App City, Author at App City

The Holiday Marketing Guide For Small Businesses

App City — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 10:08:58 +0000

The Holiday Marketing Guide For Small Businesses

We have officially entered the holiday season! October through January is filled with holidays from Halloween to New Years. As a small business, you can take advantage of this joyful time by taking your marketing efforts to the next level. There are many different ways a small business can celebrate (and profit from) the holidays, so let’s jump right into to our extensive guide.

Customer Appreciation

Holiday cards: Send out personalised holiday cards to your most loyal customers. While your customers expect to receive a Christmas card from their grandparents, they aren’t expecting one from your small business. This will be sure to leave a positive impression and shows that you truly appreciate your loyal customers. If you don’t have the resources to send out personalised cards, you can also hand out cards to customers in-store, or include them in online orders.
Kid-friendly fun: A great way to capture customers is through their kids. Hold a kids’ contest like a make-your-own-ornament contest or holiday colouring contest. You can give away one big prize or give everyone small prizes, like Halloween candy. Besides a contest, you can make your business kid-friendly by providing a children’s space with toys and books to keep tired, fussy kids occupied while parents do their holiday shopping.
Entertainment: Not just the kids need to be entertained while they are out shopping. Think about hiring musicians or a DJ to play in your store or outside your restaurant to attract customers and get them in a joyful mood.
Giveaways: Who doesn’t love free stuff? Show your customers how much you appreciate them by giving away useful items with each purchase, like good-quality wrapping paper or ribbons for gift wrapping. You could also give away nice gifts with purchase, that can serve as stocking stuffers. Customers will be more likely to buy so they can receive the free gift. Want something more branded? Print a personalised calendar to give out to your clients, a perfect gift for the new year. For example, a dog groomer could showcase a different breed of dog each month.
Perks: Use perks to stay competitive during the holiday season. Draw in customers with perks such as free shipping, gift-wrapping options, double loyalty points, or guaranteed-before-Christmas delivery dates.

Holiday Sales

Black Friday: Black Friday is one of the biggest sales of the year, so you should take advantage of this day too. You can start hyping up your Black Friday deals early and get people excited about shopping in store or online. The important thing here is to make it a limited supply. You want people to plan in your store for after their Thanksgiving dinner. As Mashable states, “Using whatever data-driven analytics you’ve got access to, figure out the products that are most in-demand for your target market, and then give your customers what they want: A deal they can’t find elsewhere.”
Small Business Saturday: A sales day dedicated to small businesses cannot go unnoticed. Small Business Saturday, started by American Express in 2010, is all about celebrating local merchants. This sale day encourages consumers to “shop small” and give independent business a chance in between the huge Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales of larger brands. Reward customers who shop local with special deals and offers on Small Business Saturday.
Cyber Monday: And the sales don’t stop after the weekend! Cyber Monday has become one of the most profitable days for businesses selling online. In order to provide your customers with the best possible experience on this day, ensure that your website – both desktop and mobile – is optimised in the weeks leading up to these holiday sales. Be sure that your site or app can handle the extra traffic if you are offering a “once a year” discount.

Pro tip: To get most of all these holiday sales, tie them together with tactics like handing out Cyber Monday coupon codes on the receipts of Black Friday purchases. This way, customers are enticed to come back to do the rest of their holiday shopping.

Special Publicity

Partnerships: Partner with other local businesses by putting their coupons in customers’ shopping bags, and have them do the same with yours. The more variety in participating businesses the better, as customers are probably in need of many different holiday supplies (e.g. food, gifts, decoration).
Local publicity: A great way to get some local publicity is by getting listed in local holiday gift guides. This could be in the form of a local magazine, or a local blogger sharing their “Top 20 Gifts For Your Mum”. Compile a list of relevant media outlets and bloggers and reach out with a free sample.
Decoration: There’s something magical about a store window filled with a beautiful holiday display. It’s also a great way to promote your business to casual passers-bys. Find some time to add beautiful holiday-themed decor to your storefront to get into the spirit. Even online businesses can add some festive flair by adjusting their website design to match the season.
Charity: People in the holiday spirit like to give back to a good cause. As a small business, you should consider giving back to your community during the holiday season. You can add a charitable element in various ways. Maybe you donate a small portion of your proceeds to a local animal shelter, you might set up a donation box in your establishment, or you could organise a toy drive in partnership with surrounding businesses. You’ll get customers in the door, while also promotion a charity and your own business.

Now it’s time to map out your small business’ holiday marketing strategy. You can start by picking one or two options that most suit your small business and go from there. The holiday season can bring your business a lot of good, in terms of revenue, new customers and publicity. Even though the holiday season is still a little ways off, it’s a great time to start planning those promotions!

Related Tag: App Developers Australia

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12 Killer Reasons Restaurants Need To Go Mobile

App City — Thu, 05 Oct 2017 12:19:10 +0000

The mobile revolution is in full swing: competitive mobile app are no longer only for big-budget brands but have become a viable – and almost necessary – option for all businesses. Along with the rise of mobile applications comes seamless mobile ordering, mobile payment and mobile loyalty, most popular in the restaurant industry. These mobile features are inherently changing the way restaurants do business, transforming the customer’s experience along with it.

Are you still on the fence about taking your restaurant mobile? The number of valid reasons small businesses can offer up for not having a mobile app decrease each year. By now, you are probably familiar with the ways mobile has changed the business-customer relationship. But do you know all the ways in which a mobile app can help your restaurant stand out in a crowd of like-minded competitors?

The first killer reason restaurants need mobile is, of course, to allow customers to order their food in the most convenient way. Mobile order-ahead allows customers to order food remotely, pay for it from their phone and pick up the order at a specific restaurant location or have it delivered. According to Business Insider, “quick-service restaurants have been turning to mobile order-ahead apps to extract higher sales, intensify customer’s loyalty and heighten foot traffic.” McDonald’s has recently joined its QSR competitors – Starbucks, Domino’s, Chick-fil-A, Taco Bell and Dunkin Donuts- in the mobile order-ahead arena. This trend, while still in its early days, is predicted to be a $38 billion industry by 2020, accounting for 10.7% of total QSR industry sales.

Mobile ordering is a combination of mobile devices, apps and integrated payments that take the remote ordering concept to a whole new level, hence its rapid growth. For restaurants, this results in service with exceptional efficiency, an innovative customer touch point and a better bottom line.
While mobile food ordering is often at the core of a restaurant’s app, there are many other reasons a restaurant should consider going mobile. We could list many, but for today we will list the top 12!

1) We are mobile and we want mobile experiences

It’s a matter of time before mobile is an expected- most likely necessary part of the customer experience.

2) Your competitors are already in the mobile space- even if you are not

Mobiles not a fad (everything’s going mobile now) and it’s not going anywhere. Brands in all customer-facing sectors are going to have to investigate what mobile can bring to their customer experiences, or miss out and lose precious ground to the competition.

4 in 5 restaurant operators agree that restaurant technology helps increase sales, make their restaurant more productive and gives their restaurant a competitive edge.

3) Mobile’s good for business

There’s not a study out there that hasn’t pointed to the rising popularity of mobile in the restaurant industry. And mobile is only going to get more pronounced, as customers are coming to expect it as part of their restaurant experience.

4) Adding technology for customers doesn’t only benefit customers

The push for mobile, connected tech and digital experiences isn’t being led by marketers- it’s being requested by customers. If we’re constantly connected at home and work, then the loss of that connection when we’re out and about can actually determine how we travel, where we shop, and where we eat. The good news is the drive for constant connection also pays off for brands; people are more likely to go where WIFI is available. Brands can use the data collected via WIFI to personalise experiences, leading to more repeat visits.

5) Timing is everything

The best way to get people through the door is to reach them at the right time and place.

Mobile allows you to do just that: reach your customers where they already are: on their phones. Improve this mobile experience by looking at the data. For example, uncover when your push notifications opened the most, when people uninstall your app, and when they use the app to place an order.

6) Your customers live in the now

If they can’t find you when they need you, they’ll find someone else. Even if you don’t want to invest in a branded app for your restaurant, at the very least you need to optimise your website for mobile.

7) Social Media is your friend

Particularly along Millennials, social referrals and FMO (Fear of missing out) dictate what people buy and where they buy it from. To support this sharing culture, restaurants should have an app that makes sharing check-ins, loyalty rewards and information (like food photos) easier.

~ 50% of participants become aware of a particular meal through social media

~ 35% of restaurant consumers are sending messages on social media while dining.

~ 25% photograph their food on a routine basis.

~ 72% of photos taken at a restaurant are of main meals which are mostly dinners

Social media has become such a widely used medium, that one negative review can cost a business around 30 potential customers.

8) Mobile makes it easy to communicate

Not only do push notifications have higher view and click-through ratios than email, but they also have a significant impact on app engagement and retention rates. Push notifications bypass the lock screen, so users can see them without performing additional actions. Push notifications are permission based marketing, so when someone opts-in to receiving push notifications, you already know that they have an interest in your business.

~ Push notifications boost app engagement by 88%

~ 65% of users return to an app within 30 days when push is enabled.

9) Mobile loyalty makes more sense than punch cards

Mobile loyalty is gaining popularity; getting rewarded for visits and purchases on the spot is a compelling prospect. If you can let customers place a regular order, skip a queue, save on their bill or enjoy a free dessert, you’re going a lot further towards building a loyal repeat customer than simply stamping a card.

10) It works. There’s precedent.

Mobile marketing has proven most effective for restaurants, just look at all the successful brands. Restaurants using mobile have managed to optimise operations, drive marketing and build reputation. Their apps have lead to a steady stream of repeat visits and extremely loyal customers.

Due to their mobile app Dominos has seen a 1,900% growth within the last 6 years.

11) Mobile Payment are your future

Contactless card payment is now common place, and while tap and go mobile payments aren’t quite as common, services like Google Wallet and Apple Pay are boosting the profile of NFC smartphone payments in most sectors. Not prepared to accept mobile payments? It might be time to look into adding it to your repertoire (it’s not as scary as it sounds).

12) Mobile is the jumping off point. For so much coolness.

Seriously guys have you looked at what you can do with connected tech and digital marketing? This is science fiction level awesomeness, and we’ve barely even scratched the surface. Sure you can take it slow and stay small. Or you could build a symbiotic and ever-expanding ecosystem of phones, terminals, beacons, geofences, cameras, displays, biometric scanners, intelligent dressing rooms, virtual worlds tech that hasn’t been invented yet all so you can hyper-personalise the service you provide to your customers.

And it all starts with a mobile app.

Related Tag: Mobile Apps Developers

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How To Get Your Staff On Board With Your New App

App City — Mon, 11 Sep 2017 10:53:40 +0000

Your app is live! How exciting! But how do you make sure it’s a success? A key factor in your app marketing is your staff’s buy-in. If the staff knows and understands the value of the app, they will be able to relay this information to the customer. The more excited and knowledgeable your employees are about this new piece of technology, the better your app will perform. So, it’s time to train your staff on your business’ new app.

Step #1: Overcome Sceptical Employees

Your new app will boost sales, increase productivity, and improve operations. Regardless of these strong benefits, getting every employee on board can still be a challenge. Employees might be sceptical to adopt any new technology, as they are happy with the status quo. According to a study by MIT Sloan Management Review and Capgemini Consulting, 63% managers said that the pace of technological change in their workplace is too slow, primarily due to a “lack of urgency and poor communication about the strategic benefits of new tools.”

The solution to dealing with sceptical employees is allowing them to understand why the app is an improvement from what they had before. The job of a small business owner or manager is to help people cross that bridge, and get them comfortable with the new technology. If your employees see how it will make their jobs easier and better, they will embrace the change.

This is where you state your case, putting forth a compelling “vision for what the technology is and what it’s going to do.” You need to demonstrate that the app offers economic and rational benefits for the business. And even more important is to help them understand what’s in it for them.

For example:

Higher productivity: Your job will become more efficient, as you will spend less time taking phone orders.
Higher revenue: With more orders coming in, you will be making more tips.
Happier customers: With the new loyalty program, you will have more positive interactions with customers.
Direct feedback loop: Customers will be able to share what you did great and where you could improve.

As a small business owner, think of the ways in which you were persuaded to invest in a mobile app. What convinced you that this was the right decision? What benefits are you expecting to see from its implementation? Your employees are probably going to need the same amount of convincing you needed before you started the app project.

Step #2: Prepare Customised Staff Training

It is important to take into account individual differences like interest and familiarity with digital technology. Some of your employees won’t be able to live without their digital devices, while others might have difficulty using their smartphone. Your training efforts should reflect these differences. Think of your employees who struggle the most with adapting to technology.

There are many different training approaches you can use, but your app training will be most efficient if you take a hands-on approach. A face-to-face training is going to be the most impactful and useful method, as you can personally teach your staff the ins and outs of the new app and allow them to ask any questions they have. We suggest calling a meeting with the entire team and start with a presentation on the new app and its functions.

We have created a Staff Training Template which is available for all our clients, that you can fill out for your own business and use to train your staff on your new app. All the slides include examples, so make sure to edit the information so it pertains to your own business — check out the notes under each slide for tips.

Part of this training should also consist of setting specific and measurable goals. These training goals should outline what each employee will be able to accomplish with the new app. You can set a quota for new app downloads, for example. Maybe you want at least 20 downloads per week, and the staff needs to work together to reach this. Keep these goals in mind when training starts to ensure that each employee knows how to reach the objective.

However, simply standing in front of the group and showing them the new technology on a screen is not enough. After the training session, give them a chance to test it out. Have everyone download the app to their own phone and experiment with it. Besides understanding the app’s value, they should also be knowledgeable about how each feature works.

Step #3: Make It Fun

Once your business has fully implemented the mobile app, share the positive impact it is having with your staff. Have you seen a steady increase in loyal members? Have orders or reservations increased? Has your business received new positive reviews? Highlighting these quick wins ensure continued support for the app.

You can make these quick wins even more fun by rewarding employees who have effectively incorporated the app in their daily work duties. You can get creative with this! For example, you can organise a contest where the winner is the employee who got the most customers to download the app. Their prize could be a compensation, a special perk, a recognition, or anything else that would get them motivated. You could hang up a running tally of the employees’ scores in the break room to spark some fun and friendly competition. Experiment with gamification to create a buzz around the mobile app amongst your staff.

Step #4: Provide Feedback

Feedback is one of the most important parts of implementing new technology in a business. Open up the communication channels, so your staff feels comfortable sharing both the positives and negatives of the new app. Ask them how they think the loyalty program is working. Ask them how the mobile ordering workflow is treating them. Ask them how the app has improved their daily tasks. Take their feedback seriously, as your employees are the ones using the app every single day. For instance, if they mention that customers aren’t participating in the loyalty program because the rewards don’t get them excited, it’s time to switch it up. When there are issues, you will be able to tackle them before they spread to your customer base. In turn, you can also give your employees constructive feedback on how they are doing with the app.

Conclusion

The only way your new mobile app is going to exceed expectations is if your staff is 100% on board. They hold the power to make the app a huge success. It is your job as a small business owner to get them as excited about the new app as you are. Customers will pick up on this positivity and be more likely to give the app a try. Feel free to use our Staff Training Template to make training an efficient and motivating experience.

Related Tag: Business Apps Developers

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Progressive Web Apps: The Next Mobile Experience?

App City — Mon, 28 Aug 2017 11:52:36 +0000

You may not have heard of them yet, but Progressive Web Apps (PWA) are about to change the mobile landscape. While introduced in 2015 by Google, PWAs have gained popularity this year. So before it becomes all the rage, what are Progressive Web Apps exactly?

What is a PWA?

What’s more, service workers enable a Progressive Web App to load instantly, regardless of network quality. In other words, this web app is designed to work offline and in areas of low connectivity. With the help of pre-caching, it stays up-to-date, serving the user with the newest content upon launch. Similar to an app, the user is able to save the PWA to their home screen to access it at any time. Making it installable, without the hassle of downloading it from the app stores.

PWA vs. Native Mobile App

While native school apps development provides the highest quality user experience, they come with friction for both the user and the developer. One of the biggest differences between PWAs and native apps is the presence of the “app store middleman”. For Progressive Web Apps & Competitive mobile apps, this middleman is completely taken out. For app developers, no app store means you are no longer restricted by iOS and Android’s rules and guidelines. A developer will not have to go through an approval process, allowing the app to be used as soon as it’s ready. There is also no need to manually update the app, as the revised app version will instantly and automatically be available to everyone.

From the perspective of the end user, they are able to access the PWA without having to download it from an app store. Instead, a PWA is linkable, which means anyone can launch the app straight from a URL. You can share it on social media, email, text message, online ad, or link it to a QR code, and the user will instantly be immersed into an app.

By removing all this friction, it will be much easier for users to have access to the app. As the diagram below shows, with every step of the native app download process, 20% of users are lost. Consumers find it tedious having to find the app in the app store, wait for it to download, and worry that it’ll use up all their storage space before they can start using the app. Because PWAs drastically reduce the amount of steps they need to take (essentially making it a one-step process), there is a much higher chance of people actually using the app. In fact, we use 4x as many websites as mobile apps, resulting in a much larger potential user base with a web based app.

Finally, PWAs are highly discoverable. This means they are easily identified by search engines, allowing them to come up in the search results just like any other web content. PWAs will be treated with traditional SEO, so it gets indexed for more than just the app name, but also the content within the app. It will not be treated as an app specifically, but as a piece of content that can “answer” someone’s “question.”

To put this into context, 60% of searches are now from mobile devices and this number continues to grow. People are actively using their mobile devices to find content, so imagine your PWA coming up in those search results. For example, someone might be looking for a salon in the area, so they use the Google search bar to start their inquiry. The search results will most likely show directories like Yelp and salon websites. If you own a salon business, your PWA could rank in these searches, driving customers straight from the search results to your app. This first touch is an opportunity to convert your customers. An app-like experience will allow customers to schedule a salon appointment from a UI built for mobile. It’s a seamless process starting with a web search and ending with a completed task in the app.

PWA vs. Mobile Website

PWAs are a hybrid of native apps and mobile websites, but how do they differ from responsive websites? Unlike “old school” mobile websites, PWAs are fast. Note that 53% of users will abandon a site if it takes longer than 3 seconds to load. PWAs load instantly, regardless of network state, and provide fast-to-respond interfaces. This eliminates their dependence on the network, as mobile websites do, ensuring an instant and reliable experience for users. A PWA also updates in the background, so users never need to wait for new content to load.

In addition, traditional mobile websites focus on static information, while PWAs are able to provide users with dynamic functionality. PWAs offer an immersive full-screen experience, allowing customers to place mobile food orders, participate in a loyalty program and contact a business. It can also re-engage users with web push notifications, similar to native push notifications.

Who Is Already Seeing Success?

To drive both traffic and re-engagement, cosmetics brand Lancôme launched a Progressive Web App to deliver a fast, app-like experience to their customers.

Lancôme saw mobile traffic exceed desktop traffic for the first time in 2016. Despite a growing number of mobile site visitors, mobile conversion rates didn’t match those for desktop. 38% of shopping carts on desktop led to orders, while the conversion rate for the mobile web was only 15%. These numbers revealed that customers were experiencing significant obstacles when trying to purchase via their mobile device.

At first, Lancôme considered an e-commerce app as the solution. However, they understood that an app only made sense for customers who visited regularly. Mobile shoppers would not return to an e-commerce app weekly, let alone daily, so they wouldn’t see the value in downloading a Lancôme app. The company wanted to build the right user experience on all of their devices. According to Google, “The company needed a fast-loading, compelling e-mobile experience, similar to what they could achieve with a native app—but one that was also discoverable and accessible to everyone via the mobile web”. Enter the Progressive Web App.

The results are staggering:

84% decrease in time until the page is interactive
17% increase in conversions
53% increase in mobile sessions on iOS
18% open rate on push notifications
8% of consumers who tap on a push notification make a purchase

All told, the PWA has been a tremendous success, helping the beauty giant make great strides into the mobile revolution.

What does the future look like?

While native mobile apps are by no means going extinct, a PWA can provide the ideal solution for businesses looking to build a compelling and easily adoptable mobile experience for their customers. PWAs offer the best of both worlds, with all the shareability of the web and all the functionality of the native app. App City has been working on web apps behind the scenes for some time and we are very excited about this new technology. It finally gives us the ability to implement native features into our web apps. We will be part of the future of apps, where the mobile app and the mobile website become one.

Related Tag: Mobile Apps Developers

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Train Your Restaurant Staff on Mobile Technology

App City — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 10:01:00 +0000

Today, 4 in 5 restaurant operators agree that restaurant technology increases sales makes their restaurant more productive and gives their restaurant a competitive edge. The fastest way to make this happen in restaurants is by training and educating staff on emerging mobile apps. Nurturing and embedding technology is proven to drive sales. Our economy is experiencing a cultural shift to digital and mobile, so it’s important to share with your staff how your business is keeping up with the times. In this blog post, you’ll learn how training staff on apps and mobile technology can be put into action.

When is the right time to train your staff?
Immediately, upon arrival! Your new employees should undergo an all-inclusive new-hire training program. If you are an independent business owner, you might have read “training program” and thought “we’re too small for THAT”. On the contrary; any business needs that training in place if their long-term goal is to grow the business.

How do you keep your staff informed?
Most restaurants have their own communication flow. An industry leader, ZingTrain, keeps their staff informed by using various channels — a letter in their paycheck, check-ins from the manager, printed updates in a central and consistent spot, and monthly seminars. They recognise different learning styles and encourage other businesses to communicate in three ways: reading it, hearing it, and testing out. Technology and our businesses change constantly. It’s crucial to put a system in place to spread the word about the latest company news.

Below you’ll find a training checklist you can use for your own restaurant or cafe. Fill it out with the right information pertaining to your business, and then use it when training new hires. We recommend that you actually teach each topic to staff members. A handout is simply not as effective, and will not serve your business as well.

CHECKLIST FOR STAFF TRAINING ON RESTAURANT TECHNOLOGY

Apps to Find our Restaurant: Google, Yelp, Facebook.

- Staff should be invited to look up your restaurant so they learn more about your business, as well as understand how new customers find you.

Apps for Social Media: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

- Good stats for your staff to know:
  - 49% of consumers learn about food and your restaurant through social networks. That means you can reach about half of the people on social media just by becoming active. If a customer wants to take a pic of your restaurant, or their meal, do NOT interrupt that. It’s money in your cash drawer!
  - 24% respond to conversations about food on social media. Engaging with your followers about your food photos helps build your brand and gain trust.
- Staff should encourage customers to stay in touch through social media to receive specials and notifications about events.

Apps for Restaurant Reviews: Yelp, Zomato, Urbanspoon, OpenTable and TripAdvisor, Facebook.

- Good stats for your staff to know:
  - For every 1/2 point rise on OpenTable, sales can rise by 5%.
  - A one-star increase in Yelp rating leads to a 5 – 9% increase in revenue.
- Remind your staff that higher sales translate to higher tips. Monthly educational seminars focused on good service and terrific hospitality can drive positive reviews and improved volume. Role play is the single most effective shift for servers. For instance, certain members of the staff know the “script” and act it out in a table service setting. Staff learned the language, the tone to use, and how best to invite a customer to spread the word on a review app.

Apps for Discounts: Groupon, Yelp.

- Inform your staff on how you feel about discounts, and teach them how to implement them (including register training). Here’s an example: “We are occasionally on Groupon. We will train you when we know we are running a special discount.”
- Note: Discounts for restaurants need to be used sparingly. Record your results—too often an owner assumes a discount didn’t work. Record your data, look at the data, then reach an accurate conclusion.

Apps for Delivery: Uber Eats, Menu log etc.

- Train your staff on how each of these delivery systems work. More specifically, show them which machine is for which app, how they should enter information in the cash register, what happens when the driver arrives and who is allowed to turn off an app when the kitchen is in the weeds.

Apps for Payment: Square, Paypal.

- Teach your staff that you accept different methods for payments. If a phone call comes in asking about Square, they probably need to talk to a manager, as it may be related to catering or venue questions.

Apps for Loyalty

- Loyalty is king, and your staff should be fully aware of this. Returning customers are crucial to your restaurant, so teach them how to bring up your loyalty program to customers. Loyalty is the preferred method of gaining market share and is more effective than discounts.

Unique Branded App:

- In today’s mobile-friendly climate, a branded app for your restaurant can encompass all of the above technologies. In other words, in-house apps link to and combine the features of many other business apps. However, it can only be successful if your staff embraces it. If you decide to go for a fully-integrated app made specifically for your restaurant, or already have one, you need to train your staff on its features, functions, and benefits. Have them download the app on their own phone, and give them some time to interact with it themselves. By educating your staff on the app, they will be more engaged with the technology. Lack of training here will lead to a distrust, apathy and, ultimately, an app that fizzles away.

How can you keep your staff up-to-date on the ever-changing restaurant technology? With the above checklist, you can teach every staff member from the get go. With only a 5% growth projected in the restaurant industry for 2017, training your staff on technology can give you the advantage you need.

Related Tag: Mobile Business Apps

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The Best Apps to Transform You Into a Productive Small Business Owner

App City — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 12:32:27 +0000

The Best Apps to Transform You Into a Productive Small Business Owner

As a small business owner, you need to wear a lot of hats. Accountant, Social Media Consultant, Marketing Manager, Customer Service Specialist; the list is long. Luckily there are hundreds of apps to help you become a better entrepreneur, and lighten the load just a little. We picked out 5 of the best apps for small business owners, some are well known, some you might have never heard of. Most of these tools are free for personal use and offer a business plan at a small monthly fee.

Get hyper-organised with Evernote

Evernote allows you to keep all your notes in an organised place. You can clip pieces of information from the web, tag them for easy searching and embedding pictures, tables, audio, and video. This tool allows you to access your business content wherever you are, on all your devices.

How to use it:

Organise company information into separate notebooks (e.g. Business Docs, Coupons, Flyers, Insurance Info, Receipts & Expenses) and share them with team members.
Use the Evernote camera to scan and save bills and receipts to keep track of your expenses.
Create a central repository for ideas and marketing tools by saving reviews, tweets, and flyers. You can draw on these when crafting new strategies and materials.

Become a financial whiz with Wave

Wave is an accounting software made specifically for small businesses with fewer than 10 employees. It’s the accounting service for non-accountants! It lets businesses easily track sales and expenses, manage invoices, pay employees, scan receipts and generate reports. They have several different apps to cover every aspect of small business accounting.

How to use it:

Fully customise your expense/income categories and get a charted overview.
Take a picture of your receipts and turn them into complete accounting transactions.
Automatically generate accounting reports, like P&L, Sales Tax reports, balance sheets etc.
Invite the people you trust, like business partners, assistants, and accounting professionals, to help you manage books.

Don’t waste another minute with Toggle

Toggle is the simplest time tracker, designed to help you get things done. With one click, the timer tracks where every second of your time is going. You can track projects, view graphs, export timesheets, and sync your output with several other project management apps.

How to use it:

Log your hours and learn where you actually spend time. Get an overview of the hours spent on different tasks and projects.
Estimate project timelines and keep track of your progress with the Project Dashboards. Uncover which tasks take the most time and how profitable your projects and clients really are.
Easily see what your team is working on in real time and find your most productive team members.

Make payments easy with Square

Square is perfect for businesses who depend on point-of-sale purchases, but have a limited budget for payment systems. You’ve probably come across Square already with its easy card-reader that can be plugged into a smartphone or tablet. It will allow you to scan payment cards and process the payments just like the big POS systems (all without the need for an internet connection).

How to use it:

Allow your customers to easily leave a tip, with the preset 15%, 20%, 25% tip buttons (or with a customised amount).
Store payment details for your regular customers. You can now change them at the tap of a button and save time at checkout.
Use Square’s Point of Sale app for inventory management, customer directories, and digital receipts.

Outsource tasks with Upwork

Upwork is the ultimate tool for small businesses with even smaller teams. Don’t have a graphic designer? Or a content writer? Or a mobile developer? Upwork allows you to hire freelancers by posting a job on their platform. You will be matched with the right freelancer for the job. As Upwork CEO, Stephane Kasriel, says “hiring freelancers allows businesses access to sharply-honed skills that simply aren’t available elsewhere.”

How to use it:

Browse freelancer profiles, reviews, and proposals, then interview top candidates. Hire the best fit for you and begin your project immediately.
Use the Upwork platform to chat, share files, and collaborate from your phone.
Make payments through Upwork, so you only pay for work you authorize.

Even though a small business owner needs to be able to wear many hats, rest assured that you don’t need to be an expert in everything. With these mobile small business apps, your small business will be ready for anything that gets thrown its way. And it can all be done on-the-go, which is exactly where entrepreneur and small business owners are.

Related Tag: Mobile Business Apps | App City

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What is Driving M-Commerce in 2017 (And Beyond)?

App City — Tue, 23 May 2017 12:20:20 +0000

The online (and offline) business owners of today are taking a keen interest in understanding and exploring the potential of mobile commerce, also referred to as m-commerce. This is because m-commerce is expected to grow to a 250 billion market by 2020. Nearly 4.77 billion people are expected to use smartphones, capable of making mobile purchases, by the end of year 2017. If you have an online store, or are planning to sell online, it’s time to get acquainted with the latest trends of m-commerce and prepare yourself for the huge leap.

Retailers are not only choosing for responsively designed “storefronts”, but also looking to create solutions that fit different screens and operating systems. The realm of ecommerce has gone beyond offering the best deals. Instead, it’s about providing an exceptional experience to users. As a result, mobile app development is the go-to for providing a seamless m-commerce experience, beyond just making your website responsive.

So, what are the trends driving m-commerce in 2017 and beyond? Let’s explore:

Smart Coupons

Thanks to GPS services, you are already receiving location-based messages from your favorite businesses right to your phone. However, with the advancements in augmented reality and wearable technology, this will be taken to a whole new level. With this technology, offers and discounts from your favorite brands can be a fully immersive experience. For example, you’ll be able to hold up your phone to uncover nearby businesses that are offering coupons and special deals, including their menu and rating.

Wide-ranging Purchasing Options

In this day and age, you don’t have to spend hours (or even minutes) in line anymore to make a purchase. Retailers are providing customers with an array of different purchasing options. Some offer the ability to buy online and have it delivered, some encourage “drive through solutions” once the order is placed on an app, and others motivate customers to pre-order so that they can avoid long queues. Retail giants like Amazon are also offering fast-track delivery by providing same day delivery through drones. They are also pioneering the “Just Walk Out” groceries by allowing customers to scan their own purchases with their phone and paying on the go.

Swipe n’ Shop

This year, retailers are starting to implement one-touch purchases and fast order-placement solutions. This technology will enable the shoppers to browse and make transactions with from their favourite store with the touch of a button. In essence, this gives retailers the opportunity to transform any piece of media (like a picture of video) into a sales catalogue. For instance, Instagram will allow certain retail partners to tag products in the photos they post. As Wired says, “If people click on these tags, they can get a more detailed description of, say, a new handbag or a pair of sunglasses, and if they click a second time, they can buy the product through the retailer’s website.”

Chat Before You Buy

There are times when customers get confused and overwhelmed with the number of options available to them in an online store, whether it’s related to the products or the accompanying services. These dilemmas, left unsolved, lead to cart abandonment. In fact, the global cart abandonment rate is 76.8%, up 2.4% on the previous quarter. Companies are trying to combat this cart abandonment by allowing to customers to conveniently chat with you before completing their purchase. But it doesn’t have to stop their, online store Yepme, for example, introduced the “Try First Pay Later” option so that the customers can connect with friends and family to get their input before paying for a product.

NFC-enabled Payments

Through Near Field Communication (NFC), two devices – like a phone and a payment terminal – can communicate with each other in close proximity. NFC allows for contactless payments. The customer, then, just has to tap their phone (synced a payment card) on the payment terminal. This payment method is becoming more and more popular, and will go far beyond using your smartphone as a payment device. For example, Visa recently launched a pilot program of payment-enabled sunglasses. The glasses appear to be a regular pair of shades, but include a small contactless card that allows the sunglasses to work as a contactless payment method. It’s a great example of how NFC can make any object a “wallet”. Spending money is about to get even easier.

Voice Control Technology

Google Assistant, Alexa, Siri, and Cortana are some of the best voice control technologies out there today. The CEO of Google, Sundar Pichai says that 1 in every 5 searches made through Google Search App is a voice query, proving the rise of voice control. Adopting this technology can really enhance your customer’s search experience. According to USA Today, these mobile digital assistants connect “pieces of need/want assessment, information gathering and evaluation, and other elements along a buying process.” More recently, these assistants have also been able to complete purchases on behalf of the consumer. Gartner says that soon these assistants will be able to make more complex purchasing decisions, such as buying back-to-school backpacks (appropriately themed and in stock) in time for your child’s first day back to school. No need to browse online anymore, you’re voice-driven mobile School Apps assistant has your back.

Feedback Messages

After making online payments, many customers are skeptical as to whether or not their purchase went through. Sending an in-app message confirming that the transaction has taken place successfully will help consumers ward off their payment concerns. TUNE revealed that the apps that send “Thank You” notes and notifications about different offers were able to optimize their purchase funnel. So make sure that you integrate these feedback loops in your mobile store.

The above mentioned trends are spearheading the m-commerce movement this year. The buyers of today have made themselves very clear – they are fond of mobile when it comes to shopping. As digital growth is soaring high, it is important for online retailers to consider the latest m-commerce and e-commerce movements. Take steps to make your store ready for what’s coming.

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6 Hacks for Writing Knockout Push Notifications

App City — Mon, 24 Apr 2017 12:18:12 +0000

Push notification is the new big boy in town! You might already know the basics of how to use them, but crafting push notifications that users actually want to receive is a true art form. Let’s quickly go over the essentials: Creating the perfect push notification starts with understanding how customers interact with your app. The more you know about your users, the more personalised you can make your push notifications. These messages should enhance the customer experience, not harm it. So with every new push notification, users should feel satisfied and happy about your brand.

But knowing all this information doesn’t necessarily mean that you know how to write the actual push notification. These hacks will help you create killer copy for every single push notification you send out.

Be Authentic

The number one thing customers want from brands is honesty. And this holds true for push notifications as well. Customers can spot an inauthentic brand from a mile away, so don’t try too hard or force yourself onto customers. Be consistent when it comes to writing your push notifications, staying true to your brand voice and making sure it aligns with your web and email communication. According to Peopledesign, “authenticity speaks volumes. Brands that tell a genuine, honest story resonate with people. People believe in honest brands.” iShare combines honesty and transparency with a little bit of sass in their push notification.

Action step: When you have written out a push notification, take a moment to reflect on the voice and tone it conveys. Does it match your brand identity? Will it makes sense to customers as part of your larger brand narrative?

Be Valuable

If anything, your push notifications should add value to your customers’ daily life. Be helpful and engaging, instead of annoying. Over 50% of app users find push notifications annoying. The other half finds them useful, but only if the content includes valuable information. You exist in the lives of your customers for one ultimate purpose: to help them accomplish something. So make sure you deliver on this! The goal is for users to look forward to your messages. Uber, for example, helps its users save money by notifying them of dropping rates in the area.

Action step: No matter what type of company you are, you have promised to make some part of their life easier, better, more beautiful, or more fun. Dig into this notion to guide your push notifications. Why are you useful, or even indispensable?

Be Funny

To summarise millennials: “They want funny. Funny lets them know you see the world through their eyes. Funny lets them reinforce their own online presence with content they can share with everyone on their list”, says Acxiom Marketing. For brands, it’s about not taking themselves too seriously and being brave enough to share it with their audience. Simon Circles, a mobile game, knows how to get a laugh on demand.

Action step: Follow comedians on Twitter, collect viral memes and find companies that you think do humor right. Create a folder with all these pieces, so you can draw inspiration from it whenever you’re not feeling funny.

Be To-The-Point

It’s all about brevity these days. Push notifications are the perfect way to counter our shorter attention spans. Push notifications, by design, are brief. So don’t abuse this format by trying to cram too much in. Remember, the best performing push messages are under 25 characters. It’s not only about being brief, it’s also being clear. If you are struggling to convey the message (as you are trying to be authentic, funny and to-the-point), just come out and say it. Sometimes the simplest messages get the job done. Netflix knows how to delight their customers with short and personalised messages based their watching habits.

Action step: Write two different versions of the same push notification and then A/B test them. You will start discovering your own patterns of what works and what doesn’t, as well as the perfect balance between eloquent and straightforward.

Be Empathic

Empathy is “the ability to step into the shoes of another person, aiming to understand their feelings and perspectives, and to use that understanding to guide our actions.” This might be a lot to ask of a company’s push notifications, but it can be done! Let your users know that you feel their struggle, pain, happiness or excitement. Try to understand where they are coming from, as this will help you to create the perfect and personalised push notification – just like the app Sunshine did.

Action step: Social media is a powerful tool at your disposal. Use your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest profiles to become more empathic. Look at the comments and questions to uncover your customer’s hopes, dreams and challenges and how they intersect with your brand.

Be In The Know

It’s common advice in marketing to “ride the wave” of current events. Push notifications are a great way to join the discussion of current events and trends. Whether it’s a football game or the season finale of The Big Bang Theory, here’s your chance to be creative and let your brand’s personality shine through. Minibar, a liquor delivery company, found a great way to insert themselves in the US Election conversation.

Action step: Download a holiday calendar – preferable one that includes national days like “Find a Rainbow Day” – and keep it at handy when you are creating push notifications. Almost every day the internet is celebrating something, making it a marketing gold mine!

Combine basic best practices with these copywriting tips, and you’ll master the art of writing push notifications that users actually want to receive. Do you have any tips for writing effective push notifications? Share them in the comments.

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