We all want to stay in constant communication with our customers and subscriber base. Our lives are too busy to only check in during that brief moment of the day where we are seated in front of a computer sipping our cup of joe. Staying connected and current is essential to almost all business models. We seek to address these challenges by creating custom mobile apps.
However, just because you create an app doesn’t mean your target audience will engage with it. Even your most loyal subscribers need a reason to check in. We all have those apps that we’ve downloaded with the best intentions but somehow they rarely get tapped.
Here are a few design “must haves” to consider when developing mobile apps that will keep users coming back.
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Feedback Method: Once you’ve put hours into developing an app that is functional and visually awesome, you want to make sure you have a way to continue to improve it. You do this by building in a way for end-users to provide feedback on their experience with the app. This is a great way to identify bugs as well.
Visual Customization Options: We live in a world of perpetual connectivity and personalization. Creating different visual options for your apps allows your users to feel connected in a personal way. Besides, who doesn’t want an app that has fonts and colors to match your mobile background.
Social Media Linking and Logins: It’s annoying to have to remember multiple sets of logins. So, help your users out by allowing to login to your app using their social media accounts. You can also encourage feedback and sharing across multiple channels.
Incorporate Analytics: Knowing how users interact with the app gives you insight into revenue opportunities. This doesn’t have to be invasive by requiring location and access to phonebook information. Many users don’t like that. You can however track logins and other feature use. This also ties back into feedback. Analyzing this data can present major opportunities over time.
Include Gamification: This is essentially making the app fun, even if it’s typically a industry that isn’t meant to be (ex. healthcare). The benefit is it keeps people engaged. The end result could be more social sharing and additional engagement across other platforms.
Have you used any of these design features while developing your mobile app? How successful were they and how have they impacted engagement?