Austin Web Design Team Asks: Should You Develop a Mobile App?

Is there any national brand that doesn’t have a mobile app these days? Hardly; that’s because mobile web development is a technology whose time has come. In fact, one article that addresses developing a mobile app says that today, more people are communicating via text message than e-mail. Who would’ve seen that coming a decade ago?

Our Austin Web design team has noticed that almost every industry has developed a clear mobile strategy. So with that in mind, should you develop a mobile app? If you’re a small business owner, maybe not yet. After all, mobile technology is pretty multi-faceted and, as our Dallas Web design consultants will tell you, different industries embrace mobile web development differently. There’s not only developing the app, there’s also its relevance to your existing mobile website (and if you don’t have that yet, building one may be your necessary first step!), then there’s short message service (SMS) – and that’s all before there’s mobile payment technology and advertising of your mobile web services. For many small businesses, to call starting an app a “challenge” is an understatement (and we haven’t even addressed the cost yet).

What’s important to note, that for most mobile apps, they typically fall into one of two categories: direct income (or conversion) generation, and marketing or customer service. It can be said that apps which lose sight of these facets often prove to be failing attempts in terms of actually growing one’s business. In short, things like mobile web design and developing the technology behind mobile business services are just two of many parts in the equation. Anticipation of your customers’ needs and adding real value to their experiences with your company is every bit as important in the digital realm as it is in physical reality. And when customers can’t stop raving about a business, is usually when most business owners can effectively see and start to positively track their return on investment (R.O.I.).

With that in mind, our Houston Web design team suggests starting with a mobile site first. Mobile apps provide the advantage of a better user experience; but with mobile, you need to start with the basics before expanding into uncharted territory. Incidentally, boosting your social media strategy can certainly enhance your mobile audience as well. Wondering how? Ask the Austin Web design and social media experts at Crest Media.