Why most mobile apps aren't used
Robert Gary, Vice President of Nuance Mobile Care, provides a perfect explanation for why so many mobile apps aren't used:
"[C]onsumers frequently view smartphones and tablets as a faster, easier way to get information than using a PC. The ideal mobile app must meet those expectations in order for it to be an effective way for merchants and other companies to interact with consumers. So the main reason that apps aren’t used? It’s because an app isn’t designed to meet that very basic customer desire – getting an immediate outcome to their problem or need."
Gary goes on in the interview to explain that free apps are abandoned more frequently than paid apps. Less than five percent of people are still using a free app within a month of installation. This is a particular problem for businesses who use apps for customer interactions because they usually spend a significant sum in the development of free apps for their customers. Here is another quote from the VP of Nuance Mobile on the issue of free apps:
"Put bluntly, the vast majority of tablet and smartphone owners don't see enough benefit from free apps to continue using them. Or, they simply forget what they have on their phone. Customer service-related apps, coincidentally, are usually free. From an ROI perspective that can be really scary for an Enterprise because although the apps are free for users, companies spend between $20,000 and $150,000 to develop an app."
