SmartBear announced a new version of its API design and documentation tool, SwaggerHub, integrating Stoplight’s API open source tools.
At this moment there are over two million apps available for download, and as many as 60,000 new apps added per month. But with countless new additions and tremendous growth expected over the years, thousands of applications are also being removed to never return – entering the app graveyard.
Applications have evolved to become more than just games and social networking tools used solely for enjoyment. People now depend on countless applications on a daily basis. From banking to airline apps and fitness trackers to GPS, it’s safe to say applications have become a necessity to many. As a result of this shift, businesses now depend on a successful app to build brand loyalty and increase revenue – where those whose apps fail become irrelevant. The average cost to build a typical consumer app is $50,000 - $150,000 – money you don’t want to lose. So in this highly competitive marketplace, what can you do to ensure that your app doesn’t end up in the app graveyard?
Know Your End Users
Most apps are abandoned because they ultimately fail to meet the users’ needs. Understanding what your users want is an essential factor to success. While this is no secret, it is still a place where many apps tend to fall short. Consumer feedback needs to be taken into account regularly and with that, continuous improvements should be made.
If an app hasn’t been updated in months, it’s highly likely that users have already discovered the next best thing, leaving your app in the dust – and the cost to your business can be detrimental. Not only do you lose existing customers, you risk losing potential new customers as well.
Top Reasons for App Abandonment
According to a study conducted by Zogby Analytics, there are three major characteristics consumers care about when it comes to applications:
1. Quick loading – study shows that users will abandon an app and a brand, sometimes forever, if it doesn’t load in 6 seconds.
2. Simple functionality – 80 percent of users ranked applications that have “easy to use features” as top drivers of their decision to use/purchase an app.
3. Assurance of Security – 10 percent of users said that they would leave a brand forever because of issues with security
End-users can be ruthless, leaving you with one chance to make a great first impression. Just this year hundreds of apps were removed from the Apple App Store that were found to be extracting users’ personally identifiable information – leaving the users with a bad taste for the brand. Don’t let the countless hours (and not to mention dollars) spent on creating your application go to waste.
The Mobile Analytics Solution
To ensure your app performs in the above categories, mobile analytics is essential. The right mobile analytics tool can provide key insights into usage and performance, as well as allow developers to better understand the experience of end users across the entire application lifecycle. With the use of these tools, you can not only get to know your end users better, you can learn exactly how they are using your application and make the necessary improvements to keep them coming back to you. Don’t surrender your apps to the app graveyard, start utilizing a mobile analytics tool.
Ashley George is Associate Product Marketing Manager, CA Technologies.
Industry News
Red Hat announced updates to Red Hat Trusted Software Supply Chain.
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Redgate launched an enterprise version of its database monitoring tool, providing a range of new features to address the challenges of scale and complexity faced by larger organizations.
Snyk announced the expansion of its current partnership with Google Cloud to advance secure code generated by Google Cloud’s generative-AI-powered collaborator service, Gemini Code Assist.
Kong announced the commercial availability of Kong Konnect Dedicated Cloud Gateways on Amazon Web Services (AWS).
Pegasystems announced the general availability of Pega Infinity ’24.1™.
Sylabs announces the launch of a new certification focusing on the Singularity container platform.
OpenText™ announced Cloud Editions (CE) 24.2, including OpenText DevOps Cloud and OpenText™ DevOps Aviator.
Postman announced its acquisition of Orbit, the community growth platform for developer companies.
Check Point® Software Technologies Ltd. announced new email security features that enhance its Check Point Harmony Email & Collaboration portfolio: Patented unified quarantine, DMARC monitoring, archiving, and Smart Banners.
Automation Anywhere announced an expanded partnership with Google Cloud to leverage the combined power of generative AI and its own specialized, generative AI automation models to give companies a powerful solution to optimize and transform their business.
Jetic announced the release of Jetlets, a low-code and no-code block template, that allows users to easily build any technically advanced integration use case, typically not covered by alternative integration platforms.
Progress announced new powerful capabilities and enhancements in the latest release of Progress® Sitefinity®.