Enhancing your revenue and expanding your customer base can be achieved by converting your FutureShop store into a mobile app.
Because of the growing trend of mobile ecommerce, it's vital for businesses to adapt to evolving consumer preferences. While developing a custom native app can be expensive, there is an alternative solution available: leveraging a FutureShop mobile app builder.
By using one of these tools, you can effortlessly create a fully operational and high-quality mobile app for your FutureShop store without exceeding your budget.
Continue reading to learn the step-by-step process.
Within a span of five years, the ecommerce market has witnessed a shift towards mobile, with the mobile segment now accounting for more than 72% of the total market share, surpassing the previous figure of just over 52%.
The ongoing trend of mobile internet usage follows a clear trajectory, with mobile devices gaining more prominence each year. Currently, mobile enjoys over 50% of the market share compared to desktop and tablet usage.
What's even more fascinating is that, it's worth noting that 15% of Americans rely solely on smartphones for their internet usage. This indicates a significant shift in the ecommerce landscape, where customers are not only mobile-first but exclusively reliant on mobile devices.
While optimizing your website for mobile is a step in the right direction, it's not adequate. Mobile apps deliver a superior user experience on mobile devices, resulting in improvements across several key metrics, including:
Further data shows that users of ecommerce mobile applications are twice as likely to revisit the store within a 30-day period, compared to those using mobile browsers.
Mobile apps also offer full use of mobile push notifications, which typically have an open rate of 20% and a click-through rate of 28%.
They also provide a valuable tool to nurture loyal, repeat customers.
Is it mandatory to convert your FutureShop store into a mobile app? Maybe not, but a FutureShop mobile app can provide massive benefits for your business.
It's not possible to directly publish a mobile app from FutureShop. FutureShop is specifically designed for webstores. To create a mobile app using FutureShop, you'll require an additional solution.
Here are a few options:
By using one of the methods mentioned earlier, you can to transform a FutureShop store into an app.
However, the majority of store owners should disregard the third choice (engaging developers to build native apps). The primary reason behind this is the high cost associated with mobile apps. Creating a native app alone can range from $30,000 to $150,000. Keep in mind that you'll need to double this expense to accommodate both Android and iOS platforms (which is highly recommended).
Developing an app can be a lengthy, intricate, and costly process right from the start. It becomes even more challenging when your developers have to create an API and establish a connection between the backend of your app and your FutureShop store.
Chances are, you might not have the financial means to pursue this option. And that's not even taking into account the annual expenses required to keep your app up and running.
Many people overlook the ongoing costs associated with launching an app. The maintenance and upkeep, including OS updates, FutureShop updates, bug fixes, and the addition of new features and improvements, typically amount to around 15-20% of the initial cost each year.
In fact, the expenses can be even higher. When Rainbow Apparel was developing their apps, David Cost thoroughly researched the matter and found that the annual cost could reach up to a million dollars.
"If we had unlimited time and money, we would likely choose a custom native app. However, maintaining such an app would cost half a million to a million dollars per year."
- David Cost, VP of Marketing, Rainbow Apparel
Let's take an estimate of $150,000 for building apps for both mobile platforms. Based on this approach, the yearly expenses for updates and maintenance would be around $30,000.
For most store owners, this amount is too high to invest. Additionally, managing multiple platforms in the future, rather than just focusing on your website, can become a significant headache. It triples the workload whenever you need to make changes to your site, needlessly complicating your workflow.
By employing a FutureShop mobile app builder, you can effortlessly convert your FutureShop store into an app, making it the best decision.
With a FutureShop mobile app builder, you can convert your existing FutureShop website into a mobile app that delivers a native-like experience. This app can be downloaded and installed on users' mobile devices with ease.
Selecting reliable mobile app builders can obtain a mobile app that offers an impressive 90-95% of the features available in a native app, while remaining cost-effective and less burdensome.
However, it's important to understand that not all options on the market are suitable for creating high-traffic, professional mobile apps that showcase your brand effectively.
In the case of renowned brands with large budget at hand – such as Nike, Target, Zara, and others – they may decide to onboard experts to build their shopping app completely from the ground up.
If you don't have the same resources as these brands, MobiLoud is the go-to option. It's simple, cost-effective, and efficient. Maintaining your apps becomes easier and more economical in the long run too!
Here's a simplified outline of the process.
There are two ways to get started:
Either way, you'll quickly realize that about 90% of the app creation work is already completed, provided that your site is optimized for mobile usage.
If you require assistance in optimizing your site, simply let us know, and we'll gladly lend a hand! This step is crucial to ensure a seamless experience throughout the remainder of the process.
When you're all set to kickstart building, next is to sign up to MobiLoud. All of our plans provide a 60-day money-back guarantee, and you're not tied to any long-term obligations.
Once you've signed up, our team will be by your side to help configure and design your app. It's worth noting that a significant portion of the work has already been completed. You won't need to create a brand new UI from the ground up; just a few adjustments are necessary to give it the look and feel of a native app.
Upon design approval, we'll start the development of your mobile app. Our team takes care of all the technical details, so there's no need for you to engage in coding or have coding skills.
If you'd rather have our team handle the entire process for you, we can certainly make that happen. Our full-service package encompasses all the necessary tasks to configure, design, and publish your app, allowing you to have a completely hands-off experience.
Once your app is built, it's time to prepare for its launch to the public. Having a solid launch strategy in place is crucial to ensure maximum downloads for your app.
We offer a range of resources to enhance your app's visibility, such as assets for app store descriptions, captivating launch announcements for your website and email subscribers, attention-grabbing press releases, and more.
You also have the option to incorporate extra features at no extra cost, including clever app banners and exclusive in-app discounts to motivate your existing customers to make purchases through the app.
We'll then launch your apps on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, making them available to users worldwide.
The submission process for these app stores is widely known for its complexity, especially for those new to app ownership and development. However, we have extensive experience in this area, having successfully navigated it numerous times.
Our team will take care of the entire app submission process with Apple and Google, ensuring a smooth experience. We provide 100% app approval guarantee and handle multiple submissions if required.
We'll also assess and implement any necessary changes to meet the store's requirements, saving you the hassle.
Once your app listings are live, you can officially start attracting downloads and enjoy the wide-ranging benefits of having your own FutureShop mobile app.
It's likely that the majority of your current earnings come from mobile users, and if they don't already, they will soon enough.
Your FutureShop store needs more than just a mobile-friendly website. To fully capitalize on your mobile audience, it's a good idea to offer your own branded app.
Fortunately, turning your FutureShop store into a mobile app has never been easier, as long as you take the right approach. Instead of spending a significant amount of money on mobile developers, MobiLoud offers a cost-effective and straightforward solution.
Here are some key benefits of using MobiLoud's FutureShop app builder:
Our user-friendly app builder requires no coding, allowing you to launch your own shopping apps and join the ranks of the world's top brands in the app stores.
Reach out to us now to learn more about how we can assist you in launching an app for your FutureShop store. Book a free, personalized demo, and one of our IT professionals will guide you through the entire process.