One way to take your ecommerce business to the next level is by creating a mobile app. Mobile shopping is getting more and more popular, so catering to your customer preferences makes perfect sense.
If you think creating an app for your store is daunting for a small business owner, we’re here to clear up any doubts. We will discuss how to launch and promote your ecommerce mobile app and provide tips to make your store’s app successful—so read on!
What is an Ecommerce Mobile App?
Ecommerce mobile apps allow customers to shop online using their mobile devices, including smartphones and tablets. They are convenient for customers to browse and purchase products on the go. Customers can also use an app to track their order status, receive shipping notifications, and contact customer service with ease.
If you have many repeat customers, an ecommerce app for your online store definitely makes sense. It gives your customers fast access to your store in the palm of their hand.
An ecommerce app makes it easy for customers to shop on mobile
Why You Should Create an Ecommerce Mobile App
Still on the fence about creating a mobile app for your online store? Read on to learn more about reasons why to invest in an ecommerce mobile app.
Mobile Shopping Is Popular
More people are getting cell phones and spending more time online using their phone. This affects how people shop, so it’s safe to say that mobile ecommerce will only get more popular.
On average, 30.6% of consumers worldwide buy something online with their mobile phone every week. And in the US, the number of online shoppers who bought products through their phones almost doubled from 2019 to 2021.
A Better Shopping Experience for Mobile Customers
According to this survey, 76% of consumers find shopping apps more convenient than websites. And according to the same survey, 44% of Gen Z consumers, 34% of millennials, and 33% of Gen X prefer to shop on brand-specific apps.
Even if your online store looks perfect on a mobile browser, nothing beats shopping on an app for one simple reason—it’s more streamlined!
Standing Out From the Competition
With so many online stores, you need to find ways to differentiate yourself from the competition. Not many small businesses have ecommerce mobile apps, so developing one can be a great way to set your business apart.
How to Launch an Ecommerce Mobile App
Not only is an app great for your customers, but it is also great for your brand. If you’re ready to take the plunge on creating a mobile app, we have groundbreaking news! You can easily create a mobile app for your small business without hiring a third-party developer. And, it’s affordable!
Ecwid by Lightspeed is an ecommerce platform that makes it possible to sell through several channels simultaneously. If you have an Ecwid account, you can sell through an online store, social media, and/or marketplaces.
That’s not all—you can also sell via your store’s mobile app! Your customers can shop from your store with a single tap of an icon with your brand on it.
Ecwid by Lightspeed makes it possible with ShopApp—an automated app solution that allows every Ecwid store owner to sell their products or services on a smartphone app.
Using ShopApp, you can develop an app under your brand and publish it in the Apple App Store and Google Play.
An example of a shopping app created using ShopApp and Ecwid by Lightspeed
ShopApp is available for free to all annual Unlimited plan Ecwid users. If you use other Ecwid paid plans, you can get a ShopApp for a one-time fee of $590.
Learn more: Сomplement Your Ecwid Shop with a Mobile App—No Coding Required
How to Promote Your Ecommerce Mobile App
Now that your ecommerce mobile app is ready to go, it’s time to promote it! Here are some tips:
Optimize Your App Name for Better Ranking
According to Statista, Android users have a choice of 3.3 million apps and Apple users have 2.11 million apps available to them.
To make the search more convenient for users, app marketplaces use app names as primary keywords. These are words and phrases that define what your content is about.
If your brand name doesn’t say what you sell precisely, include some keywords to make it more clear.
eBay’s app name perfectly displays what kind of app this is
As your app name will be what users see when they search the app store, try to keep it short and sweet (less than 10 characters). As for the app page, the Apple App Store will let you use 30 characters for a name, while Google Play has a 50-character limit.
Avoid using irrelevant keywords, especially if they’re popular. For example, an app for a sneakers shop won’t need words like fitness or health in the first position. The download, or conversion, rate of your app defines your ranking. If you attract users to your app page using an irrelevant name or keywords, fewer of them will install it when they see what your app is actually about. That will decrease your app conversion rate.
Use Relevant Keywords
Keywords can help determine when your app will show up in search results. That’s why using relevant keywords when describing your app is important.
Choose keywords based on words you think your audience will use to find your app. You can use the following tools to find keywords relevant to your app:
Remember that popular keywords may drive a lot of traffic but are highly competitive. Less common keywords drive lower traffic but are less competitive. It may make sense to rank well for less common keywords than rank lower for popular terms.
The Apple App Store and Google Play have different requirements for keywords in the app description.
For the Apple App Store, you shouldn’t overstuff an app description with keywords. Instead, you’ll be asked to submit a list of keywords limited to 100 characters. You can follow the App Store directions for optimizing your app for search.
As for Google Play, you’ll need to create descriptions that contain keywords because the algorithm will use them for search results.
You will need to create a short and long description for your app on Google Play. The short one is the first text users see when looking at your app’s detail page on the Play Store app. It should be no longer than 80 characters. The longer description has a 4,000 characters limit, and Google Play will use it for keyword searching and your app’s details.
Read more about improving your app discoverability on Google Play.
Add a Promo Bar to Your Website
A promotional bar on your ecommerce website is a great way to tell your visitors that you have an app. By clicking on a promo bar, site visitors can get a link to download your app in the App Store and/or Google Play.
By default, Ecwid’s developers will help you place a promotional bar in your online store that will suggest installing your app.
You can disable it, but we recommend you don’t so that every store visitor knows about your brand’s convenient multichannel shopping.
Place a QR Code in Your Store
A QR code is another quick way to send customers to your mobile app’s download page. When customers scan a QR code with their phone’s camera, they’ll be taken directly to your app listing in the App Store and/or Google Play. Way more convenient than typing!
You can place a QR code on your store’s homepage, a pop-up, or the Contact Us or About Us pages.
You can also print and display it in your offline or pop-up store, on product packaging, business cards, flyers, or merch.
You only need the link to your app to create a QR code. You can do that using various QR code generators online (like this one).
Use the Get on App Store/Google Play Badges
You might’ve seen these Get on the App Store or Get on Google Play badges on other websites. They are clickable links that take users to an app listing in App Store or Google Play.
Examples of the Google Play and App Store badges
If you want to use badges on your ecommerce website, you can download the Apple App Store badge here. As for the Google Play badge, you can generate it here.
These badges will complement your QR codes because they are clickable and can be placed on any webpage: in your blog, landing page, or newsletter.
How to place a Google Play or App Store badge on your website:
- Download the badge
- Resize it using any photo editor (if needed)
- Upload it to the page you need
- Link it to your app page.
Announce Your App Launch Via Email and Social Media
Don’t be afraid to make a little noise over the launch of your mobile app. It’s a big event for your brand and its customers, so don’t be stingy with the advertising. Create and send a newsletter about the app launch and prepare some social media content. You can add QR codes to social media pictures too.
Consider providing discounts for shopping via the app. It will encourage customers to try out your app and (hopefully) fall in love with it.
If you want to go all out with your marketing, running paid ads is an option. You can retarget them to display the ad to people already familiar with your brand to increase the chance of them downloading your app.
Encourage Customers to Rate Your App
Ratings and reviews are important both for ranking and increasing loyalty to your brand.
Reviews for the Ecwid Mobile App on App Store
All orders placed through your ShopApp can be publicized on your sales page. So why don’t you send an email to customers and ask them to rate your mobile app?
You should try to get customers to leave a review for your app within a day of their purchase because that’s when they’re still excited about their order.
Create Your Ecommerce App
Creating a shopping app for your ecommerce store is not as difficult as it may seem. With Ecwid by Lightspeed, you don’t need to be a tech expert or hire expensive developers to make a convenient and beautiful ecommerce app for your business.
Ready to start selling with your mobile app? Fill out this form and we’ll start working on it. You can also check out this page to learn more about ShopApp.
