Time is at a premium. It always has been from time immemorial. As we transit through to the era of digital transformation, the demand is for convenience, cost effective startup solutions and the need to cut down on time consumed.
Three essential services without which it is impossible to go about daily routine are laundry, car wash and home services.
Service providers offering these services presently draw inspiration from aggregators and on demand models to ply their trade.
Here is the lowdown on how a startup can leverage the power of customized applications to deliver solutions across the three essential services by developing an on demand app.
On demand laundry services
On demand services offer freedom to patrons to choose a service of their will without being tied down to a contract.
The flexibility of on demand laundry services has replicated the spectacular success of ride hailing apps, with many startups offering on demand laundry services globally.
As per the study made by verifiedmarketresearch, the Online On-Demand Laundry Service Market size is was valued at USD 17.85 Billion and expected to reach USD 27.63 Billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR rate of 35.56% from 2022 to 2030.
Key to the success of on demand laundry services are the need to keep the options free from clutter, in addition to permitting quick selection of options.
The success of operations hinges on the ability to offer customers the flexibility and freedom to choose options. Different kinds of material demand separate handling instructions, in addition to specific pickup and delivery instructions.
It is the first mile and the last mile of laundry that is the most challenging, and service providers have their task cut out in meeting the challenges.
By optimizing resources and integrating the whole operations into a seamless activity, it is possible to assign routes to resources for picking up and delivery of laundry in the shortest possible time with lesser transportation costs.
Unlike deliveries of products purchased from an online marketplace, pickup and delivery of laundry is most likely required to commence and conclude within a limited time window.
This effectively means that customers would prefer the service to pickup the clothes at a particular time and likewise, deliver the same within a specific time. This poses challenges to the pickup and delivery chain.
The use of intelligent apps will help to streamline the whole process by integrating the requests of the customers and planning routes optimally, in addition to meeting expectations of clients.
On-demand laundry services apps come with the following advantages
- Management of multiple outlets – Service providers can expand their footprints by aggregating and bringing more laundries to their network.
- Optimizing operations – The use of intuitive and intelligent systems to liaise and manage the processes will boost performance metrics optimally.
- Route management – This is essential to cut down on unplanned and cost intensive trips. The right app can help managers plan the trips better.
- Priority requests – The need to offer priority services is important to meet urgent requirements of customers. Handling of urgent requirements require proper management to ensure prompt delivery of washed laundry.
- Special requests – Delicate nature of clothes and material that need to be washed separate are some of the special requests that can be handled.
- Transparent invoicing – App based services offer transparent invoicing to customers who get to see the invoice amount even as they request the services.
- Telematics support for tracking – Users get to track the clothes that are either picked up or enroute for delivery. A real time tracking app offers updates of movement of the clothes, giving more information to users and dispensing with the need for making calls to understand the status of delivery/pickup.
Read more: delivery process in on-demand delivery app
On demand car service/on demand car wash
Individuals are fiercely protective of their automobiles and many are known to go to great extents to maintain their vehicles in ship shape.
The choice of the car and the accessories are made with great care, and this explains the need of individuals to get their cars washed regularly.
According to grandviewresearch, the global car wash services market size is estimated to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.8% from 2021 to 2028 which was valued at USD 27.8 billion in 2020.
Washing a car during a weekend or during vacations may be a good way to kill time or may give satisfaction to owners.
But to do it as a matter of routine, when work and life is proceeding at a breakneck pace, is certainly a tough ask. This is exactly why on demand car wash services and car services are extremely popular.
While some startups have failed, the better managed service providers have grown explosively, touching as much as 125% growth. This explains the superiority of the apps and the working model of the business.
The back end operations of such a service need to be properly managed, with the right kind of vetting of resources deputed for the washing, .However, the user experience and the interface is something that needs to be simplified, for more signups.
One of the most important aspects is the need to integrate all features into a seamless and convenient app. The user should not be prompted into making too selections to get the desired service.
With just a few taps, the user should be in a position to request a service. This needs to be achieved by ensuring that the user gets to choose a service that specifically meets his or her requirements, including special requests.
The main purpose of On-demand Car/vehicle wash services is to reduce friction and manual vehicle preparation time, resulting in drier and cleaner vehicles in less time.
Some of the standout features that render an on demand car wash service more convenient to users include:
- The ability to get a car wash in the shortest possible time
- To get the car washed at any location, without having to be near the car
- To get the car washed without having to provide power or water
- To get the car washed with special instructions
- To get the car washed periodically
- To get affordable services all the time
Service providers need to build suitable features in apps that offer users a truly exceptional experience. Even as the car sits in an underground parking lot or in the garage, the car washing app can direct a professional car washing resource to the car.
On completion of the wash, the car owner can either take a physical look at the car or receive a high clarity picture of the washed car in the app.
This will prevent the need for using other social media or file sharing platforms to receive images. The pictures shared on the app can then be used to confirm the quality of the effort, and also help the user to rate the experience.
Read more: Build hyperlocal on demand delivery model
Home services
The need for home services needs no introduction. Across the globe home owners are outsourcing most of their mundane tasks to specialist housekeeping and home service providers.
This is largely due to the time savings and cost effective nature of the services that are received.
As per the research made by PRNewswire, the online on-demand home services market is expected to grow by USD 4730.31 billion during 2021-2025 growing at a CAGR rate of 70% during the forecast period.
The amount of time saved justifies the reasonable amount paid for the services rendered. The value of time takes precedence over the expenses, as home owners can achieve a lot more in the saved time, in addition to receiving the services of experts.
Aggregators and service providers need to offer superior services not just in terms of the quality of the resource, but the touch points between a user and the service.
The advantages that need to be typically rolled out to individuals looking for home services include :
- The ability to find a resource or resources at short notice
- The advantage of having a specialist handle the requirements
- The advantage of ensuring that materials used are of standard quality
- The benefits of receiving insured resources to carry out repairs and maintenance
- The cost effective benefit of using he services of an aggregator
- The ability to have a grievance channel in the app
- The ability to push promotional offers and discounts
- The benefits of a transparent invoicing system
Aggregators need to build in features that differentiate their service from those of others. Screens of apps need to be de-cluttered and simplified.
Home owners need to be able to choose a flexible service as per their requirements and be billed transparently for the service.
For instance, cleaning of the interiors should not necessarily entail a complicated selection of options to whittle down the choices.
It should eliminate the number of touches, but also offer the option of permitting users to choose a flexible and customized option as and when necessary.
It is these simple differentiators that make a huge difference to the user experience and build brand loyalty.
Service providers who choose app development agencies for building apps for laundry, car wash and home services need to factor in multiple considerations, in addition to the important aspect of cost of app development. The quality of the apps will hinge to a great extent on the design and concept of the apps.
The expertise of the team of developers and the use of the right platform to build the apps are crucial to the user experience. With payment options involved, apps need to be secure by design, with extra layers of firewalls and security measures thrown in to safeguard the transactions.
With many governmental regulations coming into force regarding the use of personal information, apps need to offer robust security to users. The team of developers should possess the creative skills to conceive User Interfaces that are clear to comprehend while being esthetic and simplistic in design.
