The average American spends an aggregate of 23 days per year on his or her smartphone. While you might think that the majority of the time is spent on websites, the truth is that 90% of smartphone use revolves around mobile apps. Thus, potential customers may not be reaching your business (even if you have a mobile-friendly website), unless you have an app or are able to post your content on other RSS feeds. Below you will find 4 ways that this new trend in mobile content consumption is affecting your business.
1. Many Businesses are Opting To Publish Through Other Interfaces
Facebook, Google, and Apple have all designed mobile platforms through which publishers can post their content. When you publish your content through these platforms, it allows users to load and read the information more quickly, because readers view the article directly through the interface and not through the publisher’s website.
2. App Based Consumption May Impact Referral Traffic
When companies choose to share content through the above-referenced platforms, they essentially remain on Facebook, Google, or Apple, never actually reaching your website. While this may impact the amount of website traffic you would otherwise receive had the user clicked on your article through the traditional Facebook platform, it can also have some benefits. For example, using Facebook’s new mobile interface may get you more shares and comments as it gains popularity among publishers.
3. You Will Have to Choose the Right Platform For Your Business
Before you post content through these mobile feeds, it is important that you choose which one (or ones) will be most beneficial to your company. For example, if you get a lot of viewers from Facebook, it may be important to link up with Facebook’s new mobile publishing platform.
4. Sorting Through the Legal Jargon May Be Difficult
Once you do choose a platform, make sure you understand the paperwork. Some interfaces can put any advertisement of their choosing around your article and you will not see a dime from that ad’s revenue.
If you are debating on launching a mobile app for your company, you may want to consider the following:
- Download speed: users will only spend 2 to 3 seconds waiting for an app to load. The amount of data involved in the app will dictate download speed. If you are adding data regularly updating then the download speed will be key.
- Keep users interested in your app by making the purpose clear and relevant.
- Another way to keep users coming back is to offer some type of reward. However, there is a downfall to this strategy. Users may delete the app as soon as they have received their reward.
Simply having a mobile-friendly website is no longer enough to gain a broad viewership. It is more important than ever to get potential customers to visit your site through a mobile app. If you are looking to boost your brand and prepare for the mobile revolution, please feel free to contact us today.
