Which Apps Do You Need to Succeed in eCommerce?
Can you imagine living without your smartphone? What would you miss the most? Calling your family and friends, posting crazy snapchat pics or being able to look up baseball scores?
We live in an age of smartphones and tons of apps. Apps now constitute 52% of time spent with digital media in the US. No wonder, because many of them truly make our lives easier. This is even more so the case for our businesses.
A short history…
Have you ever wondered where it all began? What was the first app you downloaded to your smartphone?
The madness of using apps started in the summer of 2008 when Apple introduced its iPhone App Store. The app precursor can be found in the mid-1980s, with who else other than Apple at the forefront. With the introduction of the Newton, the Personal Digital Assitant (PDA), which included a simple text editor, calculator, diary and contact database, the app craze began.
Next came widly engaging games. You surely remember playing a silly little game called Snake — available on the Nokia 6110 in 1997. The first apps, although not as well-designed as those today, were invented for increasing personal efficiency as well as having fun. The app ecosystem has changed significantly as people today install mostly social media, weather and music apps.
Mobile vs. desktop search
Today, the smarter our mobile phones are, more we use them. Recent reports show that we are more likely use our smartphones to make online searches even when we have easy access to a desktop. No wonder! It’s incredibly fast and convenient. Having our phones in our pocket allows us to search whenever and wherever something comes to our minds — travel connections, business contacts or Christmas presents. For the sites you browse it makes sense to have an app, if possible. Apps have shorter load times and save your personal settings. This saves plenty of time as you don’t have to log in each time you use it and the app remembers your search history.
You are probably aware of these advantages, but did you ever think about how they can help your own business? Consider these facts that will help your online store grow.
“Wi-Fi and mobile-connected devices will generate 68% of all internet traffic by 2017.”
By 2017, tablets will increase to 16.5% of connected devices and smartphones will increase to 70.5%.
Responsive design
No matter what solution you use to build your online store, adaptability for screens of different sizes is imperative. Mobiles and tablets (and smartwatches) are the future of personal computing, so just be sure to implement a mobile-first strategy, not desktop-first, when creating a new design.
Should you create your own online store app?
No, unless you are a big reseller like eBay or Amazon. Developing customized apps is rather expensive and the investment will likely not pay off. In fact, people are often overwhelmed by apps and they don’t want to install new ones. All the apps they need they already have. Instead, you should discover what apps can help you to make running your business easier and more effective.
Essential apps that grow your business
Okay, so now you have the most important things ready for easy shopping in your online store via cell phones. Assuming mobile devices are the main ones used in the future, shouldn’t you be able to do your business from your mobile device as well? No need to install time-consuming programs to keep your work under control. Create, sell, manage, promote, deliver, communicate, analyze your products and earn more money thanks to smart apps invented exclusively for eCommerce!
1. Manage your business on the go
Having your business under control anytime and anywhere you are is an absolute necessity. Installing a mobile administration app allows you to easily make changes, check orders and payments or help customers if they need. Getting notifications allows you to react faster and this can become your competitive advantage. If you use a platform like Shopify, Bigcommerce, Prestashop, Opencart, Woocommerce, Lightspeed, Xcart or Weebly and don’t use the mobile app, you are missing out. Don’t hesitate to use the mobile app to improve the management of your online store.
2. Stay social on Facebook / Twitter / Pinterest
Being active on socials keeps your business alive. It’s a great place to boost brand awareness, advertise news and best-selling products, check comments and communicate with your customers directly. Share interesting insights while you are on the go or post pics when creating new products. Keeping customers engaged is an essential activity for brand-building. You can also search for new inspiration on social networks and bookmark items you like.
3. See your results now in your analytics app
Putting all your effort into promoting your products and building your brand awareness is fruitless if you are not monitoring the results. If you’d expected to see the results on your (increased) sales you may get frustrated if this outcome doesn’t show up right away. Tracking specific metrics can help you discover which parts of your website or marketing activities are driving the most conversions. Understanding what channels are most engaging for your target group helps you to create accurate content and effective paid campaigns.
If you’re serious with your business you probably use many different tools for reaching out to your customers. Each of them collects valuable data for your business decisions within their own analytics. In truth, it’s not humanly possible to manage them all and get one clear picture. Where people are not capable, it’s technology that helps. Choose a superior analytics app for your online store according to your size and future intentions. Sometimes Google Analytics is enough. It’s free and full of data but does have some limitations as it is only one data source. What about having an app that collects all your data in one place? Select the source you want to check or compare sales from last year to predict the success of the next season. All these and much more just using your mobile.
4. Be visible on Medium
Publishing your stories at the most read blog platform pays off. It might not increase your sales by 20% right away but it can increase the interest in your personality and brand, which is more important in the long term. Start to read the blogs from your competitors and the people who inspire you to get closer to the trends and news that your audience is interested in. By the way, it’s easier to do this from the Medium app than their website. Moreover, seeing the app icon on your screen reminds you to read or write an article — which you might otherwise forget since you are so busy. Medium also has it own analytics which gives you an immediate overview of the amount of the views on each post.
CONCLUSION
Find the apps that make your work easier. If you do a quick search of what you are looking for, you will surely find dozens of apps. Actually, you can find an app for almost everything you want. It’s all up to you to look it up and take advantage of the great technology out there!
