Does Your Small Business Need an App or a Website?
Marketing small businesses today is tricky. Having a presence online is essential, but many small businesses still struggle to determine whether they need a website or an app (or both)? Still others choose to only have a social media page.
But what a small business really needs will depend on a variety of factors. Let’s take a closer look at the options they’re faced with so you can make a more informed decision.
Your Social Media Page ISN’T a Substitution
First off, we want to be clear: Only having a Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter page is NOT a substitute for having your own website or app. In fact, it’s probably very bad for your business if you rely on those platforms.
Why?
Primarily because you don’t own them the way you own your own website or app. They don’t include features that many restaurants or pubs might value. And they don’t help potential customers find you, either.
What Every Small Business Needs
In truth, every small business regardless of type, needs a website as a basic layer for its customers. Even if you want an app for your business, look at that as an enhancement of your website.
The things is that search engines won’t necessarily include your social media page, and can’t include your app, for searches like “Italian restaurant near me.” But they can include your website. If you want to be found by customers who don’t already know your business, the only way to be found is through a website.
What’s more, you can add a bevy of features such as reservations, online ordering, and others to your website. So, you can get the majority of what you need out of a website and your business will be more easily found via search engines.
What an App Really Is
So you think you want an app? That’s fine and there are a variety of reasons to have one. However, you need to understand that an app is essentially a mobile-optimized website, packaged as a download. If your website is already mobile-optimized, then an app may even be superfluous.
The real question, therefore, isn’t app vs website, it’s whether you think you can convince your customers to download and use your app on a regular basis.
The True Cost of an App Download
If you want to go the app route, you need to remember that phone real estate is extremely precious. People are selective about what they install, and even if they install it, they may not use it. Keep in mind that very few people are going to download an app for a small sandwich shop with one location, but they might download an app for a restaurant or takeaway with multiple locations, provided there’s an incentive to do so, such as a free reward for a first-time purchase through the app.
Where apps really shine is if you want an all-in-one place where customers can book, order, and pay all in one place. Add in a loyalty scheme and promotions, and your app my be quite enticing to regular customers.
Additionally, there’s one thing apps can do that websites can’t: Push notifications. Push notifications, i.e. mobile phone alerts, are highly effective to getting customers’ attention. They tend to get higher visibility than other direct marketing methods, such as email.
How to Choose Website vs App
As mentioned above, your small business needs a website. Full stop.
Beyond that, the bottom line on apps is this: If you can’t articulate what you want your app to do that you can’t do on your website, then you probably don’t need an app. At least not yet.
Download AppyWeb and AppyBuild to get try the best of both worlds!