Between 2016 to 2019, smartphone users have increased from 2.1 billion to 2.5 billion as per Statista. And what do these folks do all the time on their phones? They use apps. No wonder, 258.2 billion apps are expected to be downloaded by 2022. On top of that, consumer app spending has shot from $40 billion to $60 billion since 2015.
If your business doesn’t have an app, you should consider developing one because the numbers are in your favor. According to a 2017 report by Clutch.co, 42% of small businesses have an app.
Not only does an application enhance your customer service, it also serves as a direct marketing channel for your company. Click To Tweet Wondering how? Let’s explore the marketing aspect of a mobile application in this post:
Be visible to your target audience round the clock
One of the chief aims of marketing is to be visible to your audience, so that you are on their mind when they decide to buy your product. A mobile app can help further this goal. An average person uses 9 apps daily. On a monthly note, this stat spikes to 30 applications.
Google Analytics data from June-September 2017 uncovered that 40% of online transactions were conducted via mobile devices. In other words, almost half the transactions were via portable devices. In this context, having a mobile app will keep you on your user’s mind.
Sure, most folks use set apps daily. However, using mobile applications requires them to unlock their screens, scroll through the apps, and get to their desired app. Being in the way of these daily-used apps will help you market your product subtly.
Boost your brand awareness
Mobile apps significantly enhance brand awareness - an important marketing goal related to getting you in front of more and more people. Click To Tweet By designing a good app, you can get your prospects’ attention.
Also, the more your customers interact with your app, the more they will buy your product or service. Thus, with the help of push notifications, you can succeed at catching your prospect’s attention.
Build a strong brand
Another way an application can help you market yourself is by strengthening your branding. Mobile Apps: Create a Direct Marketing Channel for Your Business Click To Tweet In this regard, an app is an excellent branding tool.
Think of apps like fridge magnets of companies on your refrigerator, reminding you of the food businesses or banks giving away calendars with their logos and brand design elements on them. Apps work in a similar manner, strengthening your brand digitally.
Use the app as a direct marketing tool
Integrations have made life simpler for present-day marketers. Wondering how? Your mobile application can integrate with various social media sites, including Twitter and Facebook. Resultantly, customers can share your app with their network with a single click.
In this way, an app can work as a direct marketing tool. Not only can customers share your app with their friends and family members, they can also share their experience with their company too.
Additionally, push notifications can help you market promotions, deals, discounts, and special events to your prospects and customers. Your app’s front page can do the same as shown in this case study by Appverticals. So that’s simply direct marketing your products and businesses via your mobile application.
Build a loyal customer base
Undeniably, a strong customer base is what keeps a business in business, which is why developing a strong customer base is important. One way to engage with your audience and develop strong relationships with them is by interacting with them via your app.
The good part is that customers can interact with you via your application based on their schedule (i.e. whenever they use it). What’s more, push notifications have good open rates too, which proves that you can connect with your customers via apps.
A cherry on top of this is a referral program. According to such a plan, you can ask your customers to refer your business to others. So that’s nurturing relationships with customers while marketing your company to others.
Improve your customer experience
SalesForce highlights that 70% of the customers’ buying decisions are influenced by the way they are treated. This research gives a big takeaway – customer experience has a serious role to play in growing your business. Not to mention, certain businesses such as the Ritz-Carlton hotel, become known for their customer service.
In this regard, an app can help improve your customer experience. A case in point is Domino’s app that offers a personalized experience to their customers based on their preferences. You can replicate such a tactic to enhance customers experience and win over more consumers.
Offer more value to your customers
A successful business is all about reciprocation. Targeting and retargeting customers and prospects can be time-consuming, and sometimes, money-wasting too. So what you can do is simple, offer more value to your customers by creating a loyalty program in your app.
It takes a lot to convince people to open their wallets for buying from you, let alone buying again from you. With an app-based loyalty program, you can reciprocate each of their purchase with points.
In other words, the more points your customer collects by doing business with you, the more deals you can offer him/her. Starbucks uses such a tactic within its mobile application. It offers rewards to app subscribers exclusively, which motivates their consumers to buy from them. To smoothen the entire transaction, their app supports direct payment.
Key takeaways
To recap, a mobile application can work as a direct marketing channel for your business. You can engage with your customer base, put offers, discounts, and deals in front of them while encouraging them to refer your business to others via a referral program.
You can also remarket to people by establishing a loyalty program within the app. In short, an app is a good channel, and the more creative you are in getting your users’ attention, the better you can market yourself and boost sales.
Featured Image Credit: Unsplash
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Alma Causey is a Freelance writer by day and sports fan by night. She writes about tech education and health-related issues. Live simply, give generously, watch football and a technology lover.
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