Nowadays, everyone has a website. Actually, scratch that—everyone, their brother, and even their dog has their own website. What used to be a way of establishing authority for your brand or business is now as ubiquitous as a business card.
This means that to stand out; your online presence has to be something people can either remember or gain a ton of value from. You might do this with a website, but an even more powerful way would be to build your own app.
Think about it: your app could display all the features of your business or a product you sell. 89% of mobile users are using an app when they’re on their phones.
And because your app would directly communicate with your customers, you can streamline communication and get things in front of their face much easier than with email or other forms of marketing.
The truth is, not many people know how to turn a website into an app. This is one reason it might be an advantage for you. Here’s how and why you might do it.
Difference Between a Web App and Website
People like to throw out the word “mobile responsive.” The idea is that as long as your website looks good and functions properly when opened on a smartphone, you are up-to-date with how users consume content.
This might be true—your website could meet the needs of your consumers. But at the end of the day, your tricked-out mobile-responsive website is still a website. It’s limited in functionality, and besides teaching people what you do, doesn’t offer a ton of variety or options for giving people a great experience.
An app, on the other hand, gives people a customized, great experience that enhances your brand. And it’s easy for them to get access to. They simply download the app on Android from Google Play or on iOS from the App Store.
How Do You Do It?
You have a few options for converting a website to it’s own app. You can either transfer functionality to the app (essentially cloning your website to the application), build a new app that has “core” features (a benefit being that you can add stuff over time), or create a specific app with specific features. The latter can be marketed accordingly.
It would benefit you to do your research, figure out what your needs are, or even possibly look into custom mobile app development.
What Do You Need out of Your App?
As you decide between the benefits of a web app vs. website, consider the possible features you’d add to your app. Here are a few.
Push Notifications
We’ve all had our smartphone tell us that something needs our attention—the weather, Facebook, what have you. These are called ‘push notifications’, and can be very useful for your website or business.
Once people have access to your app, you’ll be able to give them an option to receive these notifications directly to their phones. If you have an update or add a new feature, this would be very useful for letting them know.
The only comparable thing a regular website can do is team up with an email marketing software. Still, fewer people read emails than respond to push notifications.
Native App vs. Hybrid App
One thing to consider about building an app is how you’d do it (or pay someone to do it)—using a native app or hybrid app.
A native app works with a particular mobile device, like iOS or Google Play. It’s installed directly to your phone.
A web app is used on a mobile browser like Safari or Firefox.
This is useful to consider because a native app is going to have more features that aren’t accessible on a website. If your app needs these features, it might be worth doing. On the other hand, a web app might be able to achieve the same things you’re going for with a website.
How to Turn a Website into an App
You have a few different options for turning your website into an app.
Progressive Web Apps
Google’s recent invention allows you to turn your website into an app with just a few added features on your end. iOS doesn’t currently support it, but hopefully will soon.
Hybrid Mobile Apps
Whether you’re experienced with HTML, CSS, or JavaScript, you can use the Apache Cordova framework to enable a developer to build your mobile app.
React Native
Another hybrid app alternative, Reac is good if you’d like to build your JavaScript. The performance is great on this option because source code converts directly to the native app. This means quicker loading pages and better user experience.
Wrapping Up
Everyone has a website these days. It’s no longer useful for standing out or delivering a great, customized experience for your users that helps them remember your brand or business.
On the other hand, if you know how to turn your website into an app—whether it’s a native or hybrid—can deliver a customizable experience and be a great way to engage with your audience. We recommend researching the various ways to convert your app and deciding which is best given your needs and what you’d like to achieve with your new app.
Peruse our blog or contact us with questions for designing your own website or converting over to a mobile app! We’ve got the resources you need to maximize your audience’s virtual experience.
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