So, you’ve realised the importance of mobile marketing.
Now it’s time to take action.
But, it’s not long before you hit your first dilemma… Do you create a mobile version of your website or do you create a mobile app? Which will give you the biggest benefit?
Hmmmm… Decisions, decisions…
Well, first, it’s important to look at the differences between the two paths & assess these differences in terms of advantages (or disadvantages!) to your company.
Differences between mobile sites & apps
1) App’s have less barrier to use than mobile sites.
Why? It’s less clicks! Because it’s downloaded onto your phone, it makes it easy to access… No browsing necessary.
2) App’s have the ability to work offline.
Although this is becoming increasingly less important as mobile internet is increasingly easy to access, particularly with the rise of ‘the cloud’.
3) App’s can send push notifications.
This allows you to send messages to the app owner even when the app is closed. It reminds & encourages them to use your app… Always useful!
4) App’s cost more money (initially at least).
There’s a fee to put an app in the app store. You will also need to develop more than one version of the app to accommodate different phone types i.e. iPhone, Blackberry, Windows phones etc – this costs money!
5) App’s are content controlled.
If you’ve ever used an app – you’ll notice that most work well – or, at least, they work (!) That’s because they’re approved by the app store.
This means you have to invest time in making your app good (not that you wouldn’t want to do that anyway!).
It’s time to make your best judgement…
You’ve got a good idea of the differences (& benefits) of both mobile sites & app’s. So, now it’s decision time…
Every business is different. This makes it hard to give you a definitive way to decide between the two in all scenarios.
As a general rule – if you have content you want people to refer to on a regular basis, then an app is best for the job. It’s much more convenient for the regular user & is worth investing in!
On the other hand – if you have content on your site that people are unlikely to visit on more than a few occasions, it probably isn’t worth your while investing the time & money in an app… After all, it’s unlikely anyone will use, or even download, it anyway!
Make sure you look at the 5 factors/differences identified in the previous section & assess them against your business needs in order to make an informed decision as to the best path to take.
Whichever you choose… Good luck & start enjoying the benefits of mobile marketing!