The thing that changes its mind the most is not your spouse. It is in fact, the consumer market. The mobile software industry is called the “most modern and progressive” industry on the planet. However, this too comes with its fair share of troubles. The cost of constant progress is constant change: no progress comes without it. However, change also expands to include mindsets, mentality, and consumer choice — three very fickle things. Put them together and we have the perfect devil’s cocktail — a poison that can kill any new app in its infancy. However, we aren’t left floundering about in this dynamic way all by ourselves. There exists our very own trail of breadcrumbs: remnants of the past, that show us the future. These come to us in the form of statistics — arguably the most precise and relevant field in the discipline of mathematics. 21 Mobile App Development Stats That Are Relevant in 2022 App Development Will Be A Trillion Dollar Industry by 2023. Translation: sprint to the bus, and jump on. This will be one ride you will regret not taking. If your business already doesn’t have an app, consider getting one because people now use their mobile more than their computers and tablets. And if you’re in two minds about becoming an app developer because of the uncertain industry, that’s all changing. Investors in 2020 pumped almost $75 BILLION into entrepreneurial startups, and startups with an app snagged 25% PERCENT of all that funding. Startup Businesses That HAD An App Got More Funding In 2021. The investors say that the app was indeed the deal-sealer for them. One investor said, “If a business is willing to put money and effort into developing an app, they will put in the required effort to turn a profit as well.” The COVID Pandemic Caused App Downloads To SOAR, And With It, Customer Spending Too. When the pandemic first hit, it was chaos. The lockdowns caused app downloads to increase by almost 100% in 2020, rising to 218 billion worldwide downloads that year. Customer spending on apps also shot up to $50 Billion in the first quarter ALONE. The main gainers were education and entertainment apps. People Spend An Average Of 4.2 Hours On Their Phone Per Day Just Using Various Applications. With that amount of time, and considering the sheer volume of people who possess a smartphone, it makes sense to find your own niche. Being a jack of all trades but master of none will not help — you’ve got to capture your audience’s attention. App Advertisements Generated $240 Billion in 2020. This Number Is Expected To Climb To $290 Billion in 2022. With ad companies running their ads in games, education apps, and even on food ordering apps, it’s safe to say that mobile is the new stomping ground for advertisers. You Can Improve The Way People Discover Your App. Nearly 40% Of People Find New Apps Through Their Social Circle’s Recommendations. The key to overcoming this particular problem lies in yet another field of statistics — known as demographics. Find your target audience, and then proceed to literally bombard them with information about why your app is the best. This leads to more relevant downloads and greater engagement. Almost 50% Of ALL Smartphone Users Find New Apps While Simply Browsing Through Their App/ Play Stores. Again, this is a massive wake-up call for all the developers out there. There is no point in making a badass app, then having it fall flat due to no engagement. Although this may also be a silver lining in disguise — random people who you didn’t know were part of your target audience have a 50% chance of discovering your app. 60% Of Smartphone Users Have Contacted A Business Via The In-App Call To Action Buttons (e.g. “Call Us” Buttons). The message here is crystal clear: pepper your app (LIGHTLY!) with a call to action button. Do NOT, under any circumstances make your CTA’s too obvious or glaring — that’s just irritating. Food And Home-Delivery Apps Doubled Their Revenue In 2021. Likely also because of the pandemic, food ordering app revenue touched a growth of 105% in 2021. After all, if we cannot go to the food, we’ll jolly well make the food come to us. 63% Of Customers Are Likely To Buy From Apps/ Websites That Offer Them Personalized Recommendations. Moral of the story: offering personalized recommendations based on their demographics and preferences is pretty darn important. Developers have to toe a very thin line here though: the fastest way to lose a potential customer is with too many sales attempts. So watch those push notifications okay? 39% Of Users Prefer Shopping On An App Because It Gives Them Better Deals And Is Faster. Aside from being optimized for mobile devices, apps are generally faster because they can store information on your phone directly. What a lot of app developers do is: they offer a signup bonus to their app, or offer “app-exclusive” discounts to their users. The Travel Industry Is Itching To Be Released. There is a record number of people downloading travel apps. This includes flight-booking apps, hotel-booking apps, map apps, and ride-sharing service apps. We are all just waiting for restrictions to be lifted, right? Personally, I’m on the first plane out of here the first chance I get. About 95% Of People’s On-Screen Time Is Spent Inside Apps. With such an active community, this showcases the limitless potential of mobile apps. What it also shows us is that app developers need to really carve out a niche for themselves, so as not to lose their audience. These Were The 5 Biggest Category Gainers In The App Industry In 2021. Source: Collated Data. Business: 275% Growth. (Zoom, Google Meet, Skype, MS Teams, etc.) Finance: 200% Growth. (Banking Apps, Trading Apps, Stock Tickers, etc) Education: 200% Growth. (Study-At-Home Apps, Video Tutorial Apps, etc.) Food Delivery: 105% Growth. (UberEats, GrubHub, DoorDash, etc.) Fitness: 30% Growth. (Home Workout Apps such as Nike Training, Adidas Training, Fitbit Coach, etc.) About 94% Of IT And Cybersecurity Experts Expect Cyber Attacks to Increase (And Succeed). After the fiascos with Cambridge Analytica and Keepnet Labs, everyone is in a tizzy over their data. The world went digital in 2020, and with it, so did our data. Developers cannot scrimp on data encryption and security protocols. All it takes is one good hit and boom, you’re done. Forever. 98% Of Worldwide App Revenue Comes From Free Apps. Only a fraction of people worldwide are willing to pay to download apps. If you can, avoid locking your app behind a paywall. Studies have shown that a user would rather have a monthly subscription to a free app than pay an outright subscription for a one-time purchase. This gives the users a chance to “trial” the app and see if the premium version is worth the money. Nearly 90% Of Users Will Want A Voice Assistant Option In Their Apps by 2023. Not only will this help with functionality, but it may also prove to be handy for people with visual or physical impairments. We have come a long way since the first voice-powered Amazon Alexa devices — and we’ve still got a long way to go. It would be a wise idea to incorporate at least a screen reader into your application, along with OCR technology. Google’s Play Store And Apple’s App Store Offer Virtually The Same Revenue. If you can, release your app to both stores. However, if budgetary constraints force your hand, you can choose whichever platform tickles your fancy. 95% of the apps on the Play Store are free, as well as 90% of the ones on the App Store. 70% percent of users will ABANDON Your App If It Makes Them Wait Too Long. The pandemic has taught us a lot of things, but patience is not among them. Aside from totally ignoring your app, 40% of people who have had a bad experience will boycott your app. You can cut loading times down drastically by using historical data to autofill forms for the user. 50% Of People Admit That A Good App Builds Brand Credibility. Yes, you read that right — people will make a decision off your app, rather than off your ad and outreach campaigns. A good app experience is therefore crucial in determining if a company will succeed — or not. Millennials Open Their Phone About 50 Times Every Day. That’s right — the need for push notification has been eliminated (if your target audience was millennials). Instead, regular notifications will do just fine. People will want to know the latest update on their activity, so when they open their phone, users will be tempted to click on the notification. Aside from that, those push notifications are just super annoying. What is acceptable one Sunday morning may be totally invalidated before you’ve had your afternoon tea, so treading carefully is imperative. Statistics are nothing but pure fact, represented numerically. Hopefully, the ones I’ve presented have been useful. Remember, my stats are only as good as the body that provides them, so I have tried to gather all information from trusted websites like Forbes, eMarketer, and Statista. The only constant is: change, and developers must adapt to said change — quickly. Missing the boat is not an option here, for if you miss it, you will drown.
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