Boosting your revenue and expanding your customer base can be achieved by turning your Ubercart store into a mobile app.
The rise of mobile ecommerce means that businesses need to adapt to the changing preferences of consumers. While building a custom native app can be costly, there's an alternative solution available: using a Ubercart mobile app builder. By taking advantage of this tool, you can develop a fully-functional and high-quality mobile app for your Ubercart store without breaking the bank.
Keep reading to discover the process of converting your Ubercart store into a mobile app.
In the span of five years, the proportion of mobile in the overall ecommerce market share has grown to over 72%, having increased from slightly above 52%.
This aligns with the general trend of mobile internet usage, which increasingly leans towards mobile each year. Presently, mobile possesses more than 60% market share compared to desktop and tablet.
In addition, 15% of Americans currently rely solely on smartphones to access the internet, indicating the future of ecommerce lies with customers who are not just mobile-first, but mobile-only.
While optimizing your site for mobile serves as a starting point, it falls short. Apps deliver an enhanced user experience on mobile devices, resulting in improvements across various key metrics, including:
Further data reveals that users of ecommerce mobile apps are twice as likely to revisit the store within 30 days compared to those using mobile browsers.
Apps also grant you complete access to mobile push notifications, which boast an average open rate of 20% and a click-through rate of 28%.
Furthermore, apps provide an excellent tool to cultivate loyal, repeat customers.
Do you "need" to transform your Ubercart store into a mobile app? Perhaps not. However, a Ubercart mobile app can yield significant benefits for your business.
If you want to create a mobile app for your Ubercart store, you cannot do so directly on the platform. It is primarily geared towards webstores. However, there are workarounds available to address this issue. Here are a few options to consider:
You can transform your Ubercart store into a mobile app using one of the methods mentioned earlier.
However, it's best for most store owners to disregard the third option (hiring developers to create native apps). The main reason is that developing mobile apps can be quite costly. It typically ranges from $30,000 to $150,000 to build a native app. And that's just for one operating system! To launch apps for both Android and iOS (which you should), you'll need to multiply this cost by two.
App development is a time-consuming and complex process that can also be expensive. This becomes even more pronounced when your developers need to build an API and connect the backend of your apps to your Ubercart store.
Considering the costs involved, it's likely that you don't have the budget for this, and that's not even accounting for the annual expenses of maintaining and running your app.
Many people overlook the ongoing expenses involved in launching an app. The maintenance and upkeep required for tasks like operating system (OS) updates, Ubercart updates, bug fixes, implementing new features, and making improvements can amount to approximately 15-20% of the initial development cost annually.
However, it's important to note that these costs could be even higher. During Rainbow Apparel's app launch, VP of Marketing David Cost extensively researched this matter and discovered that the annual expenditure could reach up to one million dollars.
"If we had unlimited time and money, we would likely choose a custom native app. Nevertheless, the maintenance costs alone would range from half a million to a million dollars per year."
Let's take a conservative estimate, assuming that building apps for both mobile platforms costs $150,000. Based on this estimation, the yearly expenditure for updates and maintenance would amount to $30,000.
For most store owners, this expense is simply too high. Not to mention the additional challenges of managing multiple platforms, rather than solely focusing on their website. It significantly increases the workload whenever changes need to be made to the site, needlessly complicating their workflow.
If you want to enhance your Ubercart store and provide a mobile-friendly experience to your users, consider using a Ubercart mobile app builder.
By employing a mobile app builder, you can convert your Ubercart store into a mobile app that resembles a native app. This app can be easily downloaded and installed on mobile devices, allowing users to conveniently access your products and services.
The most effective mobile app builders offer a mobile app that gives you approximately 90-95% of the features available in a native app, but at a lower cost and with fewer difficulties. However, it's essential to be mindful that not all options in the market are appropriate for building high-traffic, professional mobile applications that portray your brand in the right light.
In case you are a well-established brand with extensive resources at your disposal—like Nike, Target, Zara, and so forth—you may decide to enlist individuals to develop your shopping app from the ground up.
On the other hand, if you don't belong to that category, MobiLoud stands out as the superior choice for app development. It offers simplicity, affordability, and speed. Moreover, the ongoing maintenance of your apps becomes much cheaper and easier.
Now, let's walk through the step-by-step procedure.
You have two ways to get started:
No matter which option you choose, you'll find that 90% of the app creation work is already completed, as long as your site is optimized for mobile.
If you need assistance in optimizing your site, we can handle that too! We're here to make the whole process as smooth as possible.
If you're all set to start the building process, go ahead and sign up to MobiLoud. Our plans include a 60-day money-back guarantee, and there's no need to commit for the long term.
Once you're on board, our team will collaborate with you to configure and design your app. Just remember that most of the work has already been done, so there's no need to start from scratch. You'll only need to make a few adjustments to ensure your app looks and feels like a native one.
Once you're satisfied with the design, we'll take over and build your mobile app. We handle all the technical aspects, so you won't have to worry about coding or have any coding knowledge whatsoever.
If you'd rather have our team manage the entire process, from start to finish, we're more than happy to do so. Our full-service package includes all the necessary steps for configuring, designing, and publishing your app, allowing you to take a hands-off approach.
Once your app is developed, it's time to prepare for its grand launch to the public. It's crucial to have a well-organized launch strategy that will attract users to download your app.
To support this aspect, we offer valuable resources to aid in your app's launch, such as assets for app store descriptions, announcements for your website and email list, press releases, and more. Additionally, you can take advantage of extra features at no cost, such as smart app banners and app-exclusive discounts, to incentivize your current customers to shop through the app.
Finally, we'll proceed with launching your apps on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
The submission process for these app stores is known for being taxing, particularly for anyone new to app ownership. However, with our extensive experience, we are well-versed in this process so you have nothing to worry about!
Our team handles the entire app submission process with Apple and Google. We offer a 100% guarantee of app approval and can handle multiple submissions if required. We also provide recommendations and implement any necessary changes. You can rest assured that you won't need to lift a finger.
Once your app listings are live, you can officially begin attracting downloads and enjoy the numerous benefits of having your own Ubercart mobile app.
The mobile revolution is here, and it's making a huge impact. The majority of your current revenue most likely comes from mobile devices. If it doesn't, it's just a matter of time.
Having a mobile-optimized website for your Ubercart store is no longer enough. To maximize your earnings from mobile users, it's crucial to offer your own custom-branded Ubercart app.
Today, transforming your Ubercart store into a mobile app is easier than ever, as long as you follow the right approach. Instead of spending a large sum of money on mobile developers, MobiLoud provides an accessible and hassle-free solution.
Here are a few final key advantages of using MobiLoud's Ubercart app builder:
This straightforward app builder, which requires no coding, allows you to launch your own shopping apps and establish a presence in the app stores alongside the world's most renowned brands.
Contact us now to discover more about how our team can help you launch an app for your Ubercart store. Book a free, personalized demo, and one of our app professionals will walk you through the entire process.