Having a great Web Application is certainly a lot of help for many small businesses in attracting more customers. Hence there is now an ongoing race to come up with the best applications for companies, and this has become quite the challenge.
Understanding data relationships
Before even considering what kind of app to create, small business owners need to understand first how their customers use data. As Marc Gayle points out in particular, they need to know what customers would want to get out from the data that the app provides. For instance, many customers don’t want to simply get a list of stores where a business sells their products, but rather get directions to the store nearest to their current location. The app must be able to provide that exact information whenever customers need it.
There is also the matter of using the right channels when it comes to delivery of data requested by customers. While mobile web surfing has taken quite a leap in the number of users in recent years, it is still not a good idea to just focus on them. In order to reach all customers, it would be best to come up with as many different version of the application for each of the channels they use.
Designing the user interface
Usability is another major consideration when developing a web application and it is even more so when creating one for small businesses. Customers want to use the app off the bat without taking too long to figure out how it works. And even when customers do need assistance, the small business might not have enough personnel to assist them.
The best place to start here is at the first thing that customers see when they run the app: the user interface. As with other aspects of the app design process, a certain familiarity with customers will help a lot in designing the most suitable user interface. Take into consideration such factors as age groups, technology proficiency levels and personal habits when choosing design elements like font size, button size etc. Janko Jovanovic reminds that it is always important to release a test version of the app to a small section of customers first so that you will be able to assess the effectiveness of everything, including the user interface.
Improving the work
In order to assess how effective the app is, the business need to get as much feedback as possible. And as Mike Jones explains:
“The sooner feedback pours in from stakeholders, the sooner web app development will start moving in the right direction. There’s no point in developing quickly if it’s going the wrong way. With this in mind, it’s highly important that stakeholders can easily provide feedback on what they would like to see improved.”
Thus, make use of all the channels you have to get feedback. For instance, you can create a Facebook page dedicated to the app to collect as much information you need to create a better version. Remember that this is not a one-time process, so you need to be continuously active in getting these feedbacks and refining the app.
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