Looking to make money with an app? Apps4U talk about ways to bring in the cash through mobile phone app stores!
There is a lot of money in apps.
We’ve all seen those overnight success stories of app makers rising to heights of extraordinary wealth. They are the dot.com billionaires of the new generation.
The two most valuable app stores — Google Play Store and Apple App Store — took in a combined total of $35 billion in 2016. The amount of money in the industry is simply extraordinary.
With so much cash flying around, there is ample opportunity for people to experiment with their own app business ideas, but how can you make money with through apps? Discover 5 app business ideas that will grow your business.
App Business Ideas For eCommerce Apps
Before we go any further with this point, let’s establish some important facts:
- The average person spends 3-4 hours per day on their mobile phone.
- 85% of that time is spent on an app.
- Nearly 90% of people prefer apps to mobile websites.
- More than 50% of online sales occur on mobile, and that figure is rising.
- More than 50% of retail is done online.
So we’ve established that people buy more products through their phones than anywhere else, and that they prefer mobile apps to mobile websites.
An eCommerce app then, is by far the best place to sell commercial products. People enjoy the ease-of-use and accessibility of apps, which draws them in.
The navigation, customisation and simplicity of purchase results in a much higher sales conversion rate than a mobile website, too — up to 300% more sales per visitor.
As far as app business ideas go, if you’re looking to making some money and start a company, the platform is the ultimate way to draw in customers and secure revenue.
App Business Ideas For Takeaway Ordering
A rise in smartphone usage and a dip in the amount of free time people have has resulted in one thing: an increased demand for online takeaways!
The UK market for online takeaway orders is projected to climb to £8 billion in the years to come, making it one of the country’s largest and most profitable markets.
While the entire market is seeing growth, where sales are seeing the biggest increase is apps. Just Eat, the UK’s most popular takeaway app, saw a rise in over 50% of revenue. As mentioned in the point above, people share an affinity for apps, given their ease-of-use and accessibility.
Apps also have the benefit of being able to include bespoke takeaway app ordering systems — such as those offered by us here at Apps4U — allowing for quick and simple takeaway delivery orders being placed.
A major contributing factor in the growth of the industry.
This fruitful app business idea is set to continue growth in 2018 and beyond. If you’re looking to earn a slice of the app revenue market, look no further than a takeaway ordering/management business.
Freemium Apps
You cannot talk about great app business ideas without mentioning freemium apps and games.
The concept is simple, works and has exploded in recent years. For those who have been living under a rock for the past decade, the idea is that you allow a user to download an app for free but lock certain content behind a paywall, which means if they want to experience the full benefits of the game, they must pay extra.
In reality this means that many users pay far more than they would if you were to have offered the app up for a few pounds and opened all the in-app content as part of the user experience.
The model is seriously effective. 98% of all revenue on the Google Play Store comes from freemium apps.
Loyalty Apps
Loyalty apps don’t actually bring in direct revenue from apps themselves, but they are the catalyst for increased business revenue. By designing an app that rewards customer loyalty, such as a points system or platform that offers discount codes and coupons, you encourage three things:
- Customers will be more inclined to use your business repeatedly, as they feel they are rewarded for loyalty and see the deals you provide as offering better value for money over competitors.
- You will improve your reputation in the eyes of your customers, who see loyalty programs as an appreciation of their custom. Showing your dedication to a good customer experience is a strong method of building genuine brand loyalty.
- Downloading a loyalty app is free, easy, requires no commitment and offers only benefits to customers, therefore, you are likely to get a high volume of downloads. Even if customers don’t use your app, it will now be part of their app interface and a visible part of their mobile phone experience. As the average person checks their phone 85 times a day, this provides a very strong benefit to memorability and branding.
Each three of these points helps to increase the profitability of your business. Demonstrating the power of a mobile app loyalty program.
Free Apps
Free apps get all the downloads.
A study by Cambridge University discovered that while only 20% of all paid apps get over 100 downloads, and only 0.2% get over 10000 downloads, more than 20% of free apps hit that magical 10k figure.
So free apps are where the people are, which means they are where the money is. How do you make money through free apps? — without the aforementioned in-app purchases of freemium products.
Advertising.
Now, you don’t want to start advertising on a business website like a takeaway ordering website or an eCommerce brand, but there are plenty of other types of apps business ideas you can develop and offer for free that you can advertise with.
Here are a few ideas and examples:
- Widgets — Weather, sports news
- Tools — Torches, app interfaces
- Novelty Apps — Digital lighter, humorous screen overlays
- News Outlets — Blogrolls, RSS feeds
90% of all profits on the app store come from free apps. By building an app platform that you can allow users to download for free, and build money through advertising, you can stand to make substantial profits.
Interested in making money with mobile apps? Got an app business idea you want to turn into a reality? Apps4U can help! We’re mobile app developers that specialise in building apps that don’t cost the Earth. Perfect for keeping costs low and profits high!
