Welcome to this new blog where we are going to talk about everything you need to know about route planning apps as we will help you with a comprehensive guide to route planner app development.
We are going to look at quite a few important things in this blog such as the reasons why route planner apps are important.
We will also look at all the important tips involved in the creation of a comprehensive route planner app.
Along with that, these points will help you understand the most important things to keep in mind while creating such an app and the most important elements that you need to consider for creating such an app.
This blog will help you understand all the benefits of having a route planner app and it will be a good stepping stone for you on your journey towards the best app possible.
The reason why this blog is important is simply because route planner apps are already a sizeable industry with many other industries depending on it for their daily operations.
The current global route optimization software market also consists of the app market and stands at over $8.5 billion which includes software and services. This industry is expected to grow at a rate of 14.4% global market CAGR.
This simply indicates the size and health of the market as it is destined to grow even faster and on a much larger scale.
If we take a look at all the industries that depend on global route optimisation then we are going to find a lot of significant industries.
These include everything from food and grocery delivery services to retail as well as the very important taxi services. Apart from that you also get everything from logistics and transportation to homecare services and much more.
The performance of all these industries is directly dependent on global route optimisation and that is why this industry needs to always stay growing and stable in order to support all these other industries.
So, let us start by understanding what are route planner apps.
What Are Route Planner Apps?
Route optimization and planning apps are basically apps utilised by different businesses in order to reach destinations and deliver services and goods through different destinations.
These are simply apps that help a delivery person schedule their delivery locations and plan them out according to the most efficient routes possible.
These apps are utilised by food delivery app companies as well as logistics services and other services that depend on delivering goods or services to customers.
Sometimes they are stand-alone apps such as Google Maps as well as Waze etc and these are apps primarily utilised for route planning and simply used to go from point A to point B.
These apps are going to show you the fastest route to a destination by factoring in different traffic conditions and everything else like that.
Then there are apps like Uber and DoorDash that utilise these primary apps and their APIs like Google Maps in order within their services so that their delivery executives can reach different destinations and deliver foods and services and take people from one place to another.
Here Are the Different Types of Route Planner Apps
Delivery Route Planner
This is the most common type of route planner app and it is designed for delivery companies and logistics companies and these apps operate on the model of multi-stop routes.
You can often find them in fleet management systems.
Field Service Route Planners
This is the kind of app that is primarily utilised by technicians and sales representatives as well as field Service teams.
They utilise this app for optimising routes in order to meet more than one client and this is quite beneficial for scheduling service stops. These apps are mostly utilised with CRM systems that have the option for task management.
Enterprise Route Planners
This is the most complex type of route planning app as it is utilised by complex logistics companies with very large fleets and is utilised with cost optimisation in mind.
These apps support dynamic re-routing and even analytics.
Multi-Modal Route
These apps are primarily used by car and bike rental companies and even by companies that provide public transit. These apps are also used by government organisations in order to facilitate public transit.
Personal Navigation
These are the most popular type of route planner apps and are primarily utilised by individuals looking to travel from one place to another and they provide the functionality of basic navigation and take into consideration traffic updates and other variables to decide different routes.
Here Are the Steps for Creating a Route Planner App
Research & Planning
The first and most important stage of creating a route planner app is to simply plan the entire concept of the app and finalise the different objectives of the app as well as its features.
This is the stage of the process where you simply need to understand why you need an app like this and after you do that you need to do a complete market evaluation and research in order to find out if your app is going to fill a gap in the market.
Apart from that you also need to evaluate your competitors and make changes to your app objectives including the app features and functionality and all the important specifications of the app.
After you do that, you need to plan the User Interface (UI) of the app and when you are satisfied with all the planning and conceptualisation you can then move on to the next important stage of the process.
UI/UX Design
The very next stage of the route planner app development process is to create and design the user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) and this is going to be the backbone of the app.
Before you do that, you need to create multiple mood boards and have your investors in agreement after you choose the layout and the colour scheme of the app as well as the user experience aspect of it.
You must also create multiple wireframes and mockups as well as prototypes to test out and collect feedback before you move on to the app development process.
This is simply because any route planner app is all about experience and if the experience aspect of it is not perfect including the app layout and navigation then the app will not be successful.
Additionally, you must also make sure that the app user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) are suitable for different users and devices.
App Development
Now finally this time to develop the app and in order to do so you need to take care of the frontend as well as the backend development aspect of it.
In order to do so the first thing you need to understand is that the app will only work properly if it has a very stable data model for locations and routes.
You must also focus on the frontend aspect of it which includes a user interface (UI) that is easy to navigate and utilise. You never know who is going to use the app and that is why you must never make it too complicated to be utilised and if you want you can even sacrifice a few features in the beginning.
When it comes to the app development process you must add features such as real-time tracking as well as push notifications.
Additionally, you must also think about other features such as traffic data integration as well as map visualisation options and definitely voice navigation mode because it is going to be used a lot by delivery drivers and people driving while using your services.
Additionally, you must also at the feature for multi-stop route optimization.
When you are creating the app, you need to utilise multiple technology stacks which include frameworks like React Native and Flutter for frontend technologies.
When it comes to the backend you can utilise frameworks such as Node.js and Django.
You are also going to need to utilise mapping databases and navigation APIs and for that you can utilise Google Maps API or even OpenStreetMap but we would suggest sticking with Google.
Testing
Once you are satisfied with the app development process it is now time to test all the functionalities and features of the app.
This includes testing the app in different environments and different operating systems as well as, most importantly, different devices.
We hope you have developed the app for both Android and iOS and now would be a good time to test out the app on different Android and iOS devices. These should include smartphones and tablets as well because many delivery executives utilise tablets.
Additionally, if you have the support for Android Auto or Apple CarPlay then you should also test the compatibility of the app in these situations.
You need to find out if any bugs are around and ensure the overall experience of the app is fluid.
Deployment
Now it is time to get ready for the app deployment process but before that, you need to make sure that all your app documentation is in order including user guides as well as privacy policies.
Once you are satisfied that everything is in place you need to submit your app for deployment on all the important app stores out there and we are not just talking about the default Android and iOS app stores because there are other app stores such as the Samsung Store and many more.
Finally, it is time to deploy your app on the different app stores and web hosting platforms and after you deploy the app you are definitely going to get feedback about the app whether it is positive or negative.
You should never ignore feedback, especially during the initial stages of deployment.
In parallel to the app deployment, you must also run a strong marketing campaign in order to attract new users to the app and this is going to be the most challenging aspect of launching the app.
Once the app launch is complete you need to analyse the app launch in order to gather feedback for future updates and support the app.
Benefits of Route Planner Apps
Time and Cost Efficiency
One of the most important benefits of such a route planner app is in the area of time and cost efficiency because this app is going to save you a lot of time and it will also save you money in the form of reduced fuel consumption due to better route planning.
If your business utilises an app like this then it will result in lower operation and costs when it comes to logistics and it will be even more significant if your business is based on delivering goods and services.
Enhanced Customer Experience
Having such an app is all about the improvement of customer experience because it will not just help your employees deliver goods and services in time but it will also help your customers in getting better estimations of delivery times and much more.
Improved Productivity
A well-designed route planner app is a blessing when it comes to productivity as you can automate route planning and scheduling.
This is going to free up a lot of time and it will also ensure better time management and it will improve the overall productivity of the business.
Reduced Environmental Impact
Utilising a route planner app like this is excellent for the environment because the app is saving you time by proper route planning and this will ensure more fuel savings and less carbon emissions.
If this can be deployed on a large enough scale then it has the capability to produce a very large positive impact on the environment.
Scalability for Businesses
A proper productivity app such as a route planner app is going to help in business growth because you can now automatically manage the demand for goods and services through automated route planning.
In addition to that this is an excellent choice for operation and efficiency.
We hope this blog has been helpful for you to understand how to create a route planner app and how to deploy it as well as all the different types of apps and their benefits.
If you are someone planning on creating an app for your business and you are looking for experienced developers with an excellent understanding of the route planner app industry then we are here to help you.
We are Think To Share IT Solutions and we present you with some of the finest route planner app development solutions in the industry. Along with that, we can also offer you the best app development service in the industry.
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