Mobile phones have become an industry standard for a pleasant online shopping experience. Gone are the old days when customers preferred using websites over mobile apps. Just think about it. Would you rather spend 5 minutes for your computer or laptop to boot properly or use an app on your mobile phone that can reduce this process to mere seconds? Presently, mobile apps are the pantheon of customer experience due to their ease of use.
However, what about retail businesses? How do they benefit from having a retail app? Mobile apps are very intuitive, convenient, and easy to use for customers. Therefore, it is intensive for customers to visit the site more often and participate in repeat purchases. On the other hand, mobile websites are not interruption-proof, which means a longer loading time, reducing conversion rates.
Creating an app is of utmost importance for whatever e-commerce business you are trying to run because it offers a richer customer experience by offering retail app features like mobile payments and a customizable shopping experience. Apps also provide retailers relevant customer data to improve the shopping experience and improve the quality of their products and services.
You may also keep up with digital advancements in the real estate market and stay ahead of your competitors with the help of a mobile app. You can, for example:
How does your app solve an existing problem? Our first tip is to look for problems in the online shopping arena. Online shopping problems are drastically affecting the consumer experience. For example, lack of useful retail app features. Finding a solution to an existing problem is a great way of looking for ideas for an app.
Definite functionality- A good app is an app that does its job properly. Therefore, in the infancy stage of app development, you should define the functionality of your app. Build an app that is built around your app’s core function. This reduces unnecessary app feature cluttering and improves customer experience.
Keep it simple- Just like the point mentioned above, this point reiterates the simplicity of design. There's no problem with being creative with your app design. However, you must reign in your creativity if it results in an interface that is hard to navigate. It is unlikely for a user to interact with an app that they find overwhelming and confusing.
Hire qualified researchers and developers- Long-lasting success of an app is directly related to how much research you have done on the industry, the target audience, existing problems, and similar apps. Researchers and app developers play an important role in designing an app with retail app features unique to your brand and for designing an app that engages with customers.
While hiring a third-party developer will be less time and cost-intensive. However, you must make sure to work with a developer that is open to collaborating and keeps you involved throughout the development process.
Customer-oriented app- The success of an app is measured by the number of people who download the app and use it to avail their services and products. Customers are always on the lookout for an easy-to-navigate app, where they can find what they are looking for easily, which doesn't make them work hard. Therefore, you must invest in developing an app that is user-friendly and customer-oriented.
Customers also like a free app. Although making your app free doesn’t ensure success, it does incentivize more people to try it out. Offering a free app is a great way to attract customers. And you can still earn extra revenue by advertising or unlocking extensive retail app features or by making an ad-free version of the app.
Design a trial version of the app- Before investing in the app's final version, design a prototype or trial version of the app. A prototype helps ascertain how the app will look once finished and the placement of key retail app features. A prototype model of an app can also be useful if you plan to look for investors and sponsors for the end product.
Make adjustments when needed- An app isn't finally ready until you launch it. Therefore, make adjustments when and if needed. Also, once you have launched your app, you must continue to make updates and changes for the entirety of the app's lifetime. If the app doesn't update with time, users will start losing interest and stop using it.
Choose a unique name- “What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet." While the sentiment is very sweet, it will not land you anywhere in the highly competitive digital landscape. Therefore, you must pick a name that can attract users enough to download the app. And a name that isn't similar to another popular app's name.
Develop for both mobile platforms- Although it can be very expensive to build a lucrative app, and you must design an application that can be enjoyed by iOS and Android users. Plus, cross-platform app development is much more economical than developing apps for iOS and Android separately.
Marketing- Without an effective marketing strategy in place, you are dumping your app into the gutter. The success of an even well-built app is attached to people using it. Therefore, you must have a carefully planned marketing strategy in place to inform, be aware of, and build anticipation amongst your target audience.
While app development is no piece of cake, it is also not rocket science. Therefore, if you are planning to design an app for your retail business, you should follow the above tips to understand that the success of an app is arbitrary and unpredictable. However, that doesn't mean that you shouldn't give it your best effort.
Your app should have a unique and memorable name, and it should offer retail app features that are user-friendly and solve an online shopping experience problem or void faced by many people.
