How to Create an App Like Amazon?

Do you operate a business looking to develop an e-commerce platform similar to Amazon? If you are, the following article should be of immense help to you.

How do you start building an app like Amazon?

The trend of online shopping is enhancing at a fast pace in the last few years. Statista presents that the sales of retail e-commerce were around 4.28 trillion USD in 2020.

These retail e-commerce sales were only 1.3 trillion USD in 2014. Withal, the online shopping trends are increasing day by day. Statista also forecasts that e-commerce sales would reach 6.3 trillion USD in 2024.

However, if we talk about the most popular e-commerce shopping platforms, Amazon is at the top. Yes, a worldwide survey of Statista claims that 52% of online shoppers utilize Amazon for online shopping.

So, after knowing these appealing stats of Amazon, do you also want to build an app like Amazon to conduct shopping ventures for your business? If yes, then have a look at our guide.

Although developing an app like Amazon could be a tricky process, but following steps would definitely assist you in this regard. Here are 10 steps you need to follow to make an app like Amazon:

What you will learn from this article?

• An overview of Amazon and its services
• Ten steps to create an effective Amazon clone app
• Essential features for creating retail eCommerce platforms

Learning more about Amazon

Before starting on your application development, you must know more about Amazon, including its origins, growth and success story.

Amazon is the most well-known international eCommerce platform that offers consumer electronics, online retail, digital content, computing services and other local services, such as grocery deliveries and daily deals.

Jeff Bezos started Amazon with an investment of $10,000 in 1994 as an online bookstore. This eCommerce platform offered a 1-click patent and 3rd party seller marketplace in 1999. Unluckily, the dot.com bubble crash negatively affected Amazon, but the company survived.

In 2002, it was the first time Amazon began selling clothing stuff and made a joint venture with several clothing brands. Next year, Amazon launched its cloud computing services with the name of Amazon Web Services (AWS).

In 2018, Amazon became the leading e-retailer in the United States, amassing more than $232 billion through sales. However, the Covid-19 pandemic just skyrocketed the revenues of Amazon.

The annual revenues of Amazon were $386 billion in 2020 that is 37% higher than 2019. Similarly, in the first quarter of 2021, its revenues are around $108 billion that is 43.82% higher than the previous year.

The annual revenues of Amazon were $386 billion in 2020 that is 37% higher than 2019. Similarly, in the first quarter of 2021, its revenues are around $108 billion that is 43.82% higher than the previous year.

Apart from its desktop platform, the brand has also expanded to mobile consumers. The Amazon eCommerce app is also top-rated. Apptopia reports that with 41 million downloads, Amazon is the most downloaded shopping application in the United States in 2020.

Besides offering the online market to businesses and consumers, Amazon also offers a video subscription service, titled Amazon Prime. Subscribers receive special two-day guaranteed deliveries when they order products from Amazon’s platform apart from being able to stream hundreds of movies and shows, and exclusive series.

The offerings do not just end here though. The Amazon Prime subscription also comes with free access to the company’s music streaming service.

Prime members have been found to spend $1400 on average in a year through the e-commerce platform. This is more than double when compared to the annual expenditure of non-prime members of the platform, which was $600.

Surveys revealed that books and electronics are the most popular categories when it comes to product purchases, followed by personal care products and e-books.

The ten steps you need to follow to make an Amazon clone app

• Form a clear idea regarding the app
• Write down the most vital features for your app
• Start the design process for the app
• Utilize app templates to simplify the design process
• Code the backend
• Code the frontend
• Obtain feedback for the app’s initial version
• Optimize your app for search engines
• Promote and market the application
• Publish the finished app

Take a look below to learn more about each of these steps in detail.

Form a clear idea regarding the app

How to create an app like Amazon from scratch? Read on to know the entire procedure. Most developers make a mistake in thinking that coding is the most crucial part of making apps.

However, the first thing that you should do is form a basic idea about your app. When you arrive at the perfect idea, the coding becomes simpler.

Coding an application is an expensive process since developers often charge colossal hourly fees. Depending on the quality and experience of the developer you hire, rates may even go up to hundreds of dollars each hour.

Therefore, it is better to leave this coding for later and form an idea first. Perform market research and gather feedback from your intended target audience. Undertaking this step will save thousands of dollars on app development, while also ensuring that there is a demand for the app that you finally launch in the market.

As a developer, your aim should be to keep the development cycle as short as possible. For instance, the creation of the Minimum Viable Product or MVP should take no more than three months.

Follow this standard, even when your app’s feature is expected to take longer to integrate and code. Moreover, understanding the demands of your consumers should also help you select the features that would help your product succeed in the market.

You can utilize a Business Model Canvas or BMC when formulating a high-level idea. BMC is a template that takes into account several factors of a business, including value propositions, revenue, customer segments.

Using this, you can complete the development of your idea in just a few hours. BMC will give you an idea of how to make an app like Amazon. Planning is the best way to start your app development process.

Write down the most vital features for your app

After completing the initial planning process, you should list the most integral features in your eCommerce application. Your app must also comprise features that set it apart from competitors, even Amazon, with commonly-found properties.

The features listed below should be used as a reference when considering what you want in your application.

Useful e-commerce app features

• Reviews and ratings
• List of payment options
• Push notifications
• Social media integration
• Wishlist
• Synchronization
• A fast and simple checkout process

Reviews and ratings

As an eCommerce business operator, you must not be afraid to embrace feedback and scathing reviews. Understanding the complaints from your consumers will allow your application to improve over time, encouraging long-term success.

Your consumers should also be able to review the products available on the platform. This is an essential feature, especially for an online marketspace. Customers rely on reviews from other consumers to determine whether a certain product available on your eCommerce platform is suitable for their needs and requirements.

Your platform must also highlight both the positive and negative aspects of a product review, aiding customers to make an informed decision regarding the same.

List of payment options

Today, due to the emergence and evolution of the Internet, consumers have several viable options when making payments digitally. Your application must ensure support for as many of these modes of payment as possible.

Otherwise, you may lose clients who do not find their preferred mode of payment listed in your eCommerce application. Therefore, to avoid such scenarios, always integrate multiple payment options in your Amazon clone app.

Push notifications

Push notification systems allow for effective means of communication with your consumers. Part of knowing how to create an app like Amazon lies in designing proper push notification features.

Using this notification feature, you can inform clients about discounts and ongoing offers along with important updates about changes to the applications. Informing the clients about sales and offers can often increase your revenue generation directly.

Social media integration

Ecommerce businesses are directly engaged in selling. Therefore, spreading the word about your company and application is vital to achieving long-term success.

Integrating into the various social media platforms is the fastest way today to popularity. You should also ensure consumer login features through social media handles. This simplifies the process of signing in to your application, with one-tap access to your digital storefront.

Moreover, the integration of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other social media websites ensures that consumers can freely share discounts and offers available on your platform, urging new users to sign up and start using your product. Therefore, eCommerce applications that fail to harness this immense reach of social media often fail to capitalize on the market.

Wishlist

A wishlist is one of the most useful features in the Amazon app. This system allows consumers to save products they are interested in on their wishlist. From this list, they can find the desired item easily when they intend to buy or purchase the product. Users often save items to their wishlist when they currently lack the financial backing to spend on the said product.

This generally happens at the end of the month, when consumers are low on cash. When they have money to spare, your users can simply open their wishlist on the application and find the product they want, simplifying the buying process considerably.

Aside from benefiting the consumers, the backend team can check users’ wishlist items to understand their preferences and other spending habits. With better insight into the consumer’s behavior and preference, you can target them for certain offers and discounts that they are more likely to spend on.

Synchronization

Most online storefront companies today operate both desktop and mobile versions of their services. Therefore, if your development team comes up with a brilliant update, you can use the synchronization feature to incorporate the positive change across both the mobile and desktop variations for your eCommerce marketplace.

On the other hand, in the absence of the synchronization ability, your developers would need to work twice as hard to integrate new features in the two platforms. Even then, your mobile version may receive the update sooner, leaving your desktop users disappointed at the lack of the same feature.

When wondering how to make an app like Amazon, make sure you include this vital feature for your application.

A fast and simple checkout process

Ecommerce sites and apps are places where consumers spend most of their time selecting an appropriate product for them to purchase. After spending such a considerable amount of time selecting the items, they should enjoy a simple checkout procedure. In the case of complicated checkout procedures, you may lose some of your consumers permanently.

Simplifying the payment and checkout process is, therefore, one of the top priorities when developing an app like Amazon. One of the common ways you can enhance the convenience for consumers during checkout is to add debit or credit card details during the first transaction.

With this feature, customers can simply choose their saved card for all succeeding purchases, thereby saving time by not entering the details all over again every time. Additionally, you can increase the e-billing procedure further, as most consumers hate waiting for the bill to be generated.

Today, the online market boasts of several eCommerce platforms similar to Amazon. Therefore, setting your application apart from others is vital if you want to achieve true success. Implementing the features mentioned above is the simplest way to create a unique and popular app.

Another integral tip for success is that you should put the needs of your consumers before anything else, simplifying their online shopping experience in the process.

If your competitors offer better prices for the same products, consumers on your platform will migrate to the rival storefront. A feature-rich application can prevent the loss of consumers.

However, avoid unnecessary bells and whistles at all cost. Remember, your consumers must feel as if their concerns and complaints are being addressed by you. At the end of the day, the best features along with perfect customer service should help you elevate your eCommerce application to new heights.

Start the design process for the app

The design for your Amazon clone app is directly responsible for the success or failure of the program. Planning the design before coding can also help you save money since you would not need to undergo several revisions or iterations during the development process.

You can also accelerate the market validation procedure for your application by prioritizing the design concept for the eCommerce app.

Listed below are some of the key reasons why you must dedicate some time to design your application.

• The process of designing can be entertaining and fun
• Designing the application is much faster when compared to actual coding
• You do not need professional app designers, completing the job by yourself
• While developers have a costly hourly rate, designers are cheaper to hire.

Therefore, designing the app before coding has multiple benefits for you.

Utilize app templates to simplify the design process

The development process for different applications can still possess some similarities. Using templates can help you avoid spending time and money unnecessarily.

These templates come with ready-to-use source code, which you can alter or change as per your needs. Therefore, when wondering how to make an app like Amazon, focus on purchasing eCommerce app templates that can simplify the development process, further reducing the time to market for the said application.

Here is a look at some of the advantages when using templates for faster and simpler app development.

• Great Affordability: Using templates allows companies to use pre-existing codes when designing the user interface, thereby reducing the expense of development. In the absence of these templates, you would need to dedicate a considerable amount of the development budget to designing the application from scratch.
• Accelerate the development: Since developers do not need to code the user interface for their eCommerce application, they can save integral time. With the reduced time to market, your application can start making money sooner.
• Hire a Small Team: If you do not possess sufficient knowledge regarding UI development and UI design, you need to hire a capable team of developers who can complete the task instead. Furthermore, if you plan to launch the application on both iOS and Android, you would need a big team. The utilization of templates can assist you in avoiding hiring big development teams.
• Bug-free development: If you decide to avoid templates, you would need to develop the user interface from scratch. As with all coding, UI development can be tricky due to the prevalence of bugs and errors. You would need to spend considerable time combating these bugs. However, a template is a bug-free coding source that ensures that your user interface does not consider any bugs.

Code the backend

Finally, after performing the steps mentioned above, you can finally proceed to backend development and coding. Keep in mind that you need to complete the entire process with immense precision for the best results.

You must understand that most parts of an app working correctly depends on how effective its backend coding is. The backend is responsible for creating APIs, storing and retrieving data, performing the bulk of business rules.

Best ways to create a flawless backend for your application

Developers can rely on one of two ways when it comes to developing the backend for their app.

• Using backend service providers
• Creating a custom backend from the ground-up

BaaS or Backend as a Service

Opting for one of the backend service providers allow you to capitalize on task automation, user authentication, data backup automation, social media logins and much more. The benefits of choosing BaaS over custom backend are

• Speedier development resulting in the quicker launch in the market
• No need for businesses to maintain cloud resources
• Cost-saving as your developers do not need to spend time on repetitive tasks.

 

To know more how a BaaS will improve app development productivity read the article below:

BaaS – Backend as a Service

Custom backend development

The only benefit of opting for a custom backend coding is that it provides greater freedom for developers to integrate additional functionality. However, the excessive expense means that most companies avoid overspending just for some freedom in backend development.

Furthermore, if you are wondering how to create an app like Amazon in the shortest period, you must stick to backend service providers for the best result.

Code the frontend

Frontend development refers to the development of those parts of the app that consumers directly interact with and engage with. It is perhaps the most integral portion where flawless coding is the key to success. Furthermore, whatever you develop on the frontend must be appealing to the eye, giving off a usable and clean appearance to users.

However, prior to the frontend development, you must understand whether you want to create a Hybrid, Native or Web application. When designing an eCommerce application, most companies opt for hybrid apps, due to the following reasons.

• Hybrid apps are those programs that have a standardized development procedure for both iOS and Android platforms.
• Hybrid development reduces your total cost for creating the eCommerce application.
• In the absence of the Internet, hybrid applications still work ensuring a better overall experience when compared to the web apps.

While native and web applications are also useful in some instances, you would do well to steer clear from them when designing an Amazon clone app.

Obtain feedback for the app’s initial version

The best way to understand whether your application is useful or not depends on how your consumers perceive the program. Therefore, you need to offer an initial version of the application to users, who can then relay the positive and negative feedback based upon their experience.

The feedback will help you fine-tune several features and functionality within the application before its final launch.

Initial feedback is a vital part of the process that you must not neglect. Even devoting an hour each day can help you understand how your application needs to evolve.

Optimize the app for search engines

While most people feel that SEO is suitable for websites, you should know that the application’s optimization is also an important factor you should consider.

Flawless app optimization results in your eCommerce program being ranked higher than other similar applications. Here are some factors that play a role in your app’s SEO.

• Keyword
• Backlinks
• Title

Moreover, reviews, ratings and download count for the app also affect its final SEO on the digital storefront.

Promote and market the application

Without proper promotional activities, consumers may have a difficult time discovering your application. Listed below are some tips for promoting the app –

• Start a blog
• Create a video regarding the app
• Social media marketing and promotion
• Answering queries on Quora and Reddit
• Creating job postings on Indeed
• Making an attractive presentation on Slideshare.

Publish the finished app

Once every other step mentioned above is complete, your application is ready for launch in either the App Store or Google Play Store. The latter offers better support, making it easier for developers to list their applications there.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to make an app like Amazon, you should start planning the project. Keep in mind that there are countless similar applications in the market today.

Therefore, your app needs to do something different and unique to stand out from the crowd. Amazon has managed to secure such a niche in the eCommerce business because it was one of the first to offer services of its kind. Even though you may want to develop an app similar to Amazon’s, you should also focus on the distinctions.

Did you enjoy this article? Please read The six steps to create a mobile store or How to create a Slack Clone app. 

General FAQ

How to create an app like Amazon?

1 – Form a clear idea regarding the app
2 – Write down the most vital features for your app
3 – Start the design process for the app
4 – Utilize app templates to simplify the design process
5 – Code the backend
6 – Code the frontend
7 – Obtain feedback for the app’s initial version
8 – Optimize your app for search engines
9 – Promote and market the application
10 – Publish the finished app

What are the features of an e-Commerce app?

Reviews and ratings
List of payment options
Push notifications
Social media integration
Wishlist
Synchronization
A fast and simple checkout process

How to promote your e-Commerce app?

Start a blog
Create a video regarding the app
Social media marketing and promotion
Answering queries on Quora and Reddit
Creating job postings on Indeed
Making an attractive presentation on Slideshare.