Building a company app is the trendy thing to do right now — but can it really benefit your business? This guide looks at the good reasons to build an app and whether your business should consider it as an investment.
By Team Savant
Image: OneSave/Day
Why Build An App?
Apps can show customers that you’re a cool and cutting-edge business, but this itself isn’t a good enough reason to build an app. You app has to have a practical purpose if you want customers to download it. Ideally, it should offer privileges to customers that non-app users cannot get access to.
A common reason to build an app is to offer customers exclusive discounts. If you own a clothing store or coffee shop, you could build a digital loyalty card app that allows customers to build points, eventually getting access to loyalty discounts. Alternatively, if you run an online store, you could offer exclusive discounts on products only available if users buy via your app.
Apps could also be used for customers to monitor progress on the go. You could allow customers to track deliveries or to track the progress of a marketing campaign in real time. A gym might even allow customers to track their workouts and possibly even compete against other gym users willing to share their workout results.
How Powerful Will Your App Be?
A powerful app will likely take a while to design and build. You may also need a dedicated server as available at M247 for storing all the data required to power your app. On top of this, it will likely take more work to maintain.
At the same time such an app could allow you to truly take the technology to new places. The likes AR technology could enable customers to try on clothes virtually using your app or virtually visualize furniture in their home (something that Ikea has already trialled). This could provide a selling point for your app that encourages customers to download it.
A less powerful app may not be quite as impressive, however it is likely to be easier to build and maintain. It’s also likely to be a lot more affordable, which is the next big factor to consider...
Evaluate The Cost
The cost of producing an app depends on how powerful and unique it is. There are drag-and-drop tools that allow you to build an app for $200. However, such apps are likely to be very simple and may possibly not feel very professional to customers.
Splash out $10,000 on an app and you’re likely to get something much more powerful and personalised. This might be too much money for a small business. However, a medium to large sized business may be able to justify it.
You should also consider how much of a ROI you app will give you. If your app encourages extra purchases, you may eventually make back the money spent on it. Alternatively, an app could save you time and money spent on other tasks (an app that allows people to order from their table in a restaurant could allow you to run with less waiting staff).
To decide whether an app is really worth it, consider what you can afford and what this is likely to get you. If you feel like you can make your money back, it may be worth borrowing money to build an app. If not, you don’t want to be taking out a loan for something that doesn’t make you a tangible return.