Why You Need a Business App
People spend more time on their smartphones than they do on their computers. Phones can be taken everywhere, and are used constantly when people are at work, waiting in line, on a bus, and even when having family dinner.
Mobile apps are designed to capture attention, provide value to users, and promote a business’s products and services. Most people would prefer to use a business app on their phone than have to visit a website on a browser. This is especially true if people are frequent customers of your business.
Should you consider making an app for your business? If you did, would your customers download and use the app, and would you see an uptick in sales?
If done right, there’s a very good chance that you would improve both the customer experience and your overall revenue. Keep reading below to learn about the benefits of customers using an app to engage with your business.
Stay On the Top of Your Customers Mind
Your customers have limited storage space on their phones. They can’t download every app in the world.
But when they download your business app, they are going to see it every day. They are going to see your logo and your business name right on their phone, as they scroll around. Every time they see it, they will like and trust your company a little bit more.
And seeing it on a regular basis may encourage them to open the app and patronize your business more frequently than if you didn’t have an app.
Say you own a restaurant. Each time that a conversation comes up when they need to decide where they will eat, they are going to consider your company. Since they have an app on their phone, there’s likely an easy way to order ahead of time, reserve a seat, or earn loyalty points.
So there’s a good chance they choose your restaurant over the many other restaurants in town.
Build a Loyalty Program
In the past, loyalty programs at a restaurant or other type of business involved small pieces of paper that were stamped or hole-punched with each store visit. But this process is outdated and ineffective.
No one wants to keep track of a piece of paper. They’ll never remember to bring it with them anyways. Rather, a loyalty program that always travels with them, such as an app on their phone, is much better.
You can encourage frequent customers to download your business app so that they can scan it each time they visit your company. With each. visit, or with each dollar spent, you can reward them with points that can be redeemed for free products or for discounts in the future.
Improve User Experience
People are always looking for convenience. No one wants to stand in line anymore, or call a business to place an order or schedule a reservation.
Customers would much rather order a pizza online, than have to call. They would rather make an order through an app, and pick it up once it’s ready than have to wait in line just to place an order, then wait around for the order to be completed.
By building a web or mobile app, you can allow your customers to save time and hassle when spending money at your company. Ordering can be as simple as tapping their fingers a few times, then visiting the store to pick it up.
This improves efficiency not just for your customers, but for you as well. Then your staff doesn’t have to spend as much time answering phones, and they can spend more time helping prepare orders, organizing, and improving team communication and dynamics as well.
Allow Customers to Buy Now
When users have your app on their phones, they can make a purchase at any point in time. No longer do they need to wait until they get home, log into their computer, and then make a purchase.
With a mobile app, your customer can order from your business while they are stuck in traffic, or on their lunch break at work. Whether it’s a shopping app like Amazon, eBay, or Poshmark, or a restaurant app like Chipotle, where they can schedule their order for later, a mobile app allows for instant gratification.
Add a Communication Channel With a Business App
When customers download a business app on their phone, they have the opportunity to allow notifications. If they do, you can send messages to your customers, communicating with them instantly.
They receive these notifications wherever they are, unlike email, which they may only check once a day. And if the notifications are valuable, such as a flash sale, a discount, a free product with an order, or the release of something new, then the user will welcome the notifications.
You can also make it easy for customers to contact your company by adding a tab in the app for communication. Make it easy for them to find your phone number, or to submit a question, as doing this on a website often takes too long.
Encourage Repeat Sales and Loyal Customers
Ultimately, the goal of investing in mobile and web app development is to encourage customers to make repeat purchases more frequently and to reward your most loyal customers.
Doing so is a win-win for your company. Each time you reward your customers with something valuable, you strengthen the bond you have with them. You encourage even more sales, and will likely keep them as a customer for life.
They will also tell their friends, as anyone who gets great service and free stuff is likely to do. You can even launch a referral program right through the app that rewards customers for encouraging friends to download the app as well.
Just have a button they can click which can send a link to the app to a friend’s phone number or email address, making the process automatic.
Increased ROI With an App
As you can see, having a business app is a great idea. If you can get your customers to download and use the app, it will provide a massive return on investment.
And it might not even be as expensive as you think, as app development companies will often use a templated app fit for your industry, and plug in your branding, products, and details. The result is a fast, beautiful, and time-tested app design.
Want to learn more about growing your business? Head over to this blog now to keep reading.
