Why mobile apps are better than Mobile Websites

Flurry concluded its insights into mobile usage analytics and the results did not surprise anyone. The average US user spends 2 hours and 42 minutes every day on their mobile devices.

Out of this, 86% of their usage is for apps and the rest 14% is spent on web-browsing and playing games. These staggering statistics show that more and more users are preferring mobile apps of their favorite sites and eCommerce stores over their mobile sites. Not only this, Flurry also reports that the engagement of brands with app is migrating proportionally. As high as 68% of mobile users are engaging with their favorite brands via mobile apps.

Given these numbers, it is safe to say that now is the time when all businesses, whether small, medium or enterprise, should focus on implementing enterprise apps both for internal employees and external customers alike. While larger businesses can afford both mobile websites and mobile apps, smaller businesses must make a tough call for choosing anyone because of budget constraints.

Difference between mobile apps and mobile websites

Mobile websites are essentially the normal websites you design for your business to be accessed over laptop and PCs. They are made responsive for optimum display on mobile sets and the cost is usually included in the initial design costs. The mobile apps are separate entities. They are application software running on smartphone independently without accessing the browsers. Given the fact that the number of mobile users are higher than the number of desktop users, businesses need to invest in mobile app development to attract and better engage with the customers.

Here is how mobile app development will help with better sales, customer retention and building a brand value:

• Mobile apps increase customer interaction and engagement Since mobile apps work on their own interface environment, the users become more immersed in the experience. Customers use apps for specific and relevant tasks as they are purpose focused. They make the buying experience shorter as compared to the same on the website. With better interface, users get a personalized shopping experience, because the apps read the usage pattern of the user. This way, apps are present in the daily habit of the user unlike the mobile websites.

• Mobile apps have the Ability to perform offline While most of the apps require internet connection to perform certain tasks, however, this is not always a pre-requisite unlike a mobile website. You can simply tap the icon on your phone to launch the app. Granted, you would be needing internet connection for payments and downloads, but once you have a book downloaded or any other kind of information saved, it becomes easy to access it when there is no network connectivity as well.

• Mobile apps offer Better SEO for in-app content Most people think that the app content is overlooked in Google searches, however, this is not the case. App indexing allows the search engine bots to index the content of mobile apps. Deep linking is particularly useful here. The more your app is deep linked, the better are the chances for your app to rank higher in search engine results. This means that apps are ranked just like the mobile websites which gives your brand higher visibility and more customers.

• Mobile apps provide for better Personalization Mobile apps can read a user's location, usage behavior and interests. Based on this data, you can help give your customers a more personalized shopping experience. If you offer your users a mobile app, they can set their location and other preferences from the start. Observing and tracking the usage interests, the app can offer custom recommendations, updates, coupons and deals. The result? You can you can pamper your customers with content relevant to their needs and improve the conversation rates for your business! Win-win for everybody!

• Mobile apps give you the ease of sending notifications One of the features that make mobile apps sought after is the ability to send instant and non-intrusive notifications to users. They are quite helpful, attract attention and are not frustrating like the click-bait email promotions. Not only can you set up your app for in-app and push notifications, you can also take the assistance of third party services which provide push notifications to mobile websites as well.

• Mobile apps pave way for better brand presence As mentioned in the statistics in the beginning of the article, users spend a substantial chunk of their day on their mobiles. They also interact with the apps installed in their phones several times in the day. This is an exciting opportunity for brands to increase their visibility without annoying the customer. More often than not, we tend to associate certain brands with apps in our phones. For example, when I think of Goodreads, I instantly come to think of the Penguin Publishing House. Likewise, I think of good mobile manufacturers when I think of Amazon. This is similar for all app users today. Kind of like a mini-advertisement of a brand! Hence, if you're looking to create a brand value for your business, mobile app advertising is bound to give you positive results.

• Mobile apps work faster than mobile websites Mobile apps store data locally on a mobile device, while the mobile websites access web servers. Data retrieval, thus, happens faster in a mobile app. Technically speaking, the mobile websites use JavaScript for running while the mobile app development framework used by mobile apps runs almost 5 times faster than a JavaScript snippet.In short, while the developmental framework ensures a fast and seamless experience for your customers, users delight in using your app again and again and again!To sum up, the numerous benefits of mobile apps outweigh those of the mobile websites. You can take the benefits of mobile apps today, leveraging customer experience to build your brand value.

At BluEnt, we offer low cost tools for developing tailored mobile apps for business owners, helping your business stay ahead of competitors.

Maximum Value. Achieved.