Common Mistakes To Avoid In Your Mobile App
Despite how lucrative app development business really is, a lot of mobile app developers have been unsuccessful with their apps. To avoid falling into the category of failed app developers, here are some common mistakes you should avoid. Whether the app is built for a client or it is a general one built for yourself to rake in some money, you will find the tips applicable.
A long registration form is a big turn off for app users. According to a recent study, about 26 percent of mobile apps are usually opened only once by most users and they delete it from their mobile devices. Unnecessarily long registration form is one of the reasons for app failure. Even if the app is for a retail store or a service provider, all they need are name, email address, phone number and shipping address.
Retail stores usually need full information of every customer for profiling. Instead of allowing your clients to force their customers to register fully before ordering products or services, you should advise that customers should be motivated to register willingly. A very good way is to offer a discount for full registration.
Since a lot of developers like their app to have a lot of features, they end up making it look clumsy and difficult to use. Every good app should be simple, easy to install and easy to navigate through. In fact, you should design your app in such a way that a 10-year old kid can use it easily.
Make it as intuitive and self-describing as positive. Use familiar icons for better understanding. This is important because in the bid to make their apps very unique, some developers use strange icons for familiar commands. For instance, people are already used to the icon of a magnifying glass as a representation of “search” command. You don’t have to change it. Doing so will make your app less intuitive and more difficult to use.
Do not launch your app on multiple platforms all at once. Why do you think Instagram was first launched on only iOS? In fact it was until Instagram hit 30 million users before the android version was launched. The reason is clear. When you realize you have got some things wrong or when you realize there are bugs to fix, it will be done in multiple places when you launch your app on multiple platforms. It is better to launch it on a particular platform and wait until everything is perfect before launching it on another platform.
Not including analytics facility in your app or in that of your clients is another costly mistake. You are the professional, even if your clients do not mention it, you should suggest it to them and explain its importance. This is one of the ways you demonstrate competence to them. Even in your app, you also need it. Running an app without analytics is like selling without a proper report. How do you assess your performance? Some of the common statistics given by analytics are:
Daily Active Users: You need to know the number of active users of your app on a daily basis. The figure has to be increasing on a daily basis. If it does not, it means there is a problem. Remember, you can only solve a problem that has been identified.
Retention Rate: it is important to know how many users continue using app and how many users quit it.
Average time spent on your app: It is also important to know how long your customers stay on your app whenever they open it. If the average time spent is not enough, you can find a way to make them use the app longer.
Rate of Crash: Nothing turns users off like a high crash rate. If the crash rate of your app is high, then you have to do something about it fast.
