you create your cab booking application.
- Identify Your Niche
Within on-demand transportation, there are different services that you can provide. The long list includes camps, corporate commute, shuttle services, carpooling, bike taxi, airport drop and pickup, and luxury cars. With so many options available, you will need to analyze the market and identify the one that is best for you.
- Analyze The Market
Analyzing the market will not only help you identify your niche but will also throw a lot of light on the progress of your competitors and the way in which the landscape of the industry will be when you hit the market.
- Identify The Right Development Partners
This is one of the greatest keys to success. Building an app is not just about the technology but also about a lot of elements like a database, and interactive front-end and the way in which your app integrates with essential services like mapping and GPS. Meticulous care has to be exercised in choosing your development partner.
- Address Challenges Like Safety, Competition & Localization
Safety has been an ongoing concern for every cab booking application. Some features like live tracking, sharing your location with others and panic buttons will improve the safety aspect to a considerable amount. If you are embarking on the business of app-based cab booking, you will also need to consider aspects like localization and competition. This is one of the biggest reasons why a lot of local players are able to find success against giants like Uber!
Understand The App
Cab booking ecosystems comprise of three different applications, one for the user one for the driver and the other for the administrator. The Trinity formed by these three applications ensures the flawless functioning of the process.
- The Passenger App
The passenger app includes features like booking the cab, choosing a cab of the required type, making a payment, and rating the driver. The GPS present on the phone helps the passenger, to pinpoint the exact location of pickup.
- The Driver App
The driver can accept or reject a ride request from the driver’s panel, have a tab on their earnings, rate the passenger, and request a home ride at the end of the day. The GPS feature available on the driver’s device shows the passenger the exact location of the user, so the driver does not have to needlessly wait for the user.
- The Administrator App
The administrator functions like the ultimate authority when it comes to the application. The administrator has complete control over the pricing and the revenue. The administrator, in the interest of the safety, might consider even deleting users and drivers.
Uber Clones – The Easy & Efficient Way
The progress of the market and the success of local players have established the fact that investing in a cab booking application could be a lucrative business idea. However, it might not make a lot of sense for a business person to invest precious money and even more precious time in developing the app from scratch – not when there are customizable Uber clones in the market.
Conclusion
If you would like to launch your taxi booking business with an Uber-like app, you can consider getting in touch with our development team. They will have a clear picture to understand your requirements and enable a quick launch of your customized Uber-like app!