Are You App Ready?

In 2015, mobile device users installed a 156 billion mobile applications across the world. Whatsapp has crossed 70 million active users in India. It comes as no surprise that today, just like companies have social handles, it is almost mandatory to have an app. Statistics say that users spend 75% of their time on just 4 apps on their phone. So before you try and tame this particular creature, it is important to know if your company is actually app ready.

• What is the objective of the app – The first exercise you need to do is to create a use case. Basically a story line of exactly how your app would be used in the ideal situation. This should be a free flowing story with real characters which are your target audience. Keeping your use case as a basis, you will understand the core objective that your audience will use the app for. For example, a second hand mobile exchange company, realized that the core was price estimation and not m-commerce. This will also be a starting point for creating your feature list. It is crucial that when you create your first list of features, it is as innovative and exhaustive as possible. Post that, use your core objective to figure out what you want to do and in each phase. If you follow an agile methodology for development, you will divide up your feature list into different sprints and phases and tackle them one at a time.
• What will be the role of your website – Having a responsive website today is a no-brainer and you might have even gone down the m-site route. The app vs. site decision will be driven by your objective. The benefit of mobile apps is a high degree of personalization, like Evernote provides. Along with this, some things you need to consider are -  whether you need location based elements like google maps, is there delivery of real time information and do you need access to native features like sensors or notifications like Nike+. Another differentiator is the availability of offline content through the app. A marketing approach to this is the brand loyalty, where there is a higher propensity to transact or consume content from the app you have installed. This is the driving force for e-commerce companies like Flipkart starting their sales as app-only. Typically your app and mobile will serve different purposes and will exist in union.
• Are you ready to have a separate content strategy - Google recently announced that  suggestions for new apps to install will now appear in mobile organic search results for relevant search queries. What this means is that the content sitting on your app can now actively contribute to you Search engine optimization. An app requires a different approach to content - engaging, easy to consume, easy to find and regularly updated. Consider the Starbucks loyalty app where the messages are customized according to the members, which leads to high engagement. Another great example of content marketing is Wooplr which uses user generated content to bring out trends. You app cannot be a cut-copy-paste version of your website. Look at a separate content management system module so that you can customize content, offers and notifications.
• Are you ready to change your turn around time and engagement model – For organizations, building a mobile app could be the first step in the customer experience transformation. Consider how the Ola app is moving away from the call center model to an email query resolution model as it faces the challenge of increasing volumes. Whether you use apps for content dispersion, lead generation or commerce, you have to be available for the customers whenever they want to reach out to you. This could mean new TATs, business processes and training to enable all of this

When you set out to build an app, don’t simply look at it as another channel. Think of this as an opportunity to reimagine your customer journey and transform the way you engage with your users. Spend a lot of time on the UI/UX of the app and make sure that all the decisions you take are made keeping the customer at the center! Happy development to you.