The growth of mobile app industry has led to an exponential rise in mobile users of internet. While businesses continue to play their part in the growth of mobile application industry, the importance of users cannot be overlooked for its breakthrough expansion.
Any successful mobile app demands a few requisites to be fulfilled which include- programming language, platform, developers, budget, and so on. That being said, the most important factor in the success of any mobile app is the user. The product (app) is successful only if it satisfies the demand of the users, and so the prime focus while building an app is user research.
We breakdown why user research matters the most in the success of an app.
What is User Research?
Before a product is developed, the idea of coming up with something of the sort generates from the inconvenience faced by a user. User research is an umbrella term that involves everything from surveys, ethnographic interviews of the audience, usability tests and so on. The research helps identify the void people face in available products and helps you assess where your product stands.
Are User Research and Market Research Same?
User Research can be identified as a part of Market Research. While the goal for both remain same- to provide best experience to users of a product, Market Research is more into analysis of behaviour of the users, and focuses on a making a brand out of the product, demographic-wise. User Research involves understanding the wants and needs of users to improve how they feel about the product. Common features in User and Market Research include Analytics (new users, uninstalls, and User retention), and Competitor Analysis.
Importance of User Research in App Marketing
Without knowing what others would like to see in your product it’s pointless to design an app. Mobile app marketing is a medium that complements a brand’s offline experience, drives e-commerce, and helps connect a brand with its loyal customers. Because app marketing is not just about discovering an app in the app store, it’s important that existing users of the app talk about your product at various platforms- and that will only be possible with a brilliant user research.
Role of UX Research in Success of An App
Assists in Action
Without proper research, you couldn’t be sure of what your user wants, why they want it and how should your product deliver it to them. If you don’t create a user experience your target users can stick to, they won’t bother coming back for more. If sources are to be believed, 35% of smartphone users say functionality drives their decision of downloading an app. So your research is the key behind driving users to check out your product.
Conveys what your user wants
Not everyone using your app are millennials. The app needs to be easy to use without technical hindrance. When you design a mobile application, you are most likely to have a first-hand knowledge of how to use and the function it would have. However, it’s quite normal for your user to find it difficult to navigate through different sections of the app. User Research works best when you need to test usage of your app and can tweak it as per choices of your users.
Design for the user
One of the most significant reasons to include user research as a part of app development process is to build the understanding of target audience. Feedback from users allow you to include features that users find convenient to use, allowing you to maintain the design of the app. Direct involvement of the target audience helps in design process and fulfilling requirements of the app.
ROI
Although User Research is an imminent part of app design and development process, not all investors are keen on spending a good deal for this bit. Studies show that the ROI from UX Design and User Research come in handy to prove that the effort and investment are worth the funds. A prime example of putting user experience before anything else is the e-commerce giant- Amazon. They tweak and update changes depending on the data from the sales journey of a customer. In fact, the greater number of filters they allow for a product, the better is the user experience.
Summarizing, user research and analysis is a fundamental part of app development. Continuous engagement with the consumers ensures the progress of the project and helps measure the impact of any update your product has shown recently.