Does Your Business Need An App?
Dec. 5, 2020
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Think about 3 things to determine whether or not you need an app:
Added Value
Competition
Marketing
Added Value
Mobile app development can be risky. About 80% of app downloads never get used again after 3 months. You won’t get the privilege of being in your customer’s pocket unless you provide value to them. There are over 2.2 million apps on Apple’s app store alone, and climbing! TechCrunch estimates that U.S. mobile users spend up to 5 hours a day on apps. So, here are some ways you can determine how to provide value.
More than a Website
Your app has to provide more value than a mobile website visit. Visit your website on your mobile phone right now. How many clicks did it take to get there? If it was more than 3, then an app can help you minimize those steps and increase speed. Now, was there clutter around the web browser? A mobile app can help reduce the clutter of a web browser.
But those are just user-friendly, aesthetic changes. What value can your provide your customer by being in their pocket? Here are some examples, but the added value you provide will be unique to your industry.
Loyalty Rewards Program
If you have a loyalty rewards program in your business, then you can provide added value by saving a customer profile’s information. You can also send notifications directly to customers’ phones whenever you have special events, offers, or promotions. Lastly, a loyalty rewards program will motivate customers to reach milestones in their customer journey: earning points, receiving perks, feeling rewarded, and developing a relationship with your company.
Solve a Customer’s Problem
Can your mobile app solve a customer’s problem? For example, let’s say a small bank is thinking about creating a mobile app. One problem that this app could solve is check deposits. When customers want to deposit a check, but the banks are closed, they can do so over the app from the comfort of their own home. This solves the customer’s problem of going through the hassle of driving all the way to the bank, and doing so before the bank closes.
Another example may be for work negotiations. Let’s say that your business provides employees an online platform where they can switch shifts, but they can only access it from a computer. The business can make a mobile app so that employees can ask and take shifts even when they don’t have access to a computer. This mobile app solves the problem of not being able to ask or take shifts when not near a computer.
Use Geolocation, Camera, etc.
Your added value could use the mobile phone’s features, such as geolocation and camera. A business with multiple locations might want to use geolocation on their app to provide customers with ease of locating the store nearest to them. They would add value by helping their customers easily search for their stores using geolocation.
Another business that focuses on helping their customers get in shape might use the phone camera to record their body transformation over time. They could use the camera to take a picture of their body each day, and the app would compile the photos to help the customer physically see their transformation. This is something that a website could not do easily for one prime reason: laptops are not handy.
2. Competition
If your competitors have mobile apps, they are ahead of you. It’s as simple as that. Even the local restaurants are making their own apps. Every single bank in existence seems to have an app. Most successful restaurants have apps. Almost every retail store has an app. If your competitors have an app, they are providing value to the customers you’re fighting over, value that you are not providing. So if your competitors have mobile apps, it’s worth looking into the cost-benefit analysis of getting an app.
3. Marketing
Brand awareness is huge in the mobile app environment. Think about your social media apps. You probably didn’t get your social media app downloaded until you knew that other people had their app. Likewise, we’ve all downloaded apps to get some type of coupon, promotion, or special offer.
You can use mobile apps as a marketing strategy to expand your market. It can create brand awareness as people see their friends use this app. Additionally, mobile apps have sharing features where they can refer a friend or share the app with someone in the phone’s contact list. This makes is easy for customers to share your business with their friends.
Final Thoughts
Your budget is a special topic for 2 reasons: (1) if you don’t have the budget for an app, then it may not be the best investment, and (2) if you feel like you can provide added value, compete better with your competitors, and improve your marketing efforts through a mobile app then it may be worth the investment. Use these principles to spark conversation in your business to determine if you really need a mobile app or not.
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