Does Your Business Need a Mobile App?

Most of our clients ask us whether they need a mobile app for their business or not. If I ask them why they have asked this question, then I receive series of similar responses such as “I think my business does not need a mobile app”, “My Target audiences are different”, “My Budget is low”, “Mine is a small business” and so on. I have been responding to my clients and convincing them why they need a mobile app for their business. Those who were convinced and developed a mobile app for their business are reaping benifits now. So, I thought let me write a post for our other clients, so that it might help them as well.

As discussed earlier, Some of our clients have developed the mobile app for their business, most of them are small business owners, they used to manage their tasks in excel sheet and now everything is online. They keep track of what they are doing and a clear-cut analysis of the business data they have. There have been many small businesses, such as coffee shops, beauty parlors, pizza shops which developed mobile apps to promote their business, eventually they are becoming the leading names in the respective industries. I think mobile apps do benefit small businesses in a big way. Let us see how small businesses are benefiting from mobile apps?

From the website of ContractIQ, I have found some interesting statistics. In a recent survey conducted by them shows that

1. 62% businesses had already apps in place for them, of that 20% used their apps for branding, 30% have revenue generating apps and 50% for support and engagement.

2. On an average a person spend 174 minutes on mobile devices every day.

3. Mobile sales are estimated to reach $74 billion, which is a 32% of growth on last year sales. From the below images it is clear that 90% of the time spent in mobiles are on apps and 89% of time spent on media is through mobile apps.

4. 45% of all shopping journeys contain mobile apps. 

An example where one of our client benefitted immensely from a mobile app. A local fast-food shop has asked us to develop a mobile app on android to sell snacks online. The possibilities are really endless, all you need to have is a selling concept for your product or services and engaging customers through this.

I believe “Think People Not Devices”- it has always been about people. You need to understand your target audience. To reach the right people in the right place at right time, we need to understand who they are, and where they engage more.

Based on recent shopping experiences, omni-channel shoppers prefer apps on smartphones over m-sites. Compared to m-sites, apps

1. Provide a safe checkout (+42%pp in app compared to m-site)

2. Have a smoother checkout process (+8%pp)

3. Hold payment information (+12%pp)

4. Are easier to navigate when browsing compared to m-sites (+8%pp)

5. Feature product details that are easier to read (+11pp)

The above statistics clearly shows that customers are more engaged on apps than on m-sites. Based on my experience and research I have jotted down some points that could help you to understand why your business needs a mobile app?

1. From the statistics mentioned above, it is clear that 90% of the customers are engaged in apps. This shows that you can engage your right customers at this place. You will be visible to customers all time.

2. The App helps you to act as a direct channel for your marketing- You can provide general info, user accounts, news feeds and more over sales & promotional offers. You can do push notifications to get your customer right on track.

3. Build brand and recognition through your mobile app awareness programs. Understand your target audience and develop your app accordingly so that your customer will be inclined with the app features and most of the time the customer will get engaged to your app.

4. Competitive edge- Stand out from your competitors by developing an app for your business. You can take a big leap ahead of your competition. Your customers would be happy to stay engaged with your app and they will be loyal with the step you have taken for the customer satisfaction.

5. Go Digital and Cashless: Through your mobile app, you can ask your customers to purchase products and services at the same time they can pay you through the mobile wallet feature instead of making a payment through CASH.

So, what is the next step?

The projections around app driven revenue are staggering. Non-game app downloads are estimated to grow 23 percent in the next five years, exceeding $182 billion in 2020. Smartphone adoption in emerging markets should see mobile app store downloads more than double between 2015 and 2020.

After having such a discussion in the post with statistics, I believe that you have gotten a taste of the numerous benefits of your business mobile app. All you have to do is reach us on our website or send an email to sales@summationit.com and we will help you to develop a right mobile app for your business. 

Statistics/Image Source: Facebook.com, Smartinsights.com, smallbiztrends.com, statista.com, contractiq.com.