Does My Company Need a Mobile Application? Review On The Benefits of Mobile Applications

Nowadays, we’re seeing more startups and mom-and-pop boutiques launch mobile applications. At SOLTECH, our clients are constantly asking us if they need a mobile application in addition to their desktop website. We understand why – with the popularity of mobile apps rising, it’s getting everyone’s attention. To answer the question, yes, it is encouraged to have a mobile application.

Does My Company Need a Mobile App?

When someone says the words “mobile app”, many instantly think of games like Candy Crush, social media networks like Facebook, or e-commerce sites like Amazon. Mobile applications aren’t only for internationally recognized, big brands.

Statistics show that the average person is on their mobile device for roughly two hours a day. That’s roughly 30 consecutive days. Of course, numbers fluctuate according to the age group, with 18-24-year-olds checking their phone over 50 times a day. Why wouldn’t your company want to be one of those 50 checks?

Why Do People Shop the Most On Their Phones?

With much of our shopping and Internet browsing done on a mobile application, it’s important to be able to compete with those who already have a mobile application on the market.

Just think, folks are on their phones during their commute to and from work, at lunch, while shopping, while eating – we are constantly glued to our mobile devices. These are prime opportunities that you are missing out on.

Most customers would rather purchase something through the convenience of an app than to have to log on to a computer.

Don’t sell a product, but sell a service? This is just as vital.

Being able to schedule a hair appointment, a consultation, or even check a yoga schedule is more convenient from a mobile device. Here is a list to help you understand why having a mobile application will give you the best sales yet:

What Are the Perks of Having a Mobile Application?

Push notifications: In a day when inboxes are flooded with newsletters, a push notification can be a quicker, more efficient way to get your customer’s attention. Having a sale on a service or a company announcement? Customers using your application will be sure to see it this way.

Reservations: Whether the reservation is for a restaurant, salon, gym, or flower delivery service, everyone wants convenience. People are busier than every and the convenience to do these things on-the-go is crucial.

Loyalty Rewards: Everyone prefers to save money. Being able to reward frequent customers through the application without having to print a coupon or hold on to a physical rewards card to show each time? This requires minimal effort but can boost sales – a major win.

Customer Experience: Have you tried to hop on a website on your phone and it doesn’t load the way it does on your desktop? That’s because the website isn’t mobile responsive.

What could be even better, is if you could hop on to the site’s mobile application for a seamless experience. Statistics show that most customers will leave items in their shopping cart or will be turned off from continuing use if the website is hard to navigate. Mobile applications can solve this problem.

Data Collection: Each time a user signs up on the application, you will be obtaining information such as their contact information (name, email address, and whatever other fields you require are input in order to receive a login) and most specifically, location. This will increase the benefits of geo-targeted marketing and selling.

Will a Mobile Application Drive My Sales?

In addition, in November of 2016, Google announced that they will begin mobile-first indexing, using mobile content for all search rankings. Thus, the more mobile content you develop, the higher your search rankings will be.

With Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) being the leading trends in marketing right now, this backs up and confirms the importance of a company also having a mobile application.

A national example is Dominos Pizza. From an article from Eater, more than half of U.S. sales at Dominos — which offers mobile ordering and payment through some 15 platforms, including text, smartwatch, and a “zero clicks required” mobile app — are driven through digital engagement.

Of course, you don’t need to dive into 15 different methods of ordering your product or service, but as you can see, the option to not be on a desktop computer is clearly boosting Dominos’ sales.

There are endless reasons why a mobile application will be beneficial to your company and to your sales. Once again, don’t overlook a prime opportunity because the first mobile applications were games or big brand retailers. Mobile applications can help any sized company, it is just deciding when to invest the money in creating one.

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