Top 12 Easy Steps to Build an Online Shopping App

It’s the 21st century, where convenience is the king. Customers look for easy, hassle-free, and convenient ways to shop online, resulting in massive growth in the online retail market. E-commerce is the future of commerce, with e-commerce’s economic growth rate estimated to be 8.9% for 2023. Therefore, for businesses striving to capture the online market, e-commerce apps have become necessities, not luxuries.

Ecommerce App Development has come across as an excellent way for the companies to sell products and services online, share crucial product or service-related information online, and quickly meet the rapidly changing consumer demands.

Mobile app development Dubai is much hassle-free now than it was a few decades ago. You just need to find the right online Shopping App Development Company, and skilled developers can help develop customized shopping applications tailored to your business needs. Here, we have put together 12 vital steps to build an online shopping app from scratch.

Market & Stats for Online Shopping App

The following is the data and statistics on the online shopping app market across the world:

Key online shopping app statistics

• E-commerce app revenue was estimated to be $4.02 trillion in 2022, increased by 12% from 2021.

• It was reported that 10% of global e-commerce was conducted in the United States, behind China in total spend.
• The US acquired 7.4% of the total retail from mobile e-commerce in 2021. In the United Kingdom, this figure was approximately 15.8% in 2022.

• In 2021, Amazon was the most popular e-commerce platform in the US and India. Amazon accounted for 28% market share, and Flipkart accounted for 25% market share in India.
• Due to the coronavirus pandemic, downloads and usage of e-commerce applications increased over the past two years.

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What is an E-commerce Website?

E-commerce or electronic commerce can be explained as the business model involving sales transactions being done online or on the web. Virtually every online shopping website follows this structure. So, any website where individuals can obtain items or services for sale over the internet can be referred to as an e-commerce website.

You might be curious how an ordinary website differs from an e-commerce website. The most obvious difference between ordinary company website development and ecommerce Website Development lies in the features they support.

A company website might provide information about the specific brand’s products and services users need to do business with the same company. Meanwhile, an e-commerce website functions quite similarly to how the physical store works. Potential buyers can browse different products and services, purchase them according to their tastes and preferences, arrange for delivery, and make payments.

When you proceed with the online Shopping App Development, you will find that it’s more complicated to create an online store than an ordinary company website because of the design elements and the features the former requires. So, it’s always best to hire a professional mobile app development company in Dubai for a seamless mobile app development process.

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Build an Online Shopping App: 12 Easy Steps

Looking forward to developing an online shopping app? If so, follow these given ecommerce development steps:

1. Identify your requirements

Before researching a mobile app development company to develop a shopping app representing your business online, you should identify your requirements.

• What problems do you want to solve, or what do you want to achieve with the e-commerce app?
• Do you want to develop an e-commerce app that can handle large loads or an aesthetically appealing app?
• Will your online shopping app require access to device-specific features? If so, which feature you want to add to the list?
• These are only a few of the many questions you should consider before proceeding to the next step.

2. Research e-commerce app development

Once you have an idea of what you expect from your finished product, you should do the market research. With the right background research, you can gain plenty of information, helping you shape how your product evolves.

You should understand how receptive the e-commerce app development marketplace is, the expectations of target users, their problems, the scope of the problem, and how good or bad your competition is.

3. Set a feasible budget

You should fix a budget before looking for an ecommerce app development company. Moreover, you shouldn’t be stingy when developing a budget for e-commerce app development because it will be a great investment for your business in the long term.

Now that online shopping apps are no longer novelties, you can find many top Mobile app development companies in Dubai that can help develop a robust e-commerce app within your budget.

4. Create an achievable roadmap

After setting a good budget, create a good roadmap for your potential online shopping app development project.

E-commerce apps require top-notch planning and coordination for the proper execution of the development process. So, you will need a good plan outlining the achievable milestones in easy-to-understand language.

In addition, make sure you leave some buffer room for contingency situations when setting deadlines.

5. Put a reliable tech team together

Next, you should focus on hiring the best mobile app development Company UAE, acquainted with a team of talented UI/UX designers and developers to make your dream e-commerce app a reality. Be careful when choosing the tech team because the fat of your online shopping app depends on them.

Determine whether you need a frontend or backend ecommerce web developer. Or is it better to hire Mobile app developers offering full-stack mobile app development services?

Since you want to develop an e-commerce app, make sure to add at least one ecommerce app developer to your tech team, as they will be equipped with additional skills necessary to handle the tools pertinent to online stores.

6. Plan the essential features or capabilities

Sit with your team and try to figure out the essential features and capabilities you should include in your online shopping app. When making this decision, always think about your target audience and their needs. Consider the following questions:

• What are the features or capabilities most sought after by your company’s target users?
• What features to include in your app to make it more desirable for your end users?

7. Build a minimum viable product (MVP)

Finally, we will head to the crux of the online shopping app development project.

Ask the hired ecommerce web development in Dubai to outline the structure of an e-commerce app’s user interface. Professionals will outline how your online shopping app should work without overcomplicating the application’s design. Next, developers will build a basic version of your e-commerce app, showcasing its main features and functionalities.

8. Wireframe and prototype the e-commerce application

Wireframing is about designing the blueprint for your e-commerce app, and on the other hand, prototyping is about incorporating an interactive display. You can ask the developers to wireframe and prototype your app.

Wireframing and prototyping will make it easier for you to explain your e-commerce app and seek validation from test users. Once your test users validate the app’s prototype, you can start building the actual online shopping app.

9. Build the database

Designing your database will allow you to store crucial data securely and access it whenever required. With the stored data and user functions, you can determine the database type suitable to run your online shopping app.

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10. Build the frontend and backend

The frontend is what your target users see and interact with, while the backend is about managing your data services, databases, and everything that your users can’t see in the e-commerce application.

Talking about the frontend, it’s the visual element of your app and can be built via a non-code or low-code platform. However, to create a backend, you will need skilled developers from a reliable ecommerce development company.

11. Test and troubleshoot

Before launching your online shopping app, you should test it for errors or bugs. Ask the hired ecommerce app development company in Dubai to test the application and see if the installed functions work smoothly. If something is wrong, professional app testers will diagnose the problem and correct it before the app’s official release.

12. Deploy the e-commerce app

You should select a host to make your online shopping app on the cloud, allowing users to access it from any location. This step is about moving your e-commerce application from your server to the chosen cloud hosting.

How Much Does it Cost to Build an Online Shopping App?

Online Shopping App Development has become a popular way for businesses to reach customers worldwide and boost revenue. However, before starting to develop an online shopping app or hiring a web development company in Dubai, you should understand the cost structure.

However, the ecommerce app development cost can vary depending on various factors. Let’s explore the main factors affecting the ecommerce mobile app development cost:

App design

The design of the online shopping app is the major factor affecting the mobile app development cost. Various factors that could influence the cost of designing an e-commerce app are the design’s complexity, the design elements, and the number of screens.

The app design cost includes the remuneration of a UI/UX design to create wireframes, user interface designs, and overall user experience design for the online shopping app. In UAE, the average app design cost can vary from AED 5,00 to AED 20,000+.

App development platform

The e-commerce mobile development platform or custom Web Development Company services you use to build the online shopping app can affect costs. Moreover, the app development costs depend on the technology and framework of the chosen app development platform. The price can vary from AED 55,000 to AED 2,50,000+ in UAE.

Payment gateway integration

Integrating a payment gateway into an online shopping app can be complex and time-consuming, increasing the average cost of Mobile app development. Moreover, the payment gateway integration cost can vary based on the chosen payment gateway provider and the level of integration required.

Professionals might charge around AED 2,000 to AED 10,000+ for integrating a payment gateway into the e-commerce app.

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Maintenance and upgrades

Maintaining an online shopping app is crucial for long-term success. The app maintenance cost can vary depending on the hired web development company, the app’s complexity, the number of updates required, and the necessary level of support. In UAE, you need to pay around AED 10,000 to AED 50,000+ annually to maintain for e-commerce app.

Marketing and promotion

Marketing and promotion are two main aspects you must work on to increase your e-commerce app downloads and usage. It includes the fee that marketers charge for promoting your online shopping app through multiple marketing channels.

Best Mobile app development Companies in UAE, providing marketing and promotion services, can charge AED 15,000 to AED 75,000+, depending on marketing strategy.

Conclusion

Opting for ecommerce app development is an excellent way to boost your business’s online visibility, sales, and profits. Although building an e-commerce app is not easy, it’s not that complicated either.

With the right ecommerce app developers, you can seamlessly develop a unique and engaging online shopping app. Top Mobile app development Companies in UAE usually follow the above-discussed steps to provide their clients with a high-performing e-commerce app and achieve all organizational milestones.

Hire Top Mobile app developers to create a brand-new online shopping app and put your business on the digital map.

FAQs

Q. Can online shopping app building steps be used to develop other types of web apps?

ANS. While this article focuses on building online shopping apps, you can also apply the outlined steps to develop other types of web apps. The fundamentals are to understand the market demand, define features, design an interface, create a roadmap, develop an MVP and prototype, test the app, and deploy it.

Q. How long does it take to build an e-commerce app?

ANS. The time needed to build an e-commerce app can vary depending on the features’ complexity, development approach, team size, and project scope.

Q. What makes an online shopping app successful?

ANS. Apply the following factors to make your online shopping app successful:

• Clear business goals
• User-centric design and interface
• Experience-first app
• High-performance and speed

Q. What are the features of a high-performing online shopping app?

ANS. The following are the features of a high-performing online shopping app:

• Low loading time
• Intuitive design and interface
• Improved user experience
• Advanced functionalities
• Easy learning curve

Q. What approach does a professional developer follow to build an e-commerce app?

ANS. To build an e-commerce app

• A developer first tries to find solutions to specific target user-related problems.
• They create the e-commerce app by selecting the appropriate development framework.
• Lastly, they test the solution and deploy the e-commerce app.