The average person has 80 apps on their smartphone, of which they only use 9-11 on a daily basis and up to 30 per month. This includes pre-installed apps and popular apps like Google, Maps, Youtube, Whatsapp, Tiktok, games etc.
Also an app for your bank and cellphone provider, on-line orders and deliveries.
These numbers are determined by available capacity on your phone and screen space. At the same time, how often do you forget where an app is stored or even if you have the app or uninstalled it?
I’ve often chosen to use the company website on my phone rather than install their app.
It doesn’t leave much room for apps for smaller businesses. Businesses love getting their app on your phone for obvious reasons. It give them almost direct access to their customers – until you turn off notifications.
Sadly most apps don’t work out:
Apps are expensive to make, and often buggy. They need to be upgraded not only due to improved business functionality, but upgrades to the phones themselves.
They are support intensive.
What’s the solution – what’s better than a website?
WhatsApp
When I started working on WhatsApp I saw an opportunity to create WhatsApp apps rather than ordinary apps. Over the past year WhatsApp has improved dramatically (from a technical programming viewpoint).
I recognize that a WhatsApp app may not look as exciting as a really well designed app – yet, but it can do almost the same job. However it has same amazing advantages.
1) Your customer already has WhatsApp – it’s one of the 10 apps they use every single day
2) They know how to use it. There’s no learning curve
3) They monitor it regularly – far more often that checking email, SMSs or even opening other apps
4) It gives you a far better way to communicate with your customers
5) The expense of creating a WhatsApp app is far lower than an ordinary app and has reduced support requirements
So, how does it work? All you need is a mobile number. Customers would generally start the app by sending a WhatsApp saying “Hi”. It returns an image and/or a video and/or text and a menu for them to choose an option.
It is fully automated, just like any app. So whether it is a loyalty app, a ordering app, a customer support app, a delivery app it does the job.
Imagine loading a schedule onto an app with delivery addresses of your customers. Your delivery vehicles follow the schedule and almost like a tracking system, the app sends a WhatsApp to customers giving the estimated time of delivery to each customer. Similar to Uber, but using WhatsApp!
Big companies will continue designing Apps. Smaller ones can use a WhatsApp app.
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