Most people spend more time on their phone than on any other device. For a company, that means a mobile app can be a direct channel to customers, provided it solves something concrete. Below are the reasons an app brings new customers, and a few situations in which building one makes no sense.
Presence on the customer’s screen
An installed app sits on the phone’s screen, among the other things a person uses every day. The icon itself is a reminder: your company is one tap away, not one Google search away. The app is also listed in the App Store and Google Play, where people actively search for what they need, a discovery channel a website does not have.
A better experience than a website
A website has to work on any screen and in any browser. An app is built for one thing: the phone. The interface, gestures and features are designed for fingers, not for a mouse. It has access to the camera, location and notifications, and it can partly work without internet. The result is a faster and simpler experience, and a good experience is what makes a customer come back and recommend you.
Direct communication
With the user’s consent, the app can send notifications: an order has shipped, an appointment is tomorrow, an offer is valid until Friday. It is the most direct communication channel you can have, without depending on a social network’s algorithm or on e-mail open rates. Used with restraint, it keeps the company in the customer’s attention without being intrusive.
Messages that fit each customer
The app knows what the user has done in it: what they bought, what they searched for, how often they return. With that data, and in line with data protection rules, you can adapt what you show them: relevant recommendations, offers for what really interests them, not general campaigns. Relevant communication increases engagement and loyalty.
Simpler sales
In an app, buying or booking takes a few taps, with details saved and payment set up once. Every step removed from the process means fewer customers giving up along the way. For companies with repeat orders (deliveries, subscriptions, appointments), the difference shows directly in sales.
An advantage over the competition
If competitors in your field have no app, yours is a reason to be chosen. If they do, not having one becomes a reason to be passed over. In both cases, the app shows you care about how the customer works with you.
When you do not need an app
An app is not the answer for every company. If your customers interact with you once a year, they will not install it. If your website does not work well on a phone, fix that first. If there is no function the app would do better than a website (notifications, camera or location access, offline work, repeat orders), a mobile-optimised website is the better and cheaper choice. An app brings new customers when it solves something they do often.
Conclusion
Mobile apps bring new customers through presence on the screen, a better experience, direct communication, relevant messages and simpler sales. The condition is a real reason for someone to install it and open it again. If the reason exists, the app is one of the best channels you can have.
Mobile apps at Amazing Soft
We build iOS and Android apps for companies, from idea to store publication and beyond, with maintenance. We always start from the question above: what does the app do better than a website. Details on the Mobile apps page.