Let’s face it. Apps are everywhere. There is an app for anything and everything out there. According to statistics there has been collectively 4.2 million apps uploaded to the google play store and App Store as of the year 2019. In the year 2018, there was a whopping 205 billion app downloads and is projected to be at 258 billion by 2022. Apps and smartphone usage are on a steady rise, still penetrating the markets with no signs of slowing down any time soon. But, even after statistics saying that a person on average spends at least 2 hours on apps, owns at least 65 apps, using an average of 30 a month, why do we only see some apps stands out? Why do we see some apps find success globally but some die off without even being heard off? However well designed some apps are they don’t see the light of day. Here are five reasons why 99 in 100 apps fail in the market.
1. While targeting a certain audience is great, they may have limited their audience.
While certain apps work great with a certain target population, they are not equipped to handle a greater audience. The world is a global market with the advent of the internet and anyone is a potential customer. It does not hurt to have a global network.
2. Not enough has been invested in marketing
Solely building a great app will not get it anywhere. There is a lot of competition out there, as mentioned earlier, 4.2 million apps in both google play store and App Store. How will one find out about your app in this swarm of apps. App development is very expensive, but if you do not invest enough in marketing the app, let’s just say that it’s money going down the drain. You need to create hype for your app, at least get people to know that your app exists. Some of your budget must be retained for advertising your app, focusing on creating a hype, communicating the value and unique features of your. And, if your app is good, rest the users will take care off!
3. The app may not be solving an actual problem
The main question that has been ignored by most apps that fail is ‘Does your app solve a problem?’ Does it add utility to the users life. Firstly you need to understand that the very purpose of an app is to find out a need of a customer and solve it. Even those silly games that people play to pass time fills a need of entertainment for the user. If you cannot find purpose for your app, the user will not be able to need to add your app to their life, you cannot influence them to buy it. There needs to be value, just like any other product or service. Research is absolutely crucial, it helps you dive deep into the needs and wants of your customers. For example: Use resources like social media, which has the capacity to give you so much knowledge about a certain sect of people and find out pain points. From there you can think of a problem that needs to be solved and create an app based on that.
4. They haven’t figured out their monetization model
At the end of it all, apps need to make you some money. You need money to keep your apps updated to keep your customers coming back for more. You can do more than just the regular pop up ads or just your sales, you can invest in a good monetisation model with multiple strategies including this popular advertising strategy. For example ‘Freemium models’ and In app purchases are becoming a sustainable and popular method of generating money. The ‘freemium model’ is used by many popular apps we see today like Spotify, YouTube, Skype etc, which gives you access to free content and also allows you to access their premium features by upgrading to a paid version of the app. In app purchases is popular in the gaming sector, with this model generating the most amount of money for them. Customers have to pay a small amount of money to access new level, unlock bonuses, but time etc.
5. User experience or User interface might be bad
After finding a good problem, creating an app providing the best way to solve that problem, your app might still fail. Why? 90% of people say that they will never return to an app after a negative experience with the app. If your app isn’t easy to use or is simply complicated there is a high chance that you app will fail. UX and UI are only recently becoming a priority for app developers because right now, at the stage we are at, UX and UI are the only ways you can make your app stand out. There is no need of further explanation as to why these two are so important. It’s simple, a simple app, with regular updates to get rid of bugs will retain and keep your customers engaged for longer.  Keeping these few things in mind, build a great foundation for your app and see your business grow. So, these were the five reason why 99 in 100 apps fail to perform up to the mark.
