Mobile App for Businesses: Is It Worth It?

Mobile App for Businesses: Is It Worth It?

A mobile app for businesses can increase reliability, convenience, and user engagement. Is it worth it to develop one for yours? Find out here.

Keyword(s): mobile app for businesses

Did you know that 91% of smartphone users use apps on their phones? And that the average person checks their phone every 5-10 minutes? With statistics like these, you might be wondering if you should jump into the app arena.

If the idea of a mobile app for business has crossed your mind, then you're in the right place. Keep reading to learn all the questions you should ask before investing thousands of dollars in building an app for your business.

Why Do You Want a Business Mobile App?

Before you begin planning your new mobile app, you need to ask yourself what your end goal is. Do you want to boost sales or improve customer experience? These two different goals will result in two different apps, so take some time to think about your reasons before you jump in.

There are a few reasons why you want to build an app for your business:

1. Help build customer engagement
2. Improve your customer experience
3. Sell more products

As you can see you might have several reasons why you want to build an app. Knowing this ahead of time will point you in the right direction once you sit down with your developers. This will help steer not only your decision if you should create an app, but also show you what to focus on when you develop your plan.

What Is Your Competition Doing?

Granted, you don't want to spend a hundred thousand dollars just because your competition made an app. However, if everyone in your industry has an app, then you don't want to fall behind by not having one.

So, take the time to do a detailed competitor analysis to see what the market is already doing in this area. You can do this by quickly heading to the app store on your phone. How many of your competitors already have an app?

Then check out the number of downloads for their app; is it small? Maybe an app isn't the best use of your time and resources. Lastly, read the reviews on the app store.

This can be a gold mine of information for what your customers might want from an app.

Are they asking certain questions? Did they have certain concerns or confusion? Address these in your app and watch your conversions soar.

Will Mobile App for Businesses Turn a Profit?

Unfortunately, the answer is that it depends on your market for your goals for your app. Are you in the e-commerce industry? Then likely, yes you can quickly turn a profit by taking your store mobile with an app.

Are you a chiropractor who needs to schedule appointments with your clients? Then you might not turn a profit directly from your app, however, a quality app could improve your revenue dramatically.

Consider how your app can help you push notifications to your customers who haven't scheduled in a while. By automating this important task, you'll never face an empty datebook again.

Can you incorporate a built-in scheduler into your app? Can you build in a payment gateway so your customers can pay off their accounts over their phones? Can you pre-sell gift cards so your customers can pre-pay for their appointments?

There are countless ways your app can help improve your bottom line, so consider them all carefully as you develop your plan to build your mobile app.

What Other Benefits Can Make Building an App Worth It?

Of course, any business investment you make needs to help improve your bottom line. However, there are other intangible benefits that your business can realize from a mobile app. Consider these other benefits as you weigh the costs and benefits of creating your own app:

• Create or improve a customer loyalty program
• Build your brand awareness
• Create images your customers can share on social media
• Answer simple questions with an AI customer service bot

While none of these benefits will directly affect your revenue, they will all improve customer loyalty by giving them a stellar user experience. Consider this as you decide whether or not it would be worthwhile to build an app for your business.

Should You Use a Mobile App Developer?

Again, the short answer here is that it depends. Are you a computer genius with coding experience? Do you have extra time on your hands, or are you in between client projects right now?

If not, then yes, you should hire an expert to help you develop the best app for your business possible. Remember, your original goals in question one, are you building an app to improve customer experience? Then a clunky and slow app built by an amateur won't provide the best experience for your customers.

Business mobile app development isn't easy. So, unless you're already a computer programmer, learning how to do this isn't something you can do over the weekend. Instead, outsource this to a professional and get back to working on your business.

Time to Make Your Decision

Now, you've seen the questions you need to ask before jumping into the app game. Should you invest in making a mobile app for your business?

The mobile app for businesses market is growing every day, and if you can honestly look at your answers for each of the questions above to see that it's worth it for your business, then the time to act is now.

We help business owners like you every day to build the right solutions for their business and their customers. If you're ready to see how an app can boost your business, then reach out to us today.