The world keeps going mobile, so developing a business app today is a necessity instead of a pleasant extra. The application development industry is growing at a shocking rate and it seems that a new technology pops up every time you blink. Honestly, with some of the things our smartphones can do today, it feels like we are living in a sci-fi novel. And that’s the effect you should be going for when developing a mobile business app today. You need to have your clients stunned and fascinated, as well as meet all their practical needs. To achieve this, you should incorporate some trendy features into your application.
5 Mobile App Development Trends to Adopt in 2018
1. Material Design Is Still a Thing
Material design, created by Google in 2014, remains the most trending mobile app design even 4 years later. Just take a look at the highest-ranking apps on GooglePlay or iTunes and you’ll see that all of them use the same design layouts.
I believe that the reason for this trend’s continuing popularity is that it allows to keep things simple and minimalistic, yet highly functional. These are the main values in today’s design of everything, including actual fashion.
The universal love of this design plays in the favor of small businesses in particular, as they can go simple with a minimal budget and still get an app that looks good.
2. Location-Based Services
The consumers of today seek convenience and time-saving features. Integrating a location platform, like Radar, into your app will provide those. These few lines of code enable the app to add context based on the user’s location.
Simply put, this means that your app will be able to send out notifications or suggestions, or do any other thing you program it to, based on the user’s change of location. For example, you’ll be able to suggest visiting a certain store when the consumer is in the area. You can also send out notes with discount alerts, coupons, etc., when the client is nearing your business.
3. Adaptation for Wearable Devices
One of the current trends in the world of mobile tech as a whole is a switch from carrying to wearing. Think smartwatches when you consider this. Do you remember that only a couple of years ago these gadgets couldn’t do much beyond counting your pulse and steps?
Today you can check your email, chat in social media, call, play games, and even work through certain smartwatch apps. So, it only makes sense to have your own application adjusted to work on these devices with the maximum available functionality. This is the kind of thing that can still give your business a bit of an extra boost as it’s not adopted by everyone yet. You also shouldn’t forget about other wearable smart devices that get more advanced and sci-fi worthy with every passing day.
4. Harness the Power of VR/AR
Virtual and Augmented Reality technologies aren’t new today. Although, they still make my inner-child squeal with glee at times, and I’m not the only one like that. Integrating these technologies into a mobile app is a must now that they’ve become available.
You should at least have a virtual tour of your store available, if your line of business doesn’t allow for other popular uses of VR/AR. However, I believe that any company can come up with some creative application of this tech. At the least, you can always offer this as a complimentary feature merely for fun, like this.
5. AMP Can Amp Up Your Business
Google’s AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) make your pages load faster, which should always be your goal. The attention span of an average consumer today (and any other human) is shorter than a goldfish’. Therefore, you have to optimize your app to work fast, and this technology is one of the most efficient tools available today.
