Preparing for the Holiday Season – 3 Tips to Market Your Business App Successfully in 2020

As fall has approached, the traditional holiday season is right around the corner. Christmas is not only the most wonderful time of the year for a majority of people, it is also especially so for digital brands that provide content and offerings accessible through mobile. The holiday season drives more app downloads in the U.S. than any other time of year. In fact, there is a term for it – Christmas Creep.

This is the period of increased interest and demand for mobile apps leading up to Christmas. It is an annual occurrence that begins in October and intensifies week-on-week. This time also, millions of people will unwrap new mobile devices that will be presented to them by friends and family. They’ll take selfies on their phones, fit them with cool accessories, and, of course, download lots of apps to make their mobile experience better.It is important, therefore, for businesses to station their business where people come looking – on their mobile devices. Businesses that are planning to go digital feel that it is the perfect time to hire a cross-platform hybrid mobile app development company to turn their idea into a high-performing app.

Take a Call on Native App Development vs. Hybrid Mobile App Development

Mobile app development is always a challenge for businesses, primarily because of the confusion surrounding the choice of development methodology. Building a mobile app requires a great deal of research and analysis of the type of business that the business owner wishes to establish with the mobile app.Factors such as scale of operations, traffic, user preference, and other consumer-facing parameters need to be taken into consideration before finalizing on a solution.

Native App Development

Native app is built exclusively for one of the main app platforms like Android and iOS. Dedicated tools are available for native apps development for respective operating systems.

Native app development lays more emphasis on the app deriving, underlying capabilities of the operating system for which it is developed. Developers have the ability to directly leverage the use of core smartphone hardware elements such as GPS, proximity sensors, camera, microphone, etc. to add more features in the app.

Hybrid Mobile App Development

Hybrid mobile apps are a blend of both native as well as web solutions. The core of the application in the case of hybrid apps is written, using web technologies (HTML, CSS, and JavaScript). The codes are then encapsulated within a native application. By making use of plugins, the hybrid applications can easily have full access to the mobile device’s features.

Hybrid mobile application development is the right choice for businesses that do not intend adding specific app functionalities based on platform. It offers an easier development approach, time and cost savings, and compatibility across a variety of platforms. Native apps are specially designed for a particular device and, therefore, offer better speed, ability to work offline, and better access to layout features of the platform.

App Marketing for the Holidays

Online shopping and the use of mobile apps has exploded during the pandemic. While it has not been an easy time for brick and mortar stores as the ever-changing Covid-19 impacts consumers and businesses, online businesses seem to be flourishing. Challenging as this year may have been, businesses need to start thinking about the holiday season plans and preparing for what is likely to be an unusual Christmas season.

Applying the following tips will greatly help businesses market their apps effectively this holiday season:

• Design Early for the Holiday

Add design elements in your business app to go with the holiday season theme and make it look and feel more Christmas-y. This step will not only cheer the app users, but also help businesses lay groundwork for the upcoming deals and offers on the app. Giving the business a Christmas makeover by incorporating Christmas-related features, helps boost activity and engagement on the app. It also helps increase app downloads as people look forward tousing the improved feature-rich app.

• Start Your Marketing Campaigns Early

The Google search trends show that people have started preparing for the Christmas season early this year to avoid last-minute confusion. The consumer behaviour has changed dramatically in 2020 and starting marketing campaigns early can enable businesses to test what works and what doesn’t. Since most people are likely to spend Christmas away from families and friends, they are looking for ways to make the Christmas time special and are planning ahead. In fact, since most shopping for gifts will be done online this year, people have started their Christmas purchases already. This makes sense as the online stores as well as delivery companies are sure to be swamped and there is a risk of shipping and delivery infrastructure to be stretched even further. Online businesses need to start introducing holiday-related promotions earlier this year so that they have enough time at hand to easily spread the word about the promotions that they are offering.

• Offer Exclusive In-app Deals for More Downloads

Online businesses need to accelerate the timeline for their mobile app campaigns. An in-app Christmas sale or promotions for the app users can boost the numbers and increase app downloads as people would fear missing out on the deals. Communicate the plans on social media, promote it in the newsletter as well as other opt-in channels so that the followers can know in advance about the upcoming events.

The main aspect of any marketing strategy for businesses that has completely shifted in 2020 is a more serious reliance on the digital channels. This changed focus is not going to change during the holiday season as well. In fact, you may want to lean in even more heavily on digital marketing than you have been. Forecasts suggest that this will be a digital-first holiday as even more consumers look for ways to spend it in the comfort of their homes, without stepping out at all.

The best strategy for businesses right now is to continue leveraging their digital channel and get their holiday promotions out even earlier than in previous years. The extra time that they give themselves will come in handy to help address any potential last-minute delivery issues. Most businesses are taking this approach and kicking off the holiday season even earlier this year. 

Summary

The holiday season is upon us and in 2020, things will be a lot different. For starters, a heavy shift to online shopping is forecasted this holiday season. To make the most out of this opportunity, look for ways to market your mobile app for the holiday season 2020.