What do you know about the e-commerce mobile business and the benefits it may bring to you? The topic is very hot because a website alone isn’t enough anymore; you also need an application, which is a must-have in today's reality, when we do hundreds of things on the go.
Not convinced yet? Okay, we're ready to share our experience with you and name 10 top reasons why eCommerce apps are so popular and wanted. Moreover, you'll learn how to build e-commerce mobile apps and make them work for your success and profitability.
Interested? Then follow the link and read our tips.
Types of eCommerce Mobile Apps
We'll start our discussion of eCommerce apps from the very basics, namely, with their classification. So you'll get an idea of what it's all about.
As to building an e-commerce app, we'll talk it through too, just a little later, when we make sure we're on the same page (keep reading, and you'll get to it).
#1. Business-to-business (B2B)
B2B mobile e-commerce apps are focused on interactions between companies. To be precise, one company (business) sells a product (or provides a service) to another company (which is business too).
Suppose you manufacture and sell building materials, and your customers are construction firms (after all, they are the ones who use your product). Thus, you need some kind of platform to promote your company and find new clients in a better way. You can create a mobile application and work through it... or you're welcome to find an existing one and take full advantage of it (for a fee, of course).
By the by, here's a great startup idea: build a mCommerce project that serves as a meeting place for business representatives, and start getting your commission. All parties benefit.
#2. Business-to-Customer (B2C)
Here we’re dealing with the most popular type of e-commerce app. Simply put, there is a certain business (say, a company selling clothes online) and a customer (a potential buyer of clothes).
Today, a consumer-facing company, which sells goods of all kinds, from food to electronics, must have both an online and mobile presence. Undoubtedly, B2C projects have no chance to succeed without e-commerce mobile applications.
#3. Customer-to-Customer (С2C)
Situations, when a business works with another business (or the end customer), are quite understandable without further ado... but sometimes the deal is being made between the consumers themselves (yes, this also happens!).
Let's say you have a certain thing you no longer need (it can be anything: a mobile phone, a tablet, a child's stroller, and so on). You don't want to throw it away... what to do? A great solution is to resort to e-commerce mobile applications and all kinds of P2P marketplaces in order to sell it to someone who would put your item to good use.
#4. Customer-to-Business (С2В)
Now the turn has come to C2B e-commerce app development. As you've probably already guessed, we're talking about a consumer who supplies goods or provides services to a business. Do you think the individual has nothing to offer the company? Wrong! Photographers selling their pieces to an agency are a prime example of the Customer-to-Business approach.
If you're interested in developing a mobile e-commerce application of this very type, you need to come up with the idea of a digital solution, which provides consumers with a convenient place to promote themselves. What kind of services would they offer and what companies would they be trying to reach? It’s up to you to decide!
If you’re not impressed by the above classification system, we’re ready to offer you the second one which is based on the purposes of e-commerce app development.
#1. Marketing
Of course, the main task of mobile e-commerce apps is to sell the product, but sometimes the focus is not only on these clear tasks but also on marketing.
The point is to promote the product as efficiently as possible with the help of an application.
#2. Finances
These mobile commerce applications are dealing with e-banking systems, online stock trading, etc. Financial companies often create apps of the sort in order to improve their communication with customers.
#3. Bidding & Auctions
And again, here we have the variation of C2C mobile shopping development.
Among the eCommerce business goals of these solutions is to create a digital space for conducting auctions between consumers (so that they can mutually cooperate by selling useful items to each other on the basis of bids). Platform owners receive a commission on the transaction.
#4. Sale of goods or services
And last but not least... let's just say that it is the most popular type of eCommerce mobile apps.
Actually, such a mobile shopping application serves as a platform for finding consumers and selling them goods or services. We all use these resources from time to time, right?
As you see, everything is simple. The main thing is to have something for sale (whether a material commodity, virtual goods, or services) and someone who needs what you offer (a company, person, or group of people).
Okay, now you understand what types of apps there are, but the question remains: why should you be interested in how to build an e-commerce application? We’ll give you 10 main reasons!
Ten Key Benefits of E-commerce App Development
#1. Earning money
Mobile e-commerce apps will boost your income. Why? Because any customer now has an opportunity to make a purchase in your e-store (instead of buying goods in a real shop). Therefore, you’ll have more acting customers, which is equal to more money.
Anyway, a good chance to increase your profitability is a very impressive reason to create an e-commerce mobile application, what do you think?
#2. Strengthening of business
Here we’re discussing mobile apps that can augment e-commerce success.
Suppose, you, as the owner of a clothing store, are quite happy with the level of your income. But, of course, you’re unlikely to be against increasing your business profitability (and who would be?).
There are many options to improve your earnings, and one of them is by making a mobile responsive e-commerce site and an application. Thus, you offer your customers several ways to go shopping: in a real store or via the digital platform. Whatever your customer likes and finds convenient!
Moreover, having a real (physical) store isn't a must-have. A virtual one will do just fine.
#3. Following the latest trends
Successful businesses are those companies that follow the latest trends and implement the most relevant ones (such as building a mobile application for e-commerce projects) in their processes.
Ordinary stores have become outdated, they're not enough to be among the market leaders. The mobile e-commerce era has come.
#4. Mobility
Developing a mobile app for an e-commerce store implies getting maximum mobility. And we're talking not only about customers who can shop anytime and anywhere but also about you! After all, you, too, have a chance to manage your business on the go (literally!).
#5. Tet-a-tet with the client
The store manager rarely interacts with his customers directly, in a confidential manner. Thanks to the app for an e-commerce store, such friendly communication becomes possible, which leads us to the next factor, namely…
#6. Increased customer loyalty
So, you communicate with your clients in a confidential and friendly way using your mobile shopping service. This means you get to know them better. You understand what to offer them and how to interest them.
In other words, you've managed to build customer loyalty.
#7. Informing consumers about company news
If, when building an e-commerce app, you develop a push notification feature, you'll receive another tool for communicating with customers. You'll be able to inform them of your news, promote discounts and loyalty programs, and so on... simply put, you start reminding clients of yourself (or, rather, of your store).
#8. Better promotion
Your mobile app solution is also an advertising platform; what’s more, you’ve already purchased it (sounds cool, right?). And you're free to use it the way you like! So why not promote your business with it?
Let's say you can send sale notifications to the users passing by your store (the geolocation feature might help you!), thereby increasing shopping activity.
#9. Business growth
The mobile commerce market offers you an additional opportunity to develop and improve your company, and it'd be foolish to miss your chance to grow! This is an undeniable advantage for e-commerce businesses, so don't ignore it.
#10. Cutting costs
Completing the description of the e-commerce app development benefits, we'd like to add that the mobile platform allows you to reduce the cost of doing business. Working through a digital platform means you have a smaller staff and can give up your renting space (say, if you choose to work on a dropshipping model).
If we’ve convinced you, and you're interested in how to create a mobile e-commerce app, we’re ready to answer right now!
How to Make an E-commerce App?
If you want to know how to make an e-commerce app, you need to list all the requirements you want your mobile service to have. We can give you some tips, which would be relevant to any mobile solution.
So, these are features e-commerce apps must have:
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Sign-up/Sign-in. Most mobile applications work only if you register with them. But keep in mind, not all users are willing to sign up to make a one-minute purchase... so let's keep the registration feature optional (and consider offering your consumers additional signup bonuses);
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User Account. If your customer has chosen to become a registered user, he should have his personal page with the key data stored (name, age, location, purchase history, etc);
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Catalog of goods (or description of services);
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Feedback. As we said, the feature in question will help you learn more about the user experience. How did the consumer feel using your mobile shopping app? Does he have any claims and complaints about your service?
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Online chat. A real chance to get close to your consumer!
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Push Notifications. All successful eCommerce mobile applications have a Push Notification System to stay in touch with users by informing them of discounts and loyalty programs, reporting company news, etc.
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Search. The feature is focused on simplifying the navigation system and helping the user find the information he needs. As a result, customer loyalty is increasing.
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And don’t forget about filters to make the searching process easier!
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Order management: order status, viewing the history of completed purchases, tracking new ones, and more.
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Payment solution. E-commerce iOS (Android) apps are aimed to help you earn with their assistance. So, you don’t do without a reliable payment solution. This isn’t an easy task because it's about money! We hope, our tips will come in handy, and you’ll be able to implement them as best as possible.
Having an idea of your mobile service’s requirements, you can search for a company of experts capable of substantiating your conception.
In general, the process of developing a mobile e-commerce application consists of the following stages:
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Research. Preparation. First, you need to conduct a mobile commerce market analysis, assess the level of competition, and understand what your future user really wants. Only with this data, you can proceed to other stages.
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Prototyping. The next stage includes creating a prototype to illustrate each app screen. So you’ll know what your eCommerce app will look like.
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Design. It’s important to find competent UI/UX designers skilled enough to create a user-friendly and intuitive app interface (meeting your special needs).
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Development. Note that you’ll have to hire iOS, Android, and Backend developers because it's not enough to make an e-commerce Android app (or iOS). You need to figure out how to create a mobile e-commerce app, which will work correctly on any mobile platform.
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Quality Assurance. A qualified QA team will conduct all the necessary app testing processes in order to ensure the high quality of the final product.
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Release, the final and not less important stage of developing a mobile app for an e-commerce store. The correct app launch is half the success!
Cool E-commerce App Ideas
The most successful eCommerce mobile apps are those which, in addition to the usual functionality, provide users with a few original features. Here are some suitable examples - perhaps, they'll inspire you to create something of the sort!
Technical capabilities of mobile devices
Our gadgets have a number of unique features, and neglecting them is a huge omission. A popular online electronics store named Crutchfield didn’t make such a mistake! On the contrary, it uses a GPS navigator built into mobile devices in order to estimate the cost of delivery of goods in advance - such e-commerce app development benefits play into the hands of both the buyer and the supplier.
Shaking up
The Alibris e-commerce iOS app (an online bookstore) has found an effective approach to such a function of iPhones as “shake-up”. The result of shaking is the recommendations of books to read. However, some people doubt how random these recommendations really are.
A similar method is being used by the wine department of the Tesco supermarket (in its case, it’s about the recommendations of wines to drink).
Photo search
Amazon Remembers is a mobile shopping app, which helps customers find a product using only its picture. The search is being made through the extensive Amazon photos database.
List of products on the walls of the subway
It’s also worth mentioning a very original way of using the benefits of e-commerce app development, which was found in Korea where Tesco Homeplus opened a virtual-real grocery store. Any person may start shopping on his way home (or to work). The customer just needs to use his mobile device so that he can scan photos of goods glued with long strips on the walls of the subway.
Augmented Reality
Imagine: you walk down the street, point your mobile phone at the buildings around, and see on the smartphone's screen notifications on where and what is being sold around. By the way, eBay has already developed an application of the sort: it tells you what selling offers have been placed by users living nearby.
Probably, by now you are interested in another delicate issue, namely - the e-commerce mobile app development cost. Happily, we have the answer!
eCommerce App Development Cost
The cost of the project largely depends on the rate of the e-commerce mobile app development company you’ve hired. Read our article to find out all the details on the matter.
Before calculating the e-commerce app development cost, let's analyze how much time skilled app experts should spend working on your task. On average, we’ll give the following estimates:
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App interface design: 50 – 150 hours.
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App development: 400 – 700 hours.
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Backend development: 300 – 450 hours.
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Quality assurance: 250 hours.
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Project management: up to 200 hours
More accurate estimation can be obtained if you know exactly your app’s requirements. But even with such rough information, you’ll get an idea of how much it would cost to build an e-commerce mobile app.
And by the by, we’re happy to become your e-commerce app development company. We disclaim the ready patterns and create mobile app solutions from scratch. We always take into account the individual needs of the particular client.
Contact us right away!
