Does My Business Need An App?

What if I already have a mobile-friendly website? Is an app really necessary?

Anyone who owns a smartphone will tell you that a native phone app provides a smoother, more consistent experience than a web app as websites have the hassle of remembering website addresses and waiting for pages to load. The app doesn't need to load its interface from the web. Only the underlying data is downloaded, meaning the app can appear instantaneously, load data faster and provide a better user experience.

The mobile web app needs to sit within the browser chrome (URL and search boxes, browser buttons on the bottom, and in my case, a debug toolbar). The app, on the other hand, has a full-screen dedicated to itself.

We are spending much more time online than with any other media including TV. The majority of that time is spent on our mobile devices using apps. Therefore, apps are becoming the dominant form of our digital interaction.

App analytics research firm Flurry released data revealing that 80% of mobile users' time was spent on apps with only 20% spent on browsers.

This shows that consumers indeed want the simplicity and focus that an app provides rather than having the variety and diffusion inherent using a browser.

It's all about understanding the concept of marketing and what role it plays in your business. There are many business owners who will say 'not interested', 'this is not for me', 'no one will use it', 'I don't need one' etc. But just a few years ago, many of these businesses looked at having a website, social media, emails and other forms of marketing the same way.

Yes, there may be ignorant business owners out there, but the majority just don't know or understand why they would need one because they don't understand the potential that a mobile app can do for their business.
So doesn't it make sense not to be naive about something we don't fully understand and find out what the best option is for our business and income?

Back before 2000, we had no Google as we know it today, we had no Facebook, YouTube or Twitter. Having a website was a novelty, and multi-billion sites like Amazon and eBay were still in their infancy. No one could see or predict what the future would bring if they used the newly born internet.

Anyone seeing a website back then compared to today would cringe they looked bad and functionality was worse. But, even so, most savvy business owners knew that having a website was a good move.

The point is, like many businesses in 2000, they saw potential and started to use the web as a presence that benefited consumers. That finally shifted their behavior to become more digital. But today, consumers are shifting way before businesses are. This shows where businesses need to be heading to keep up with customers' demands.

Back to More Posts