Users give mobile apps one shot 26% of the time

January 31, 2011 10:17 AM
Devindra Hardawar
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Mobile app users are a fickle bunch: while they’re willing to give new apps a try, 26 percent of the time the apps never get a second shot, according to a study by the analytics firm Localytics.

The big takeaway from the news for mobile app developers is that first impressions of your app matter greatly, and you should also pay more attention to the number of people who keep using your apps, instead of just looking at download statistics.

Localytics looked at thousands of apps across every major mobile platform using its app analytics software. The company found that one-time app usage was slowly on the rise throughout 2010 — in the first quarter it was around 22 percent, but by the end of the year it grew to 28 percent. The increase is most likely due to more consumers getting smartphones throughout the year, and we can expect the number to grow even further over the next few years.

Unlike installing traditional software on computers — which involves locating installation files, performing the installation, and then running the program — mobile apps offer a lower barrier to entry that entices users to try them and then forget them. On mobile platforms, you generally only need to locate the program you want in an app store, choose to download it, and wait while your device does all the installation work.

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  • http://bradshawenterprises.com Richard Bradshaw

    This is interesting – I've definitely done this myself numerous times when looking for iOS apps. If they crash on first load I've deleted them without ever trying again, assuming that the quality is low. I've also deleted apps for prompting to set up accounts before letting me use them, many want this for really simple things – pointless!

  • http://www.devindra.org Devindra Hardawar

    Yah, honestly I figured this number would be higher, I do it quite a bit myself–

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Manuell-Labor/100000650220992 Manuell Labor

    If its a free app, agree with the figure. What is the rate if you pay for the app?

  • SophieVu

    It should come as no surprise to learn how fickle mobile users are since they have hundreds of thousands of options at their fingertips. This means that when it comes to mobile your first impression is everything. Despite this, companies everywhere are rushing to make their offerings available without working out all of the kinks—which can hurt the company’s reputation and bottom line. I work for Kony, and it’s vital that companies invest the time and resources to develop a long-term plan prior to launching their offering. This plan should address the offering’s capabilities, what devices and platforms it will be offered on, and plans for addressing future technological advancements. Along with the long-term plan, companies must be willing to continually monitor and seamlessly update their offering to ensure that they continually offer users the experience they are looking for. This will help keep users coming back time and again while helping your bottom line.

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    [...] Hardawar, Devindra. “Users give mobile apps one shot 26% of the time.” 31 January 2011. Retrieved online 15 February 2012 from VentureBeat.com: http://venturebeat.com/2011/01/31/mobile-app-usage/ [...]

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