A well-designed mobile app can be your key to communicating with clients and customers, improving customer engagement, increasing brand awareness, and getting ahead of the competition. A mobile app is also a valuable marketing channel that allows you to inform customers about new offerings.
Statistics show that 4.28 billion or 90% of the global population uses mobile devices to access websites. This number is expected to reach 7.5 billion by the end of 2026. You must adapt to the status quo and build a mobile app for your business.
Increase your business’s chances of succeeding in the industry by incorporating these principles into your mobile app design:
1. Prioritize Ease Of Use
Mobile apps made by digital marketing agencies have one thing in common: they’re easy to use. A good mobile app allows users to perform specific tasks in the easiest, fastest way possible.
According to Sortlist, when designing your mobile app, always prioritize ease of use. People will download your mobile app because they want to accomplish something—find information about your products or services or get your contact numbers—and making it difficult for them to accomplish these will likely create a negative impression about your business.
Make it easy for people to use your mobile app by:
- Tell users what they need to do: Do you want users to submit their information or browse your online catalog? Tell users what they need to do in your mobile app by adding captions or tooltips that indicate instructions.
- Break down tasks into small steps: In this way, users won’t find actions in your mobile app as daunting or time-consuming chores. The smaller steps the users have to take to complete processes in your mobile app, the better.
- Don’t conceal information: Always highlight important elements of your mobile app to make it easier for users to use the platform. You can achieve this goal by picking font colors that contrast with the background color and increasing the font size.
2. Stick To The Basics
One of the biggest mistakes business owners commit when it comes to mobile app design is to make up their own language, thinking that being different is better. Deviating from the basic laws of app navigation will only discourage people from using your mobile app as they’ll likely have a hard time using it.
In general, people already have expectations of how a mobile app functions and how they can navigate it. Make sure that your mobile app meets these expectations to encourage users to continue using your platform.
Some of the basic laws of app navigation your mobile app should follow are:
- Save button: A save button should be displayed at the bottom of the page, especially if you’re asking for information from users.
- Close button: Countless applications place an ‘X’ in the top right corner of the screen, and users will click this button whenever they want to leave the application. Follow the same, and don’t use ‘X’ as a symbol for another action on your mobile app.
- Text fields: The text fields in your mobile app should be in light colors so users can easily find them and identify that their information is required.
3. Know When And How To Ask Information
As mentioned, people will likely download your mobile app because they want to know more about your business and what you’re offering. It’s not very common to hear individuals say, ‘I’m going to download this mobile app because I want to fill out forms or submit my information.’
When designing a mobile app, refrain from asking for set-up information upfront. Requiring signup forms and account registrations can frustrate users and cause them to leave your app.
As much as possible, avoid asking for too much information from users unless necessary. For example, if you’re selling products through your mobile app, allow users to navigate through the page without signing anything first. You can ask them for their credit card information and address during the checkout process.
If you do ask for information, minimize input and commitment from users by:
- Autofill data: Maximize smartphone features so users can easily submit information. For example, invest in apps that allow users to submit credit card information by taking a picture of the card. Image recognition is an AI-driven technology that can significantly improve customer experience.
- Provide optional inputs: Allow users to leave certain text fields blank or empty and don’t require them to fill in unnecessary information.
- Prefill data whenever possible: Use a smart tool so users can share their addresses and save time from manually writing down their location.
Your Mobile App Design Counts
With the number of businesses using mobile apps today, it’s not enough to build one ‘just for the sake of it.’ This will only have adverse effects on your branding and shoo away customers.
If you want to enjoy the benefits of a mobile app, exert time and effort to design one carefully. Your mobile app should provide the best user experience for your business to attract customers, gain more profits, and become a leader in the industry.
