Why Does Your Business Need eCommerce Mobile Apps for Success?

• By Sapna Thakur
• 30-10-2023
• E-commerce

In this digital era, eCommerce is evolving each day with modern businesses reliant on more and more sales. Here, the emergence of eCommerce mobile apps has been playing a vital role in this transformation with online shopping becoming an indispensable part of our day-to-day lives.

eCommerce mobile apps are the common touchpoint that connects businesses and customers effortlessly. Regardless of geographical or time constraints, these apps can be operated or accessed 24/7. The mobile apps via their features like personalized recommendations, seamless payment choices, and discounts and deals, foster customer loyalty.

In addition, more and more customers are inclined toward online shopping, making mobile apps the ideal medium for convenient shopping. The statistics support this trend with Statista projecting mobile eCommerce sales to reach a revenue of $3.4 trillion by the year 2027. All of this states that the use of mobile phones and convenient online shopping will continue to reshape the mobile eCommerce landscape.

In this blog, we’ll cover the multiple benefits eCommerce mobile apps offer plus the feature recommendations to create a mobile app for your business that meet the demands of modern customers.

Benefits of Having eCommerce Mobile Apps for Your Business

As the internet usage is soaring and the number of mobile users is growing exponentially, the importance of mobile applications can not be overlooked. These apps utilize the mobile user base to help businesses reach the maximum audience and align the experience with the modern customer’s preferences.

Let’s discuss below a wide range of benefits the mobile apps offer for both customers and businesses alike.

Mobile Apps Are Fast

eCommerce apps store all the data on the devices. It increases the speed of mobile apps and makes them more user-friendly than websites. With the faster app loading time, the conversion rate increases, and the bounce rate reduces. As a result, the cart abandonment rate decreases with businesses more likely to increase their revenue potential.

Increases Brand Visibility

Increased visibility is one of the solid reasons for businesses to have mobile apps. Once the users download the mobile apps, the icon sticks to the mobile screens and keeps them reminded about the brand whenever they scroll through. The customers can get information on new product releases and brand-related information in one place, the mobile app. Furthermore, it helps businesses to build better customer relationships and establish a reputable brand image online.

Supports Convenient and Secure Payments

The purpose of mobile apps is to sell goods and it is fulfilled only when the payment process is convenient and hassle-free. Mobile apps when integrated with multiple payment options, the customers are more likely to make payments with their preferred gateway which will result in repeat customers.

In addition, the details filled in by customers are stored by the apps, saving the time of customers entering the details every time they open the app. Furthermore, mobile apps with systems like facial recognition or biometric authentication enable secure payments and protection of payment and sensitive customer data.

Online and Offline Functionality

eCommerce mobile apps have transformed the way of shopping, providing a seamless combination of online and offline functionality. Online functionality enables mobile app users to browse and shop for products at their convenience. On the other hand, offline functionality bridges physical and digital realms, offering features such as location-based services, in-store barcode scanning, and so on. Customers can compare pricing, access detailed product information, and more, enhancing their overall shopping experience.

Customer Loyalty

eCommerce mobile apps reduce the efforts and time for searching for products and placing an order. Thus, delivering the best possible shopping experience. The more the customers will engage with your business offerings, the more the brand visibility will be. Furthermore, the customers will spread word of mouth, recommending the same to their friends, family, or dear ones, resulting in increased business profits.

Besides, rewards, discounts, coupons, and loyalty programs integrated into the mobile apps help build a customer community. More and more customers are likely to return when they are offered rewards on every purchase. Thus, building customer loyalty.

Enhanced Customer Experience

Modern customers expect more than just products out of online shopping. They look for convenience, user-friendliness, and 24/7 accessibility to the products. Here, mobile apps have the potential to fulfill all these customer preferences, delivering a satisfying experience. Besides a simple search box, users can search the products by name, SKUs, size, and so on. Such advanced search capabilities display precise and effortless results.

Data Analytics

Mobile apps help gather essential insights into customer shopping patterns and behavior. Having detailed information about customer preferences, interests, and so on allows businesses to use this information to offer personalized experiences. Furthermore, mobile apps can make customers remind of new product launches or ongoing offers and discounts via push notifications. Thus, increasing mobile app engagement.

Essential Features for Developing an eCommerce Mobile Application

Given that mobiles have become the go-to option for customers to explore, browse, or shop, the mobile apps must be designed in a way that offers the utmost satisfaction and the best shopping experience.

The below-listed features can help better define the mobile app layout and cost associated with the overall development process.

Easy Signup

The user registration process must be simple and as short as possible as lengthy steps are intimidating. Ask users to enter minimal details like name and email, and offer the option of signing in via their Google or Facebook accounts. As a result, users can easily access online business, fewer users will abandon the registration, and sales volume will increase.

Push Notifications

In-app notifications play a vital role in user engagement and ensure effective conversations. Push alerts help notify users about upcoming offers, ongoing discounts, newly launched products, personalized gift cards, and so on. Receiving such notifications on smartphones increases the likelihood of users visiting the eCommerce mobile app. In addition, the profitability increases along with an increased conversion rate.

Search and Filter

The key aspect of any mobile eCommerce application should be to facilitate hassle-free product search and browsing. It does not matter whether the customer is seeking a recently launched product or a specific item, the important consideration remains the streamlined and hassle-free search. In this regard, mobile applications must be featured with advanced sorting and filtering capabilities, empowering easy and quick product browsing, searching, and ordering.

Product Catalog

Many customers feel hesitant and abandon mobile apps when they don’t get detailed information regarding products like name, size, photos, videos, etc. So, having an extensive product catalog with detailed product information allows users to assess the products and enable wise product selection. This further reduces the likelihood of returns and enhances customer satisfaction.

Multiple Payment Options

The eCommerce payment system has significantly evolved with customers looking for easy payment options to execute quick purchases. And when it comes to mobile payment options, there is a diverse range of options from Apple Pay to Stripe, PayPal, and so on. Hence, the app must support multiple payment gateway options for convenient payment experiences. Plus, the app should also support multiple currencies to cater to varying geographical regions.

Shopping Cart

This great feature adds value to the overall shopping experience. The customers can effortlessly add multiple products to the cart and change the quantities as well. Furthermore, they can remove the products they don’t want to buy from the cart itself, providing the flexibility to make purchases. Adapting to eCommerce mobile apps that reflect the changing customer behavior and shopping patterns helps achieve success.

Order and Return Management

The main objective of any eCommerce business is to deliver a seamless customer journey. To achieve this, customers must be provided with the feature of tracking their orders and easy return management. Customers' control over their orders will increase customer engagement throughout the buying journey. Moreover, it will reduce customer complaints and the need for assistance in the long run.

Voice Search

Voice search is increasingly becoming popular among modern customers. The reason is it simplifies app navigation and offers the utmost shopping convenience. Incorporating voice assistants like Alexa, Siri, and more offers intuitive buying experiences and increases customer engagement. Besides, what customers expect is time-saving and ease of shopping, and voice search capability fits right. In addition, this advantageous feature acts as a key metric to increase conversions and the way to enhance customer experiences.

24/7 Customer Support

There is nothing more dissatisfying than customers unable to reach the customer service. No matter whether it is regarding product inquiries, mobile app navigation-related concerns, or any other complaint, quick customer support is vital. Features like live chat and messaging can be great to connect with customers and provide instant support. Also, adding an email or phone number in the Contact Us section of the mobile app is great to provide additional assistance.

Different Ways to Build Your eCommerce Mobile Apps

The above-discussed advantages and essential features of eCommerce mobile apps might have now taken you to the question; whether to get your eCommerce mobile apps custom-built or buy the readymade apps for your eCommerce business. Let’s discuss this below.

• Get eCommerce Mobile Apps Custom-Built: Building eCommerce mobile apps from scratch involves customized capabilities tailored to specific business requirements. Yes, this approach provides complete flexibility over the app’s layout, design, features & functionalities, and so on. However, there are some cons associated with it. You may need to hire mobile app development professionals adding to the higher cost due to custom development. Moreover, the custom mobile app development process takes longer time, increasing the app’s time to market.
• Buy Readymade eCommerce Mobile Apps: Many eCommerce software solutions offer readymade mobile apps that are easy to customize and deploy as per the business needs. This eCommerce mobile application development approach is less complex and cost-efficient. Furthermore, the time-to-market of mobile apps is less as compared to the custom-built approach. Thus, making it an ideal choice, especially for businesses with budget constraints.

In case you decide on buying readymade eCommerce mobile apps, Yo!Kart can be your one go-to choice. It offers readymade, easy-to-use, and feature-rich eCommerce marketplace mobile apps, specially curated to provide tailored mobile experiences in this mobile-first era.

What is the Cost of Developing an eCommerce Mobile App for Your Business?

The eCommerce app users are increasing in numbers and are further expected to grow at a CAGR of 9.6% by the year 2028. This clearly indicates that investing in mobile app development is a great way for efficient buying and selling of goods.

The cost of developing a mobile app is a vital consideration, depending on multiple aspects. It includes the features required, the type of app, design preferences, and development complexity.

Besides, it depends on the choice between the two approaches we discussed above: custom development or buying the readymade eCommerce mobile app. If you go with custom app development, you have to hire development experts with coding skills and technical expertise. In addition to development, marketing, advertising, and maintenance would add to the cost. On the other hand, buying readymade eCommerce mobile apps would be a cost-efficient decision. It would cut down the need to hire a team of professional developers plus marketing and advertising features will be built-in, saving on unnecessary expenses.

Conclusion

To conclude, mobile apps are essential for any eCommerce business to build a competitive edge in the retail landscape. You may establish a business and attract customers. However, with increased mobile usage and internet penetration soaring, you need to adapt to emerging mobile application trends to run your venture successfully. These apps empower eCommerce businesses to gather valuable insights for better decision-making and increasing customer satisfaction. Furthermore, mobile applications provide avenues to encourage customer engagement, retain customer loyalty, and act as a platform for smooth transactions and customer relationship building. Hence, businesses keen on success must consider having a mobile app a necessity.