Should brands and services invest in a bespoke mobile app?

Mobile apps have become central to some businesses — ecommerce, airlines, banks and mobile focused services. In India, brands in these categories are investing in traditional mass media advertising to promote app downloads.

The name of the game is to get consumers to make the mobile app central to brand interaction. But what about brands or services which rely on traditional media or digital platforms to reach audiences? Should they invest in a bespoke mobile app?

Not all brands need a mobile app

Brands constantly evaluate whether they need to be present in a particular media channel or platform and the content which best suits that channel. For some, television may be the lifeblood. YouTube and long-form content may suit another.

Presence in such platforms is considered de rigueur by almost all brands. But it often leads to what Tom Fishburne called the 'social media ghost town' referring to the inactivity and lack of engagement. Similarly, brands need to evaluate the reason for a mobile app with the question: 'what will my mobile app do for my consumers that my activities in other digital platforms cannot do?'.

A luxury hotel may have a website as their main port of call for reservations, enquiries and even loyalty club activities. But a dedicated mobile app which serves as a catalogue, reservations and for loyalty program management adds ease, convenience and security.

For some businesses creating a mobile friendly website should suffice; for others, a robust presence in social media platforms should do. Even if a significant number of its target audience are active mobile app users, if a brand cannot figure out what value will accrue to consumers through a bespoke mobile app, then it may go down the 'ghost town' route - uninviting and unused.

What kind of a mobile app does my brand need?

Mobile app usage mostly centres on a few key 'now-moments'. They are: bored now, urgent now and repetitive now. 'Bored now' is typically when one has a few minutes to kill, waiting for an event to happen. It could be at a doctor's clinic, at an airport or on a commute. Such moments are ideal for casual games. It is difficult for brands to enter this domain as it is highly cluttered.

Consumers are used to playing the 'best of the best' games. It will be difficult for a brand to match the quality of game play and production values. There are exceptions though. Gumulon - 'the world's first mobile game controlled by chewing' — is a game created for Stride chewing gum. It matches the big names in terms of addictiveness and production values. The game makes clever use of iPhone's or iPad's front-facing camera and a face-tracking technology.

For mobile users, there are moments when a piece of information is required immediately. It could be an address, the price of a product or some research information. Such 'urgent now' moments are great for apps with utility as the key value. 'Repetitive now' is an activity where a consumer accesses information at regular intervals - think sports scores, stock market information, weather data etc.

Again, there are tonnes of utility and productivity apps addressing these moments. A brand needs to evaluate whether they can add value in such moments. The ever-shifting mobile space brings up new usage occasions. Social TV, pertaining to live sports and coverage of events, aided by mobile phones and tablets is a common phenomenon. Brands can perhaps play a role here.

Large mobile screens and tablet usage have potentially created another unique mobile moment - that of 'imbibe now', where a user imbibes content in the form of videos or long reads (presentations and reports) which could simply entertain or enrich the user. Large IT companies have a habit of releasing white-paper focused apps (it's another matter that many of them are not updated in ages!) which cater to such moments.

What's in it for me: the brand benefit

The thing to bear in mind is that an app is not another form of advertisement. Overt branding efforts may be a 'switch off ' for consumers. When it comes to games, the association to the brand has to be unique, but subtle.

In 2008, Barclay card released the famous 'water slide' TV spot which went on to become a viral hit on YouTube. The mobile game replicated the water slide effect with only visual cues reminding the user of the brand. Chipotle's Scarecrow app conveyed the brand's core belief subtly through a mobile game. Productivity and utility based apps can directly link the brand's benefits of course.

In Sweden, Audi Quattro launched the 'Snow Rescuers' app which is a voluntary service for Audi Quattro owners to sign up and rescue owners of other vehicles who are stuck in bad weather. The benefit is simply reinforcement of Audi being a reliable, all-weather, all-terrain vehicle.

Closer home, brands in the food space have become hyperactive in the digital domain with dedicated sites for recipes, complete with videos. Such brands may well consider a mobile app as part of the marketing arsenal as it adds an 'anytimeanywhere' and 'personal' dimensions to consumption of such content.

The challenges

Just as noticeability is an issue with advertising, so it is with mobile apps. With millions of apps on leading play stores, it is not going to be easy to be discovered. Mass media advertising to promote the app usage is an option which may not be available to all. But that was the route adopted even during the early days of digital properties.

Remember the big bang advertising for Sunsilk 'Gang of Girls'? More than discovery, the central issue for branded apps is its 'reason for being' and 'reason for repeat usage' With mobile games the answer is relatively easy but with utility or productivity linked apps, it's tougher.

The app's purpose, design (not just how it looks but how it works and functions) and content will drive repeat usage. In this context, aside from UI/UX and design credentials, it is important to partner with a specialist who can plan and define a mobile app strategy and execute it. With the exponential growth of smartphones and mobile app usage, it is far too important a channel to be ignored or taken lightly.

This article first appeared in the Brand Equity supplement of The Economic Times.