How To Make Your App More Popular

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 There is no perfect recipe for creating a successful app. Many apps spread like wildfire while others move quickly off the app market. However, researchers have found that there are many unexpected truths about apps that are successful, and their commonalities are clear. Information gathering is key.

Related Articles   Basic Social Media Strategy - Twitter   Social Media - Can Twitter and Facebook Really Help Grow Your Business?   Seminar Using Social Media to Promote your Business   How to Increase website traffic with social media optimization    The first mistake developers make is equating an engaging app with the time they spend on it. Often enough the most simple apps end up being the most successful across the board. Research shows that the apps that are most successful on the market are those that have easy navigation in and out of the app. One constant remains true – we are creatures of expediency.

A 2011 study revealed that apps are indeed successful in engendering brand relations and general good feelings about your company or brand image. The study also revealed some of the most meaningful findings for any marketers learning to improve their presence in the app market or enter it for the first time. Surprisingly, the most successful apps in both the Android and iPhone market were not popular games or entertainment-based apps, rather information gathering apps were among the most purchased thus the most successful boasting high numbers in quantity of downloads. The study basically found that users will still use and enjoy game center apps as a source of refuge and perceived serenity but that people turn to apps most often, for information.  Another feature ranked highest in popularity are apps that have easy and fast entrance and exit.

Rob Potter, an associate professor at Indiana University, and co-author of the study, says that there are essentially two experiences that people have with apps — information gathering and escapism. Using apps for relaxation actually produce a calmer physiological state.  

Most notably, the study concluded that apps that provide more information in an easy-to-use fashion are most likely to find success on the app market. This might be surprising to marketers that believe everything must be game-centered these days. However the most engaging applications were email, social networking and browsing which all falls under the category of information gathering.

Louie Mantia, a designer at Pacific Helm, says, "For a lot of apps I've created, apps that aren't entertainment or games, the focus is on getting you out of the app quicker." In some apps, the point is to spend as little time in it as possible."

This research knocks the age old thinking that people don't care about information; they just want to use their phones and devices as a distraction. But times have changed and research beckons applications that offer information browsing and discovery in order to be successful on the app market.

 

 



Source: How To Make Your App More Popular

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