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Blog Post
Don’t do it yourself: The danger of D.I.Y apps for your business
Eazi-Apps Support • Mar 15, 2013
The focus of this week’s blog is to highlight the many pitfalls that businesses encounter if they decide to produce their own app using generic, low cost, app building sites. A quick search online will bring up a list of websites that essentially claim to allow businesses to build their own app for a very low cost and in some instances, for free. The old adage of “you get what you pay for” springs to mind here.
Some of the main problems of using a generic, low cost, app building site are:
- Lack of customisation – all the apps built from the low cost site will look and feel the same, not distinguishing your business from any other.
- Lack of native functionality – neglecting the key features of your users’ phone (e.g. camera) will limit the amount of interaction a customer has with your business.
- No guidance on deciding what features to include – as a small business you are undoubtedly an expert in your field, however the mobile market may be a world away from your daily operations, so how can you decide the type of features your customers will want within an app?
- Reduced chance of getting your app published – Apple is very strict about what they allow to be published on their app store and have stringent guidelines. How can you maximise your chance of having your app published?
- Minimal downloads – many of these generic sites do not give you a strategy on how to get the app onto your customers’ handsets.
- Making changes or needing help – who do you contact if you need to amend your app? If you encounter a technical problem with your app, how do you resolve this?
- Sub-standard product – by not having a mobile marketing expert guiding you on every stage of the app process, from conception to adoption, you are minimising the benefits the app could have for your business.
As the above list has shown, there are many pitfalls and problems with using lows cost sites to build your own app and in the long term, they can be detrimental to your business and your brand. In reality, these websites are providing you with a mobile website for your business and not utilising the native functionality of your customers’ phone (e.g. Camera, GPS and Voice). By not utilising the native features of your customers’ phone within your app, you are missing the opportunity for your customers to engage with your business.
Another problem with the D.I.Y approach is that you are working from a fixed template to create your business app. These generic low cost apps do not allow you to edit every pixel within the app and really customise it to your business. The end result is a low quality app that does not distinguish itself from the competition. One of the central aims of an app is to be unique to your business and tie in with your existing brand – something that a generic app will not allow you to do.
We have seen how a low quality, D.I.Y approach to your business app can be harmful for your brand, so what is the alternative? Quite simply, Eazi-Apps.
We believe in working with businesses to formulate their mobile marketing strategy. Planning, building and publishing your app are only the start of the journey. From here, we clearly define strategies unique to your business to maximise customer downloads and analyse the performance of your app every step of the way. We help your business leverage your mobile technology to get consistent results and ultimately improve your bottom line.
To find out how Eazi-Apps can help bring your customers closer to your business, contact us today.
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