If your company does not have a mobile presence yet, you may be missing out on potential customers. Or maybe you already have a mobile friendly website, but have you considered developing a dedicated mobile application to help you reach a wider audience full of future customers?
According to Nielsen data from March 2014, mobile users spend 89% of their time using apps as opposed to only 11% on mobile websites. So a mobile app might be a better investment versus a responsive site that is mobile-friendly.
A Flurry Mobile Analytics study in January 2015 confirms the increasing popularity of mobile apps in response to mobile devices becoming part of our everyday life. In fact, every app store category saw growth in 2014 compared to previous years.
And unlike the more traditional media outlets like television or computers, Americans have their smartphone in their pocket wherever they go. Creating an engaging app means that consumers have access to your business quite literally in the palm of their hands.
A mobile application for your company is like continuous advertising: every time someone sees your app’s icon on the screen, it reminds them of your brand.
If we’ve now got you considering a business mobile app after seeing those stats, next you will need to figure out how to entice potential customers to download and use your app regularly.
Make consumers want to open your app often. Your app should not consistently be trying to sell; it should have other useful and enticing features too. Share relevant tips or articles that users will find useful even when they don’t want to purchase your product or service. Be sure that all the features are relevant to your company. For example, if you are a hospital, post health tips; if you sell furniture, write interior design articles.
A sure-fire way to keep users coming back is by making the app fast and simple to use. If it takes too long to load, the user will exit and probably uninstall. Also consider intuitive navigation, easy to read fonts, and a clean design. Make sure the app is branded as much as possible: have the entire app use colors that match your logo, so it screams “Home Depot” for example.
With more of the American population turning to their mobile devices, your potential customer pool expands exponentially if your business can provide a useful mobile app.
