Mobile apps are sizzling hot these days, and it’s not just hype. Applications for smart phones and tablets actually save businesses real and significant amounts of time and money. A survey conducted by the SBE Council found that owners of 1.28m small businesses are saving 372.8m hours/year through the use of applications.
This saved employee time means existing savings of approximately $17.6 billion for businesses. If all small business owners started using mobile apps, it would create $56.9 billion in savings each year. There is no way that any sane businessman would say no to these numbers, so let’s move on to the how part.
The first decision is regarding the platform, since most consumers will be divided among iOS (iPad, iPhone and other Apple devices), Android Apps and the Blackberry. Of this lot, Android is the one that’s running away with all the growth and the biggest share of tablet and smart phone users. So while it’s a good thing to develop applications for all major platforms, many businesses can’t do this and will have to choose one.
But for those who have to choose, Android is the best one. Thankfully, Android is open source so anyone can use it and develop and distribute applications for free. There are no entry barriers or fees or licenses to worry about.
It can be done by an in-house developer or by outsourcing it to a consultant or application development company. It depends on how much existing and future work there is for the developer. For example, is there is a need to develop other applications, or the same application for other platforms like iOS, Blackberry or Windows Phone 7?
Also note that there is a difference between a mobile site and application. The site is just meant to allow customers to access the site on their phones and tablets. The application, on the other hand, needs to have a specific purpose.
Consider a restaurant that has a mobile site same with menus, pictures and other restaurant info. The application, however, can accept orders and reservations. Many restaurants even use mobile apps to take orders from guests onsite at the tables. This reduces the need to hire wait staff on top of speeding up the ordering process, thus saving the restaurant a lot of time and money.
Manufacturers can save just as much using applications for things like product support, finding the closest dealer using GPS, etc. They can offer installation videos and demos, and product usage guides. Some may even allow live or online support through an application.
Most any business can develop at least one or two applications that will cut down the company’s costs. Millions are already doing it, and in the process saving billions of dollars. Considering the huge number of DIY tools and developers available to help a small business develop its mobile app, the process is bound to be cheap. It’s important to remember that this is not optional any longer. Any small business that does not offer mobile apps is putting itself on the road to extinction.