How to Build an On-Demand Service Marketplace

Last Updated: 30th March, 2023

Building an on-demand marketplace sounds like a promising business idea since it perfectly fits the direction of the modern economy and the expectations of today’s users. These marketplaces have smoothly and sweepingly entered our daily lives.

The market that on-demand marketplaces have captured is steadily spreading and expected to grow exceptionally in the near future. According to the latest PwC report, the market for On-Demand mobile apps and websites will reach a significant value of $335 Billion by the year 2025. This has pushed more business owners and entrepreneurs to invest in this booming economy.

If you are also planning to contribute to this fast-growing economy, you need to pull yourself up as the competition is only increasing.

Table of Contents:

• Why On-Demand Service Marketplaces Have Become Popular
• Players Ruling the On-Demand Economy
• Types of On-Demand Services
• How an On-Demand Service Marketplace Works
• Revenue Streams
• Essential Features of an On-Demand Service Marketplace
  ― Customer Portal
  ― Service Provider Portal
  ― Admin Portal
• Advanced Features to Include
• Parting Words

Why On-Demand Service Marketplaces Have Become Popular

The boom in the popularity of the gig economy was predicted long back. Here are some pushing reasons for its increasing popularity:

• Quick access to services with just a few taps on the screen.
• Instant satisfaction with least communication with the service provider.
• Better control by allowing customers to track the delivery of the service.
• Better choices at best prices selected from a pool of service providers.
• More sustainable and ethical way of business than the traditional one.

Players Ruling the On-Demand Economy

Here are some of the key players in the on-demand industry:

• LocalOye
• Urban Company
• Rinse
• Timesaverz
• Handy on Demand
• TaskRabbit
• Merry Maids
• Urban Stems
• Doctor On Demand

Types of On-Demand Services

On-Demand services are not just limited to salon and repair services. There are a number of other services available on on-demand marketplaces and can be availed with just a simple online booking. Have a look:

• Home Interior/Construction
• Transportation
• Cleaning/Repair Services
• Food & Grocery Delivery
• Health & Wellness
• Fitness
• Wedding Planning

How an On-Demand Service Marketplace Works

On-demand marketplaces are a medium for the customers to order any product or service and get it delivered at their doorsteps. Be it food, drive, cleaning, salon, music streaming, or any other service you may think of, there is an on-demand marketplace for almost everything. This model enables consumers to access a large pool of service providers and bridges the gap between them.

Customers can browse through the services and service providers on the marketplace and book them for the services required by making the payment. As the working of this business model is characterized by delay sensitivity, customers expect the services to be delivered with the minimum waiting time. Service providers visit the customers’ homes and offer the booked services at their doorsteps.

Revenue Streams

Finding the right revenue streams and monetization strategy is essential for any for-profit business. Let’s have a look at some of the popular strategies for on-demand marketplaces that contribute to the revenue.

• Commission from each transaction
• Lead-Based – 
• Subscription for the users to use the marketplace’s services
• Sponsored profiles for promotion and more visibility on the page
• 3rd party ads once there is enough traffic and user base on the marketplace

Essential Features of an On-Demand Service Marketplace

An on-demand marketplace consists of 3 different portals for 3 different users – customers, service providers, and admin. Let’s discuss the features of all three portals:

Customer Portal

• Registration: Customers can easily register on the platform using a mobile number or email and search for the services required.
• Payments and Mobile Wallet: Customers should have the option to choose to pay via credit card, debit card, or mobile wallet for the service they are booking.
• Reviews/Ratings: This helpful feature for the new users helps them to choose the highly-rated professionals rated by the previous customers.
• Search & Filters: On-demand marketplaces are known for the ease of searching for a specific service. The search & filter feature in such marketplaces allows the users to navigate to the services page and find the required service.

Service Provider Portal

• Registration: Easy and quick registration process for seamless onboarding of the service providers.
• Communication: Service providers should be able to communicate and interact with customers to answer and solve their queries and offer required assistance time-to-time.
• Maps: Service providers should be able to navigate the route to reach the destination to ensure the shortest routes, on-time arrival, and faster delivery of the services.
• Earnings & Daily Report: Service providers should be able to keep a track of the weekly, monthly, and yearly earnings and get the cost estimation of each service provided.

Admin Portal

• Comprehensive Management: Admin should be able to manage and its various modules like, users, profiles, bookings, revenue, offers to track every aspect of the marketplace.
• Marketing Module: This module enables the admin to market and promote the marketplace properly which attracts the customers and increases the brand visibility.
• Offers & Discounts: This feature enables the admin to create offers, discounts, promo codes, etc. for the customers. This helps the admin to engage and retain the customers and grow their ROI.
• Manage Payments: To manage the payments received from the customers and disbursed to the service providers, this module helps the admin to streamline the payments and keep a track of the earnings.
  
• Reports & Analytics: To keep an eye on the progress of the marketplace, the report and analytics feature becomes a great help. Admin can have a look at the different reports customers registered, orders completed, revenue earned, etc., and formulate the future strategies accordingly.

Advanced Features to Include

• Data Security: As users today have become very possessive about their data, marketplaces should make sure to secure the users’ data and not let it out at any cost.
• Efficient Customer Care: This is an essential requirement if you want your users to be happy. The users should be able to reach out to customer care in case of any grievances. They should be able to contact customer support via call or email and get their problems solved.
• Wishlist: Many users do not purchase a service on the spot – it might be out of stock or wish to come back to it later. Adding a wishlist or favorite feature on the marketplace becomes helpful in this case. They can remember the service/product in this way and do not have to search the whole website again for that service.
• Cost Estimate: Many times customers want to know the amount for a particular service they need to avail. Integration of a cost estimation algorithm will eliminate all the guesswork and let the customers know the approximate cost of the service they are availing.
• Accepting/Rejecting Requests: On-demand service marketplace offers complete freedom and flexibility to the service providers to work on their own terms and availability. The marketplace should offer an option for the service provider to accept or reject any service request within a set period of time.
  These are the must-have and advanced features that you can definitely consider incorporating into your on-demand service marketplace to elevate the user experience and take your business to new heights. However, doing it all by yourself or from scratch is not at all recommended as it is quite tedious.

Readymade solutions to build these on-demand marketplaces are available in the market which can be considered to roll out an airtight marketplace for your idea.

Parting Words

The on-demand service industry has developed into a multi-billion dollar establishment. It has never been a better time for service providers to harness the power of marketplaces. Businesses can earn plentiful revenues by adapting to the changing sphere of the quick service delivery model. Combining this with the undeniable strengths that on-demand marketplaces offer, your business can supercharge itself to dominate in the service industry.

The best approach to build a successful on-demand marketplace is to draw inspiration from market leaders of the same industry and understand their strategies. Once you are done with the market analysis and know the inside out of the industry, you can curate an effective operational strategy for your business venture.