Statista reports that approximately 64% of the Earth’s population had a mobile phone in 2017, and this number keeps growing. Statista estimates that worldwide mobile phone users will reach 5.07 million by 2020. It’s quite a wide audience, isn’t it?
You have likely thought about what to do to win your audience as a CEO of a business. There is no single answer. Your business plans, resources and web properties will all play a role in which option you choose.
Mobile Website
Mobile websites are browser-based ways to access internet content, just as any other website. This website is designed for mobile devices and does not display well on desktop computers.
A responsive website is a way to optimize websites for mobile devices.
A responsive website consists of HTML pages linked together that can be viewed in any browser over the internet. This website is standard. This type of website is, however, designed to be displayed correctly on all sizes screens, rather than regular websites.
It is compatible not only with mobile-friendly sites and desktop versions, but it also scales down properly for smartphones and tablets that have touchscreen interfaces. A responsive website design is just as good for mobile devices as a desktop version.
Mobile websites that are responsive, or mobile-friendly, work well for supporting outreach strategies or PR campaigns. Mobile websites are a better option than mobile applications in terms of accessibility, compatibility, maintenance, and accessibility. They can be a great starting point to support and boost your mobile marketing campaign.
To help you decide between a website or a app, let’s look at the pros and cons of using app developers UK.
Pros
Compatibility. The website improves user experience on all types of mobile devices. Mobile applications, however, require the development of a unique version for each type of device and each operating system. Mobile users with different types of devices might appreciate responsive websites’ compatibility. These responsive websites also support integration with other mobile features, such as text messaging and QR codes.
You can reach a wider audience. Multi-device support responsive web design offers across different platforms makes it easier to reach a larger audience than a mobile application. Website wins when it comes to potential audience.
Maintenance and Support. Websites are also less expensive to update. A website can only be updated once. Mobile apps require the downloading of each update. With responsive/mobile websites, you can change the content or design by editing them once. This is a much better option than mobile apps which require you to download every single update. Updates become visible and active on all devices immediately after they are implemented.
Cons
Mobile websites offer greater reach and compatibility than mobile applications, while costing less. However, mobile websites have their limitations.
Convenience. Convenience. Mobile devices have different features than apps, including GPS, mobile phone dialing and cameras. However, APIs and libraries that are designed to solve these problems are being developed.
The screen size of a device is another factor that limits user benefits. Portability is the main reason users love small devices. But, mobile devices have a much smaller display than laptop screens or computers. Both responsive design as well as mobile websites don’t allow full access to all content on the desktop. Responsive web design adjusts for the screen size dynamically but it doesn’t make browsing content on a smartphone easy. Same goes for mobile websites, which reduce and rearrange the content that is available on the desktop.
User Experience. Because mobile experiences differ significantly from desktop experiences, using the same interface across both platforms can harm your UX strategy. This is mostly due the single-window restriction. The single-window restriction means that users don’t need leave the current page to find all the information they are looking for. However, it can be difficult with mobile sites to fit everything on one page.
Access offline You can still access your mobile website offline even if it is designed in the most simple and informative manner. Mobile websites cannot run locally. They require an internet connection to work fully.
Mobile App
Contrary to responsive/mobile websites which can be accessed via browsers, mobile apps must be downloaded from certain portals such the Google Play Market or App Store depending on the type and operation system.
Mobile apps provide faster access to content and allow for smoother interactions. Numerous recent statistics confirm the convenience of mobile apps. Flurry Analytics’ 2016 survey showed that 90% of smartphone users prefer apps to websites.
Another line of research from comScore shows that mobile web users have spent more time surfing the web than ever before, with more than 50% of that increase occurring between 2013 and 2016. Mobile applications account for 90% of this increase.
Mobile apps seem to be more popular than responsive websites, despite the many benefits. Before we get into the pros and cons, however, let us first determine when it makes sense for a mobile app to be built.
The Best Cases to Create a Mobile App
An application can be the best option for specific business needs. A mobile website is less effective than an application if you are planning to use native functionality like click-to-call, GPS, cameras, scanners, and click-to-call.
A good time to pick an app is when you’re creating a platform, such as a content market or social network. You will need to have access to many types of content, including images, text, music and Youtube videos. All these elements must be functional and dynamic.
An app is ideal for interactive games (Angry Birds), everyday tools (Evernote), or services that allow you track and train in real time and send reminders (FitBit & Duolingo).
An app for mobile data manipulation is an acceptable option. A mobile app is a good option when you need to do complex calculations or build reports (e.g. in banking and investment).
A mobile app could be an excellent addition to a website for banking operations and services. Banks (Bank of America Raiffeisen) have perfected this idea by selecting the most essential desktop web features that are important to them and placing those features in their apps. It makes it simple and easy to use.
To decide if you should build an app, it is crucial to examine the benefits and drawbacks of mobile apps.
Pros
Convenience. Because they are easier to use, the apps are more popular that equivalent websites. Mobile apps offer better user experiences, load content more quickly, and are much easier to use. Push notifications are available in apps, which is different from websites. Customers will be more loyal and retain customers if they can share updates, special features and reminders inside an app. The design of mobile apps is more intuitive than websites for adapting to different screen sizes.
Personalization. Apps for mobile devices are an excellent solution to services that need regular use. A mobile app allows users to make preferences, create personal accounts and keep essential information in one place. A business perspective, mobile apps offer better support in targeting an audience and building marketing campaigns for different audiences.
You can work offline. The ability to use mobile apps offline is another key advantage. Because apps can be installed on a mobile device they can continue providing access to content and features without the need for an internet connection.
Cons
Compatibility. For a mobile app to work properly, it must be compatible with the operating system. Each platform, whether it is Android, iOS, or Windows, needs a different version of the app.
You can develop a cross platform solution that will work on every device and operating system.
Cross-platform application frameworks do not support all features and modules of every operating system. A cross-platform framework might not support 3D graphics. This can lead to limitations when creating and displaying apps. Restrictions such as these can impact the stability of apps and lead to suboptimal functionality.
Support and Maintenance. It takes more time to support an application that has been developed for many platforms. It is essential that you provide updates and address compatibility issues on every device. This must be done regularly. Not only that, but you must inform your users and urge them to update to the latest version. The time and effort it takes to get approval in the markets where your app is installed is another issue.
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