Are you Appy?

Are you Appy?

Opening Summary 

Its fairly common for someone to ask for a meeting and the purpose of that meeting is for them to get some advice and guidance on building an app.  In their minds it makes total sense.  Every business should have an app, right?  Having an app will bring in lots of new customers right?  What quickly becomes apparent in most cases is that the rationalisation they have gone through to get to this point doesn't hold water in a cold business sense.  Ego, pride and enthusiasm has fuelled the thinking so far, not logic and fact.

Not every business is bettered by an app.

Image Copyright of TechCrunch

The problem

There are clearly some huge benefits in terms of awareness and customer reach to having an app, but only if the business behind it has orientated itself to be able to act accordingly.  If the app is badly designed or executed then the outcome can be wholly negative as customers struggle to find and/or use the app.  If the app does not add or contribute to the users interaction with the company or product then the feeling will be "what's the point?".  There are a number of customer-orientated issues that should come and sit beside a number of business questions - the answers need to be positive in most cases to validate the idea of developing what can be an expensive appendage to the company.

Here are the most common failures as I see it:

1. Deciding you know what the users of your products want       without asking them.
   
2. Apps that don't benefit the users in anyway.  Apps that don't create new opportunities, extend existing ones or provide something unique for the user in terms of content or experience.
   
3. Not having an ongoing content and technology roadmap for the app to follow post launch. Far too often there is no     planning past the point of launch.
   
4. Fail to factor in how the app may impact on business -       especially customer service. If you attract a load of new   customers because of the app, what will happen to the current business systems and processes.
   
5. Fundamentally misunderstand how long and how much it costs to design, develop and launch an app of the highest standard.  

At the end of the process far too many companies end up with something that is just either a replica of their website or offers their customers nothing new.  It cost them far more in time and money than they expected and they end up seeing the app as a business negative rather than a business positive.  Apps do not defy the normal laws of business - there must be a clear business case behind the app otherwise the plain truth is you shouldn't be doing it.

Image Copyright of The Telegraph

Solutions

Here are my five best tips if you end up with the thought that your business should have an app:

a. Decide if the app is for existing customers (this is often referred to as an enterprise app) or if its designed to attract new customers and interest.  This decision alone will save you a lot of pain.  Its not advisable to make a single app for both target groups.

b. Regardless of your decision in (a) the first step is to interview and discuss your app with the prospective users. Existing customers will tell you what they like/don't like and what they would find convenient via an app (order tracking etc.) In effect, let them design the app for you and don't overrule them.

c. Connect the functions described to you in (b) to a business case.  If customers tell you that they want order tracking in the app - find out how many calls you take monthly about orders.  If the number is substantial and the app will reduce those calls - therefore freeing up staff time and resources then that's a viable case for the app.  I think you can extrapolate from there.

d. Once you have built your business case you should have a number from the increase in revenue/savings on costs.  Times this number by 2.5 and this should give you an idea of how much you can safely spend on the app and you're rate of recoup.

Example: If you end up with a £5000 figure from the business case then you can safely spend £12,500 on the app development and recoup that investment over an 18 month period.

e. If your not a tech professional then hire one to work for you (not the app developer) to deliver your app.  App developers come in all shapes and sizes and in every part of the quality spectrum.  If you commission an app and don't have the necessary skills personally to manage it its just like buying a lottery ticket.  Don't rely on the developer to make all the best decisions for your business, they just wont.  Hire someone to work for you and task them with the delivery.  It shouldn't cost you more than 10% of your budget to get someone in to do this for you.

Closing Summary

You will notice during this article I haven't mentioned platforms (iOS/Android/Windows Mobile.  These are not important if the business case does not support the concept of developing an app. Don't get wrapped up in the technology if the underlying business is not right. Far too much by way of app development is driven the other way around and it becomes financial risk.