How to Build a Super App Like Gojek

Last Updated on June 9, 2022

A step by step guide to build an on-demand multi service app – A Super App Like Gojek

A super app is a one-stop solution to meet all of your consumers’ needs. Basically, a super app, like Gojek, provides multiple services in a single platform.  Ranging from on-demand grocery delivery to ride-booking and making payments, everything can be done using just one application. A super app allows mobile users to integrate third-party merchants’ services without downloading separate apps.

Latest trends and stats about Super apps

The Super App model has already been picking its pace in emerging markets such as India, Southeast Asia and South America. The US model or simply the Silicon Valley model is to grow vertically first and then expand globally. On the other hand, The aim of these super app start-ups is to expand horizontally and capture specific geography.

Most of us have too many apps on our smartphones. I have close to a hundred apps, but I only use just a few of them. Think about this, how many apps do you have? How many of these do you use on a daily basis and how many just once or twice a month? I won’t be surprised if some of these apps are there on your mobile phone but you never use them, like never.

So, this is where Super Apps come in.

According to statistics we use very few apps. 50% of the time we use just a single app, and 77% of our app usage comes from only the top 3 apps. 

There are many well-established super-apps in the Asian market already. But there are still many others who still are waiting for their super app. For entrepreneurs and people looking for new startup ideas, getting a Super app can be a good opportunity to start their business.

Amazon, Uber, and Facebook are some of the leading giants that are also looking to provide multiple services.

See also: Create an app like Dunzo

Super App Examples

Go-Jek: Go-Jek, a startup from Indonesia, started its operations as a bike ride service app in its initial years. Today, Gojek offers a complete package of on-demand services. From ordering grocery on-demand, hyper-local delivery to fintech, the startup offers around 20 services. This is the app we will be focusing on today later in the post.

WeChat: This is another important super app. WeChat is a messaging application that gets more than a billion monthly active users every month on a regular basis. The messaging app offers integrated services to users, by offering a restaurant, taxi booking, movie booking, and shopping apps all within a single platform.

Rappi: Rappi markets itself as Latin America’s everything store. From groceries, food, alcohol, medication, apparel, and electronics, the Columbian-based startup aims to deliver everything on-demand. In its initial years, Rappi started its operation as a grocery & food delivery app. Today, the startup has expanded its services to bike rental, travel, and bill payments.

Here is a guide on developing a super app like Rappi to help you get greater insights into how rappi works and how you can create a similar app.

Why Build an app like Gojek?

Super apps are trending and Gojek is one of the most successful super apps out there. An app like Gojek lets you offer multiple on-demand services under one roof. Due to their versatility, super apps are dominating users’ daily lives in the east. It’s time for the west to catch up.

Founded on October 13, 2009, by Nadiem Makarim, the company is Headquartered in Jakarta, Indonesia. Here are some facts about Gojek to show its growth and success today

Number of Riders	Operation	Valuation	Number of Services Provided
200.000	14 Cities	$l.3 billion	20

Creating an app like Gojek helps entrepreneurs scale rapidly. Starting with users’ buy-in initially, they can keep on adding multiple services to gain customers’ loyalty. It also helps them save the trouble of creating new apps for each idea that pops up in their head as all the ideas and services can be amalgamated into just one app.

As per Statista, there are more than 4m applications listed on google and the play store. This not only means that for new apps, it is getting difficult day by day to get users but also for existing ones, it is becoming difficult to retain the users. On top of that, users have limited storage space in their smartphones. Expecting users to download these many apps is not a good idea. A super app like Gojek eliminates this imbalance and improves productivity by reducing the time taken to complete a particular task.

Most Users prefer cost-effective apps where there are various types of service providers in one place. Gojek offers multiple services, such as on-demand food delivery, on-demand grocery delivery, medicine delivery, cab booking, house cleaning, bill payments, etc. These expanded offerings help Gojek enhance user engagement, ultimately increasing the ticket size and total revenue.

Offers: Super apps like Gojek provide discounts, promotions, deals, and offers to customers which can help you get more users to download your app.

Super apps like Gojek have simple yet effective user interface designs. In addition, this app offers multiple payment options for customers. All this enhances the user experience which is vital for any app to be successful.

How a Super App Like Gojek Earns money

The business model for super apps like Gojek has grown well beyond its original range of offerings to cover services, including lifestyle, entertainment, and financial needs.

Gojek generates a good amount of revenue each year. The followings are some of the monetization strategies Gojek uses

Business Commission

Gojek partners with businesses to help them make more sales by offering these businesses its operation. In return, Gojek gets a commission from them on each of the successful orders made using the Gojek app.

Customer fee

Gojek provides a convenient one-stop solution to customers by helping them meet their needs using just one app instead of going to different apps for different requirements. In return, customers have to pay a small fee for each order placed.

Delivery commission

For each order drivers get to deliver, they pay a small commission to Gojek. As long as drivers are getting to deliver several orders and make money, a small commission cut is working for both parties.

Related Resource: Dunzo Business Model

 

Easy Steps to Build a Super App Like Gojek

Step 1: Choosing a Platform

There are 3 options to develop an app

• Native App: Native apps are built for a single platform like Android or iOS or Windows. These have their own programming languages and development tools.
• Cross-Platform App (or Hybrid App): In this option, only a single app is built on HTML5 and it is then optimized for multiple platforms. Similar to how native apps are installed, hybrid apps are also installed from app stores.
• Web App: Here, a website is created and is fully optimized for mobile. These mobile apps look and feel similar to native/hybrid apps but run using browsers, just like any other website. Their UI/UX is inferior to native/hybrid apps.

If you are wondering how many platforms you need to target, only Android or only iOS or both? It depends on your target audience. If your reach is limited to a specific set of audiences, you can go for a single platform app. For instance, to target high net worth people, you can choose to go with a native iOS-only app. If your reach is wide, you might have to go for two separate apps, one each for iOS and Android. You can also go with a hybrid one. Native apps usually are fast and have better UI/UX.

The final call will depend on your budget and other requirements.

Step 2: Features List

To build a super app like Gojek, here are some of the most important features you should include in your app

• Social media integration: This feature will enable users to log in to the app, making the signup and login process quick and easy
• GPS: This feature will enable users to track service providers and get to know their live locations.
• Multi-language support: The app supports multiple languages which allow users to choose the language of their choice. And this will also cover a large group of audience.
• Schedule booking: Using this, users will be able to schedule their bookings well in advance in case there is a need for them to commute on a regular/daily basis.
• Send push notification: Using Push notification feature, service providers will be able to send notifications to users regarding updates, such as, order received, order dispatch, order about to arrive and more.
• Payment gateway integration: Using an online payment option, you will empower users to pay online.

The table below shows features needed for various services that you can offer to users. Here’s a comprehensive list of all the features you might need for your super app similar to Gojek. 

Super App Services	Features
On-demand ride service	Social login
	Pin location and live tracking
	GPS and navigation
	Payment gateway
	Earning analytics
Home service	Service category
	Service request
	In-app calendar
	Arrival alert
	Tasker’s profile and rating
On-demand delivery service	Cart option
	Order Tracking
	Order cancellation
	Order history
	Call/message delivery person
Courier Delivery service	Navigation
	Choose vehicle
	Adding details
	Upload image option
	Track package
	Delivery confirmation

Step 3: Tech Stack

To support the multiple functionalities within a single application, the technology used to build such apps need to be robust enough to handle multiple functions seamlessly.

The Technology suite can comprise Android Wear SDK, Comodo SSL, Bootstrap,  Fabric, Crashlytics, Google (Cloud Messaging, Maps, Compute Engine), Laravel,  HTML5, New Relic, Realm, Nginx, Select2, etc.

• Languages
  • Java
  • Swift
  • JRuby
  • Golang
• Frameworks/Tools
  • Rails
  • Kafka
  • Spring
• Processes (XP)
  • CI
  • Strict TDD on OO codebases
  • Fortnightly release cycles
• Other tools
  • Email Marketing: MailChimp, Mailgun, Mandrill
  • Productivity & Operations: G Suite, Google Drive, Google Fit SDK, Google Tag Manager
  • Analytics: Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Yahoo! Analytics
  • Finance: Google Wallet, Square

Step 4: Design and Development

Once you are done with your application’s goals, target audience, business model, and features, it’s time to start with the information architecture. After finalizing the app functionality, such as features, how users will interact and the entire navigational flow of your app. Get the wireframes made as these will help you in a better conceptual understanding of your app.

Using wireframes, you basically have the skeleton of your mobile app, you can start with its logic later. Wireframes are created, before starting with the actual backend code, to visually see what your future super app would look like. This includes text fields, buttons, pop-ups, and more. If you are satisfied with the wireframes, you can ask the developers to start with the front-end development and back-end coding.

It is important to choose an experienced supermarket app development company to help you successfully execute your vision and create a quality app that matches the market standard.

Step 5: Testing and Going Live

Before you go live with your super app, make sure your app is bug-free and is good to use. Your development team will do alpha testing of the app internally. But you should always test the app with real users as well. For that, beta testing is performed. Using beta testing, you will get users’ feedback related to app performance and users’ experience with your app. Now, after fixing the bugs and issues reported by users, it is time for you to finally release your super app to the market.

See Also:

• Guide To Build A Multi Services App Like Maxim
• Guide To A Supermarket App Like Woolworths
• Complete Guide To Launch An Online Supermarket Solution

How much does it cost to build a super app like Gojek

The average app development cost ranges from $20-$40 per hour in India. It can go up to $100-$150 per hour in Europe and the US.

App Development Stages	Number of Hours
Android Development	500 – 600
iOS Development	500 – 600
Backend development	700 – 800
UI design	200 – 300
UX design	100
Testing and QA	400- 500
Total Hours	2500-2900

There are multiple solutions to launch a super app. You can go for an MVP, a readymade super app, or a custom build app. The approximate cost associated with each is mentioned below – 

For budget pricing, you can launch an MVP. It will cost you around $10000-$15000 USD. Along with basic customization and built-in features, a readymade super app can cost between $15,000-$25,000. For a custom-build solution, with all features created from scratch, will range between $50, 000-$100,000.

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