is a Product Leader and an Alumnus of Executive MBA in Product Leadership at the Institute of Product Leadership & CMR University. This article is published with the author’s permission and was first published on Medium
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BigBasket: India’s Largest and Trusted Online Supermarket
Big Basket is one of my favorite apps, it simplified day-to-day grocery shopping for me and my family. BigBasket is the market leader in India’s E-Grocery market with a 37% market share. It grabs the major market share when it comes to the online grocery market. BigBasket is India’s one of the largest online food and grocery apps selling over 40,000 products and more than 1,000 brands. It caters to 10+ million customers spanning 26 cities in India and takes over 1.5 lakh orders per day.
One of the key strengths of BigBasket was its focus on product quality. By collaborating with trusted vendors and farmers, the platform aimed to ensure that customers received fresh and authentic products. The availability of multiple secure payment options further added to the overall convenience and trustworthiness of the platform.
Key Strengths of the Big Basket App
1. Wide selection of products: BigBasket offers a wide selection of products, including fresh produce, meat, seafood, dairy, snacks, and more. 2. Convenient shopping: You can shop for groceries from the comfort of your own home. 3. Time-saving: You don’t have to spend time driving to the grocery store or waiting in line. 4. Affordable prices: BigBasket often offers better deals on groceries than you can find in-store. 5. Flexible delivery options: BigBasket offers a variety of delivery options, including same-day delivery, next-day delivery, and scheduled delivery. 6. Easy to use: The BigBasket app is easy to use and navigate. 7. Safe and secure: BigBasket uses the latest security measures to protect your personal and financial information.
Missing Features of the Big Basket App
Being an ardent user of BigBasked for several years, I believe multiple key features are missing and if included can increase customer delight. Through a good blend of primary user interviews and secondary market research, I’ve pinpointed critical missing features in the BigBasket app. These recommendations address specific pain points and aim to enhance the app’s functionality, aligning it more closely with user preferences and delighting customers.
1. Product Selection Customization: Issue: When you physically visit a store to select vegetables or fruits, you typically have the freedom to choose specific options — perhaps a particular size or a mix of ripe and raw fruits for extended freshness. Implementing this feature in the app would replicate the in-store experience, fostering customer engagement and loyalty.
2. Upfront Product Availability Check: Issue: Product availability is currently verified only during the second step of checkout. Shifting this verification upfront could alleviate customer frustration and streamline the shopping process, ultimately saving time for the customer.
3. Returns and Replacements: Issue: While returns are facilitated promptly without any questions asked, the absence of a replacement option poses a challenge. A system allowing users to replace unsatisfactory items, especially those of immediate importance, would be beneficial.
4. Family/Group Login: Issue: Coordinating orders within a family or group can be challenging. A group login or the ability to add family members or roommates and link to one account would help in adding products needed by the group to the cart and placing a single order. This improves the collaboration aspects of people within the family/room. I have personally faced this issue, where my mom, my wife, and I have to coordinate to add products to the cart before we place the final order (most of the time due to offline collaboration, we have missed adding products and then either purchasing from outside or placing additional orders). The proposal is to have the ability to add family/roommate/group members, so they add the products to the cart at their convenience, it would help the person placing the order in one go and increase the adoption of the product and in turn increase revenues.
5. Payment Simplification:Issue: The payment process, especially when using specific cards like “Sodexo” involves a cumbersome journey between payment and wallet screens. For example, if the customer chooses the “Sodexo” option, the remaining balance for non-food items should be first added to the wallet and then the balance should be allowed to be paid via Sodexo. With the customer journey, the customer has to go back from the payment screen to the wallet (which is a 4-step process) and then go back to the payment page (another 4 steps) to complete the payment. A payment journey simplification process is the need of the hour.
6. Automated Coupon Application: Issue: Manual application of coupons can be cumbersome. Implementing an automated system to apply/suggest relevant coupons based on the cart value would streamline the checkout process, fostering trust, and customer retention.
7. Loyalty Program Enhancement: Issue: While existing subscription services are available, a more robust loyalty program rewarding frequent purchases with exclusive benefits could further incentivize customer loyalty.
8. Improved Mobile App Experience: Issue: The mobile app serves as a crucial touchpoint, and any usability issues could impact user experience. A more intuitive, responsive, and feature-rich mobile app could enhance navigation, search, and checkout processes. One of the usability issues that I have experienced is, that if you open the app and go to the cart directly, the app is designed to show some random pages instead of going to the cart directly. This could either be a bug or an intentional design. This results in reduced trust and increases customer frustration.
9. Enhanced Personalization: Issue: While personalized recommendations exist, a more sophisticated system considering individual preferences, dietary restrictions, and shopping patterns would provide a more tailored shopping experience.
10. Social Shopping and Reviews: Issue: Integrating social features for sharing experiences, product reviews, and community interaction could add a social dimension to the platform.
These suggestions are intended to enhance the ongoing improvement of the BigBasket app, fostering a more user-friendly and collaborative shopping experience. Addressing these areas presents an opportunity for BigBasket to strengthen customer satisfaction and build loyalty.
Based on your experience as a BigBasket user, do you resonate with the above findings and what features do you find missing?
