How Mobile Apps Are Changing Small Business?

How Mobile Apps Are Changing Small Business?

Gone are the days when setting up a small business was easy. One could easily set up a shop, give an advert in the leading newspapers, give the best product or service and you become successful.  But internet changed all that. Then a business website and good service or product were all that was required. They had to go full circle and behave like a true multinational with the website, internet marketing, SEO and social media. All was good until 2008 when Apple and Google launched their own app stores. Creating mobile apps for every small business is the need of the hour if they need to become successful.

Somewhere after mid-2014, people started using mobiles to access internet and utility functions. As adoption has increased the following changes are happening to the ways small businesses are functioning. There has been a paradigm shift in how small businesses are evolving. Following are the few important benefits of mobile apps for small business.

The “WOW” Factor –

A mobile app puts any small business in the big league. This helps you to reach a wider base of customers who are taken by surprise.

No Mobile APP? Are you really a legit business? –

Prior to mobile apps, having a website was a “solid” factor in terms of the trust. As websites have become commonplace; having a mobile app has become a benchmark of value.

Marketing and Branding –

A mobile app is downloaded by your customer of their own free will. Hence receiving marketing material through messages or emails will not surprise them. In fact, if your app provides them any value they are happy to promote on their own.

Customer Experience –

A mobile app will significantly simplify a part of your website function for people who use mobile phones. Through a mobile app, any small business can drive the desired outcome by giving the right kind of experience to customers. Making life easy for your customer is a good thing.

Customer Feedback and Loyalty –

A mobile app for any small business is a boon for their customers as well. Mobile apps give them a window to interact and contact companies. They can register complaints, praises, and suggestions and quite possible they can ask questions as well. There are so many opportunities for dialogue, to refine the services or products and address issues before they become problems. This takes off the pressure from the customer support team and mechanism.

A mobile app gives a small business the power to track customer loyalty in the form of app downloads, user engagement, the products and services that the small business’s customers show and also help to determine how to make the products or services more customer oriented.

Sales Generator –

Small businesses can very much use mobile apps to sell their products or services by offering discounts or “limited time” promotional coupons on various occasions or all year round. Such promotional activities on mobile apps encourage sales and provide publicity to your business.

Other Benefits for Small Businesses –

1. Mobile app reinforces your brand
2. Mobile app enhances your brand
3. Mobile app will augment online sales
4. Mobile app in various app stores like Windows App Store, Google Play And iOS App Store increases exposure across mobile devices.
5. Mobile app will connect you to your “on the go” customers as well.
6. Mobile app will help you build a database of prospects and clients.

Over to you…

Tell us what benefits have mobile apps given to your small business? As technology evolves, mobile apps for small business owners will open up more success avenues in the future.