Advantages of Developing Your Own E-commerce App

01/08/2019 | Share:

You’ve had your e-commerce website set up for a while now and it’s doing fairly well. Perhaps now you’re wondering how to take it to the next level. One of the ways in which you can do this is through developing an e-commerce app for your store. After all, lots of other businesses do it, so why can’t yours?

Before you go rushing into it, take a look at the advantages below to decide if it is worth investing the time and effort into creating your own app.

They’re faster

That’s right. Having the mobile application installed on your phone means you’ve already downloaded a lot of the assets required to run the app. This makes for a smoother and faster shopping experience when compared to websites. This is because a website’s data has to be downloaded from the server before it can be presented to the user.

In addition, the app icon is right there on the screen, just a tap away. So much quicker than typing your full address into the web browsers address bar!

A refined audience

One advantage of apps over standard online stores is that you know your app user is serious about you. Compared to visiting a website, it takes a bit more time and effort to go to the app store and download an app. Why would you do that?

If they’ve already gotten this far, the likelihood is they’ve seen something they intend to purchase and want quicker access next time around. This should also help you to find or review your target audience.

A more immersive experience

Within an app that you’ve created, you have complete control over the user experience. Unlike a web browser, there’s no address bar, plugins or external links that can distract your customer from your pages.

Increased interactivity

An e-commerce mobile app allows for greater interactivity and social media integration. On a mobile webpage, if you want to share a product with someone, let’s say via Whatsapp, you’ll likely have to copy and paste the link to share. To share on social media, you’ll need to go even further and create a post too!

Within an app, you have the ability to integrate it with social media channels and let your users share product pages quickly and effortlessly, spreading the word about your products or services even quicker than before!

Notifications galore

Now that we’ve mentioned it, this one is an obvious one that needs little explanation. With an app, you have the ability to send push notifications to a users device which tend to stand out a lot more than any email communications you send.

Brand presence

Even if an app is not being used and notifications have been disabled, there’s still a big advantage to having it installed on a mobile device. Many users who have downloaded an e-commerce app will encounter it several times throughout the day as an icon within their apps menu. Just by being there, it is creating brand awareness (provided your app is appropriately named and includes your logo within the icon!)

You don’t need to be an expert in mobile app development to have an app and we’re not suggesting you take a crash course either. Whilst you can use services such as Apptuse or Appypie, which will provide the basic functions for you (and everyone else), hiring a developer might be a better solution. Having a bespoke app made means you have input on the design, layout and features of the app. You’ll stand out from the crowd, have complete control and show your potential customers that you take their shopping experience seriously. Happy apping!