During the past few years, mobile phones have experienced a great transformation – from being a device for telephone conversations and texting to a powerful business tool. Today we use different apps to arrange meetings, add them to a calendar, share business documents, manage projects, access the company’s CRM, pay bills and many more. Statistics say that by 2014 mobile Internet usage will take over the desktop Internet usage. The whole market is getting mobile. If your business is not using mobile marketing tools, then you are already behind your competitors. Mobile applications, just like other marketing tools, are the fundamentals of mobile business communication and that is why business should learn how to use them in the most efficient way.
How popular are mobile applications really?
It is not a question of whether to develop a mobile application, but when exactly to do it. It follows the same logic of whether to have a website or not. 85% of business owners have a smartphone and 73% of them use apps on a daily basis. This means that using mobile applications can lead to successful grounds not only for B2C, but also for B2B communication.
Today, 64% of mobile phone time is spent on applications. As we can see from the diagram below, for the last 5 years the number of downloaded applications has increased three times.
What will mobile applications do for your business?
→ Facilitate better customer relationships
Apps are a great way to communicate directly with your clients, but every business should focus on what type of application will be useful for them – whether that is social networking, informative, broadcasting, entertaining or any other app.
→ Reach local customers and provide them with special offers, promotions and discounts
When people from your community know your brand, it is more likely to engage with you and find your mobile application in the Store. You can use that opportunity to send them push messages with your latest promotions and discounts.
→ Offer better customer support
With the use of a mobile app you will reach your customers instantly and more efficiently. You would also offer them the option of reaching you 24/7 by only sending a message from their mobile phone.
→ Collect feedback from your customers
Once your users download and try the app, they can rate it and also comment it in the Store. This feedback will allow you to see the weaknesses of your products or services and to try to find a way to fix them.
The benefit of using mobile applications is that it provides the opportunity for the business to be in a constant contact with their current and potential clients. It increases the visibility, reinforces the brand, increases the exposure across the different mobile devices and builds loyalty.
Repost from FlatRock Technology
Tags: APP for mall business, digital marketing
