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You’ve made the leap and decided that it’s time to develop a mobile app for your local business, but you wonder what are the best features and functions an app should have to make it effective. In today’s post we’re going to take a look at ten of the countless features available that you can include in your mobile app. We’ll also look at why you might not want to load it down with too many features.

When you are planning a mobile app you want to decide on what you want the app to accomplish for your customers, and then design an app that does those thing efficiently. Your app should target the needs of your audience, but how do you find out what they need? You should ask them. Talk to your customers about how an app would make it easier to do business with you. Set up informal focus groups. Send surveys to your list.

Aside from all of the bells and whistles an app can have, never underestimate the importance of an appealing user interface. On a slick smart phone an app’s got to look good. Take a look at the mobile apps for some of the local businesses in your area alongside other apps for similar businesses in your industry to come up with a good look and feel. Focus groups can help with this as well.

Now here are eleven of the “must have,” features for a mobile app for local business:

1. Social login
2. Store locator
3. Click to: call, email, map (GPS mapping)
4. SMS push notifications
5. Product search
6. Mobile coupons
7. Social sharing
8. Shopping cart
9. Opt-in box
10. Ratings and reviews
11. Product research & background information

You want to be mindful not to overload your app with too many features because it can have a negative impact on the user’s experience. Mary Weilage discusses this issue in her article, Don’t overload mobile apps with features. When thinking about the best features to include in your mobile app, always go back to your primary objectives. Do you want the app to generate online transactions, or is the goal to encourage offline, in-person transactions.
Source: techrepublic.com/blog/app-builder/dont-overload-mobile-apps-with-features/716

Mobile apps for local business can be a great way to build both brand awareness and customer loyalty. Make sure to keep testing your app and getting feedback from customers about features they’d like to see that would make their lives easier, and to make sure that the app is indeed solving the challenge it was designed to solve.

When you’re ready to launch a mobile app for your local business, be sure to visit http://googleupdatesexplained.com/ today.