Three Questions to Ask Before Developing a Mobile App For Your Business
Date: 11/10/2021

Every business – small, large, and every size in between – seems to have their own mobile app these days. Is it time for your business to develop your own app? The best way to decide it is to answer the following questions.

Can Your App Solve a Specific Problem of Your User Base?

This is, without a doubt, the very first question you need to ask yourself if you are thinking of developing a mobile app for your business. People do not download and use mobile apps just for the sake of it. They tend to do so only if the app provides value.

A mobile app, by its very nature, is an instrument to provide more value to the end user. It should make things simpler, easier, and faster.

If your user base has a problem or need that cannot be addressed with the help of desktop services, developing an app to address that particular need or issue could be a salient idea.

Can Your App Provide More Value Than Your Website?

Your mobile app should not be a condensed version of your website. There are two problems with developing such an app.

First, if you try to include all your website’s features into your app, it is likely to be very large in size, slow to load, and cumbersome to navigate.

Customers do not like such apps, as they tend to slow down their mobile devices. Moreover, people generally expect their mobile experience to be faster and better than their desktop experience.

Secondly, if your app is going to be a miniature version of your business website, why develop it in the first place?

You could optimize your website for mobile devices instead, which is far easier to do and does not require as much resources as developing an app. The whole point of developing an app is to address a specific issue or provide a particular service to your customers – beyond what you normally offer through your desktop services.

Are Your Customers Mobile Savvy?

This is a very important question to ask, particularly if you cater to a user base that mostly comprises elderly people. Older people, as you know, are not as technologically proficient as their younger counterparts. Though it does mean they are still trying to use their VHS tapes!

While they do use mobile devices like smartphones and iPads, they are less likely to download and use mobile apps and might struggle with certain sophisticated features that are aimed at a younger user base.

If you do decide to develop an app for an elderly user base, make sure it is easy to download, navigate, and use. If you think young people are impatient, the elderly are perhaps even more so.

It means a simplified user interface, large-sized icons and fonts, avoiding complex features, providing subtitles for audio and video content, and reducing the number of steps to be taken to complete a particular task.

Developing a Mobile App for Your Business

These three questions should give you an idea as to why a mobile app is needed for your business in the first place and how you should go about developing it. At the end of the day, the more useful and the more value it offers, the more people are likely to use your app.