As of today there are approximately 5 million apps on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store combined, moreover, close to 5000 new apps are launched into the App Store and Play Store each new day, but not all of them are successful.
Mobile Apps are considered as failures when they do not get a healthy number of downloads and/ or receive a high number of legitimate negative reviews, which in turn results in poor ratings on the App Store and Google Play Store.
Although they might get onto the store platform, they will hardly get any downloads, and if they do, you might probably see a lot of bad ratings and reviews for them.
Let's look at why apps are not successful and what causes their failure:
1) Improper or lack of Mobile Testing
One of the most important stages in a mobile app's development life cycle is the Testing stage, if there are any discrepancies in this process, it will directly reflect on your app's as well as your company's reputation.
With the app's usability, functionality & compatibility at stake, it is imperative to ensure an error-free Testing process and eliminating every possible bug in the Mobile application.
2) User-Interface isn't engaging or interesting
The main goal of any app is to be easy and fun, it can be seen that the most popular apps today have a simple and easy-to-understand interface.
If the design of the app is too convoluted, then it would directly impact in customer's dissatisfaction.
3) Inept Research
An in-depth research must be conducted before creating an app, similar to building a strong, successful business. It must be kept in mind that this is a unique proposition for the app market.
If not, a comprehensive study must be done on the competitors, in case your app idea already exists in the market.
Lastly, you must analyse your target base and focus on their needs to create maximum value.
4) Lack of Awareness
Since the amount of apps that are being added to the store at such a high number, there is a big chance that your app might not get the reach it deserves in order to maximise downloads and get best ratings & reviews.
Creating a high-quality and high-value app will undoubtedly result in positive word of mouth, but since there are such a high number of competitors, it is important to analyze the available marketing channels and implement the best-suited promotion strategy.
5) Misleading Promotion or Information
It has been reported that close to 50% of users delete apps immediately after installation due to incorrect information displayed on the app page.
Showcasing illusory features about the app, in order to entice users into downloading the app, would unnecessarily increase their expectations from the app, in turn resulting in greater disappointment if the app is not consistent with what the user expects from the app.
In conclusion, having invested a considerable amount of time, effort and cost into developing an app and launching into the app markets, it is highly recommended that businesses address the above points to nip the issue in the bud.
Doing the required research to create a mobile application of real quality is invaluable since there already exists an ocean of apps. Be sure to design a fun, simple and interactive UI and UX for your mobile app as it adds plenty to consumer satisfaction, followed by implementing the right marketing strategy, to gain maximum traction.
Lastly and most importantly, setting an effective Mobile Testing process in place, does a world of good in eliminating functionality & usability concerns, so make sure you are investing well in your Mobile Testing process.