Do Mobile apps work?

My Mobile App doesn’t work?

A potential client said to me during the week as he debated whether to get a mobile app ‘I heard they don’t work. I asked him what he heard about why they don’t work, and he replied that he heard people don’t download them. Working in the mobile app business, I like to think I know a thing or two about app performance. To me, saying apps don’t work is like saying bars, restaurants, shops, social media, marketing, tennis rackets, and TVs don’t work. It’s like blaming the TV maker for what’s on TV or the builder for the fact that nobody likes the food in your restaurant. The fact is in business and life that some things work and others don’t, and it largely depends on how they are done. In simple terms, things done well work, and things not done well don’t.

Let’s look at key mobile app facts to put things in context.

• Fastest growing industry of all time: Mobile apps are the fastest growing industry of all time, ahead of oil, gold, and the internet itself. To put it in some context, in 2014, developers in the just the Apple App Store were paid out more than all the Hollywood studios’ box office taking worldwide. And consider that most apps are free,e it gives you the context of the size of the market here.
• Bigger than the internet: In 2014, the use of apps overtook the use of websites in how consumers consume information. This is a huge eye-opener for businesses as they need to fit in with this shift in behavior.
• Twice as likely to use your business: Research around the world is showing that if a customer has your app on their mobile phone, they are twice as likely to do business with you over a rival.

A mobile app is potentially the most effective marketing tool. Why?

• No other medium gives you a place on people’s phones and brings your business within a touch of a button.
• Apps can be very functional tools for consumers to interact with your business at the touch of a button.
• With apps, you have free communication with people’s phones at any time to make a call to action.

So what determines a successful mobile app?

• Reason to download: Before you design an app, make sure there are reasons why your customers would want to download it. This can vary depending on your business or entity. If you’re a golf club, maybe have a notice board, event calendar, or tee time booking. If you’re a retailer, have a loyalty program or a voucher section. One of our clients is a one-outlet lunch venue and has nearly 1100 users on its app, and 600 people use the loyalty card every week. They are obviously delivering a feature that their customer really value.
• New content: Clients need to manage their apps. New content is key, whether this is new vouchers to drive business, new events, new products in your catalogue, or an educational blog stream.
• Reputation: See your app as something you have to build its reputation for. If people find it useful for whatever purpose, it will get downloaded.
• Promote it: This is key. Staff, social media, in-store posters, and much more allow you to always promote your app. Read more on promoting your mobile app.

For further information on mobile apps and proven solutions for different sectors. Click here.