Many small and medium-sized businesses face increasing demand for technological communication and information systems including custom mobile software and apps. Custom mobile software and apps require high levels of expertise and specialization, which leaves many small and medium-sized businesses trying to make do without any custom software or apps. There are many opportunities for businesses who need to partner with software companies who are experts in mobile app development. With the right software development partner, businesses can build your own apps and provide unique software solutions for customers and employees.
There are many uses for custom apps and software which improve profits, reduce costs, increase quality, and build trust and value with customers, employees and other interested parties. With responsive agile development and open source operating systems transforming the way technology companies do business, there are many options for small businesses to partner with technology firms and get the advantages of having custom mobile software without incurring the costs and risks of in-house app development.
The following are 5 different ways your business can use modern mobile app development processes to further your business goals:
1. Increase Data Security
One of the greatest advantages of the mobile revolution in computing is the fact that software is integrated across devices and activities. Since BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) is becoming commonplace in many industries and countries, businesses are facing security concerns from employees storing work on mobile devices, tablets and laptops. With a custom mobile app, your business can store sensitive work related information on secure servers and allow employees access to it through password protected custom apps. This gives your business the ability to control how sharing happens, who gets access to information and to maintain control of the hard-disk data which can constitute a major security risk if left on portable hard drives which can be easily lost or stolen, like an employee’s laptop.
2. Improve Sales Efficiency
Although there are many ways businesses can use custom software to increase efficiency, one of the most basic and necessary reasons to use a custom mobile app is empowering your customer service and sales reps. Your employees who deal with customers are always looking for that right connection, the people who need your product or service and can purchase it right now. Often, employees will meet people at restaurants, bars, church or even a home improvement store who need your business’s services. In the past, the question was always “Do you have a business card?” Now, business cards have been replaced by cell-phones which allow people to collect information instantly and access it at a later time. Instead of having employees collect information and save it to their personal contact list, create a CRM app which allows your employees to sign in, save contact info and why the lead needs your product and schedule a call back at a later time. Thus, you save time and information loss from employees needing to transfer that contact info from their cell phones to your computer system as well as creating the next step in your sales funnel.
3.Create New Sales Opportunities
85% of millennials with jobs and kids are shopping from their smartphones. Millennials are quickly becoming a major force in the marketplace and the mobile economy they have used for years is making its way into many other demographics. Any business that touches the under 35 demographic has to have custom mobile software and apps, and mobile app use is becoming more prevalent in even older demographics so that almost all potential target markets can be reached via a custom mobile app. Providing coupons, a central location for finding reviews of your service or product and a convenient one-click shopping experience makes a mobile app a powerful sales, marketing and income boosting tool.
4. Expand Your Reach with Web Applications
Mobile apps are powerful tools but some customers do not want to download an app onto a device with limited computing power, data bandwidth and hard drive space. For this reason, many businesses are also putting their custom software into web and browser based environments. This gives your business the ability to manage customer relationships, provide a unique and robust user experience, and increase the quality and value of your services without requiring a download. A web-based software system enables you to access software from any device in any location as long as there is an internet connection available.
5. Integrate with IoT
Watches, glasses, TVs, refrigerators and cars are just some of the things that are being produced with internet access and smartphone technology built in. For many businesses the IoT (Internet of Things) presents a unique opportunity to develop custom mobile apps targeting your customers at exactly the right time and place. Whether you are considering a fitness app for Apple Watch which will create an integral part of your health and wellness product line or a Google glass app which enables employees to manage contact lists via voice activation, mobile devices are powerful tools for growing your business if used well, including non-phone technologies.
With the right custom software, your business is empowered to manage all your constituents, whether they are customers, employees, investors or just the general public. The options for creating apps to meet your needs are much greater than these 5 points and are truly only limited by your imagination and need.
Please feel free to contact us for help with understanding how your business processes and needs can be improved and fixed via a custom mobile software app.
