It is no secret that m-commerce, or shopping through mobile phones, has vaulted in recent years. Today, mobile phones hold the promise of faster, better and enhanced shopping experiences for customers, owing to many reasons. The situations triggered by Covid-19 is one factor. If anything, the pandemic has accelerated many changes in the buyer's journey and redirected even conventional, non-digital buyers, to mobile and online stores.
What does this trend mean for your business? Simply this: it is time to invest in augmenting your brand building plans to tap the potential in m-commerce. The way to begin is to create your business app, if you don't have one already. If you are a business with an app in place, now is the time to enhance it further to make it more efficient. This holds for every business, irrespective of size, industry or geographic location.
Let us look into some compelling reasons why a mobile app is an absolute necessity for your business growth :
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Contributes to stronger brand building
This is a vast topic in itself. Many factors go into building a strong brand. Your business app can connect your business to your customers in unimaginable ways. Given the penetration of mobile phones in India, the phone and app are your business' frontline, a customer touchpoint that you cannot ignore. Below are some ways in which the app can contribute to brand building:
- Facilitate quicker customer service
Through the app, your business can be accessible to your customers 24x7. You can bolster your support service on the app with the help of fAQ lists, chatbots, and feedback sections among other features, making the app work like a help desk for customers. With an app, you can achieve near-real-time problem resolution and customer satisfaction.
- Builds brand visibility
Your business can communicate relentlessly to the customer through various media, yet the app is among the most efficient ways for you to be visible to your customers. Given the proximity of the mobile phone to the customer, being available on smartphones through an app makes your brand easily visible, accessible and top-of-the-mind for the customer base. On another note, having an app also improves your brand's image as being 'innovative' and modern.
- Works as a channel for communication
Apps can be used by businesses to send information about various products and services, including push notifications, information about loyalty programs as well as announcements from the company regarding events and offers, among others.
- Contributes to customer experience
Agreed, customer experience has many layers to it. The modern marketer will tap every possible touchpoint with the customer to create memorable engagements. The mobile app becomes a tool for improving the brand experience for the customer, for instance, through better responsiveness and innovative, interactive features enabled with the help of technology.
- Facilitate quicker customer service
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Helps in location-based targeting
Apps make it easier to target the mobile customer base with location-sensitive communication. This is a great boon to the marketer since being aware of the audience's location can make customization easier. For the brand, app-based transactions can also be a window to assess the demand for their products and services as well as buying behaviour in a particular region. -
Assists data analytics
The use of data analytics technology that deploys customer data for business gains is an established business strategy today. Mobile applications make it easy for organizations to collect and maintain records of valuable customer data. Instances of such data include the number of app downloads, the number of visitors on the app, the total time spent on each part of the app, views on a particular product, elements, sections, etc. Data scientists can work with such data to help formulate business strategies for long term growth.
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Complements other marketing platforms
Apps can complement the marketing efforts channeled through other platforms, such as the website or social media. Integrating social media on apps can augment customer satisfaction and drive revenues. -
Boosts sales and revenues with minimum efforts
Mobile applications help the business narrow down and target customers based on their interests and browsing habits. This can guide marketers to sharpen their communication efforts and identify sales leads with more precision. This contributes to making successful sales and ultimately, to the business revenue.
How to build an app for your business
If you are looking to build a mobile app for your business, there are multiple options to do so. One is to engage in-house teams and resources to create an app that meets your business goals. However, this involves finding resources such as an experienced talent pool and relevant IT infrastructure, for app development.
Bear in mind that while the mobile app offers many benefits for your business, an app experience gone wrong can, in itself, diminish your brand image.
Another option for both small, medium-sized and large enterprises is to hire an external team that is proficient and experienced in the app development space. At IT Junkies, we have expert consultants and developers who can work with your in-house teams and build tailor-made apps to suit your business needs. To know more, get in touch with us today. We would love to hear from you!
