Mobile apps: Good and bad...

This article has been written by Nathalie Beaver from EXP which is a team working, evaluated the consumer experience. This time, it is about the mobile applications in general.

This article enables us to be aware of the necessity of applications but at the same time the boundaries of its. Indeed, there is a significant contrast between the desire of the consumer and the concrete behavior of him/her as far as app utility.

The contrast can be seen throughout two different aspects:

The first one is that, obviously, there is a huge increase of apps downloads. In addition, the offer is more and more important. And, the time spends by consumers front of their mobile screen using an app rises as well.

The second aspect, which describes this gap, will be traduced by:

• -       A lot of apps are only used once,
• -       Often, people remove it from their phones without used it
• -       There is a long time between the purchase of the app and the launch of it.
•  The purchase of an app will be considered after at least 10 times of uses (free app version).

To solve this issue, EXP suggests an evaluation: it is to involve the consumer more in the use of the application throughout a kind of challenge. Indeed, the consumer can get the application for free if it goes through 3 stages. In addition, it is important to remind consumers of their voucher, to redeem the application because they forgot about it a lot. 

The solution brings by EXP is to make people aware of the application (to remind them).  According to them, it is possible throughout SMS.

Three main actions are proposed:

• -       Relationship: send SMS about the app (relevant information)
• -       Recommendations: “share with friends”
• -       Reactivation: for people who has deleted their app… to try to convince them to redeem it.

EXP wishes to go further to know the impact of the app on the brand. In other words, the team would like to know if digital tools can influence the purchasing decision, the perception of the brand…

To refocus the topic in the event/tourism sector, we know that more and more brands such as Sofitel, Accor or temporary events are creating their own apps; therefore they are completely involved in this topic. In this sense, we can say that the brand (to have efficient digital tool) has to be present in the mobile of the consumer (SMS, reminders, recommendations throughout kind of alerts). The application has to be updated often and to make know the user about it. In addition, the application has to be almost essential and maybe suggests some discounts (not possible on the website for example) to keep the attraction of the consumer towards the application and indirectly towards the brand. 

Reference:

http://www.eventindustrynews.co.uk/2013/02/28/mobile-apps-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/?doing_wp_cron=1362303864.4071099758148193359375