Booking a sports field used to mean a phone call: ring the owner, ask what's free, agree a time and hope it holds. At NUTMEG, a sports field in Dhaka, every booking went through those calls. In 2021 we built an Android app where players pick a date, pick a time slot, say how many people are coming and pay in the app through SSLCommerz. The owner got an admin view of who booked and who paid, with analytics on reservations, plus his own promotions and push notifications to fill the field. The app passed 100+ downloads and became how the owner ran his day-to-day reservations.
At a glance
- Client: NUTMEG, a sports field in Dhaka
- What we built: a native Android app for booking and paying for field slots, with an owner admin view and promotions and push notifications (mobile app development)
- Replaced: booking by phone call
- Payments: in the app, through SSLCommerz
- Timeline: 2 months, in 2021
- Team: one developer, building the Android app in Java and the backend on Firebase
- Stack: Android (Java), Firebase, SSLCommerz
The challenge: a field booked by phone
- Every booking was a call. Players phoned to ask what was free, and the owner answered, one call at a time.
- The owner handled every booking himself, so the bookings depended on him picking up the phone.
A field only earns when it's booked. Every booking that waited on a phone call was harder than it needed to be.
What we built: book, pay and hear about offers, on Android
- Booking, for players: pick a date, pick a time slot, choose how many people, and confirm
- In-app payment, for players: pay for the slot through SSLCommerz, inside the app
- Promotions and push notifications, for the owner: the owner's own offers in the app, and push notifications to players
- Admin view, for the owner: who booked, who paid, and analytics on reservations
One app for both sides: players book and pay, and the owner sees everything that comes in.
For players: book a slot without calling anyone
- See what's available and pick a date and a time slot.
- Say how many people are coming.
- Pay in the app through SSLCommerz, and the slot is booked.
- Hear about offers through the owner's promotions and push notifications.
For the owner: every booking and payment in one view
- Who booked, and when. Every reservation in one list.
- Who paid. Payments made in the app show against each booking.
- Analytics on reservations, to see how the field is being used.
- Promotions and push notifications, to bring players back.
How we built it
One developer, two months, native Android
The whole app was built by one developer: native Android in Java, with Firebase as the backend, and SSLCommerz for payments. Keeping the stack small is what made two months possible.
The hard part: designing without a design phase
There was no separate UI design phase on this project. The screens were designed while they were built, so agreeing on how the app should look meant several rounds of back and forth with the client. Our lesson: even a small app needs agreed screens before the code, because changing a built screen costs far more than changing a drawing.
The results
| Before NUTMEG's app | With NUTMEG's app |
|---|---|
| Booking by phone call | Book a date, time slot and group size in the app |
| Bookings and payments kept by the owner | An admin view of who booked and who paid |
| No in-app channel to players | The owner's promotions and push notifications |
The app passed 100+ downloads and helped the owner manage his day-to-day reservations from one place.
What we'd do again
- Design the screens first. Agreed designs save the back and forth that slowed this build.
- Take payment at booking. Paying in the app means the slot is paid for when it's booked.
- Give the owner a view, not just players an app. The admin view is where the owner runs the business.
- Keep the stack small. One developer, Java and Firebase, two months.
Frequently asked questions
How does a sports field booking app work?
Players open the app, pick a date and a time slot, say how many people are coming and pay. In NUTMEG's app, payment went through SSLCommerz, and the owner saw every booking and payment in an admin view.
Can a booking app take payments in Bangladesh?
Yes. NUTMEG's Android app took payments in the app through SSLCommerz, a payment gateway used in Bangladesh, so a slot was paid for when it was booked.
How long does it take to build a booking app?
NUTMEG's app took two months with one developer, building native Android in Java with a Firebase backend. A design phase before development would have saved several rounds of changes.
What should an owner see in a booking app?
At least who booked, who paid and how the slots are being used. NUTMEG's owner had an admin view with all three, plus his own promotions and push notifications.
Still taking bookings by phone? Book a call, or see how we approach mobile app development.