Which Is a Good App Design Practice? Mobile App Best Practices and Mistakes to Know
In today’s digital age, optimizing your business for mobile users is essential for staying ahead. And if you want to succeed, you need to do more than just create a mobile website. You need to design an amazing mobile app that will keep customers coming back for more.
But with so many app designs out there, it can be hard to know how you should go about designing yours. You’ve probably seen plenty of mobile apps, and wondered, “which is a good app design practice?” In this article, we’re covering best practices and mistakes to know and avoid when it comes to mobile app development.
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Which Is a Good App Design Practice?: Mobile App Best Practices
Did you know over 6,000 mobile apps were released through Google Play Store every day in 2018? And despite this insane statistic, most mobile users only engage with 10-15 of their apps regularly. Which means creating an app isn’t enough to convert customers—you know to make it as delightful, useful, and user-friendly as possible.
Not sure how to do that? Here are some excellent mobile app best practices to help you build a better app.
Start with Research
When it comes to mobile app design, you can’t go into it blind. You need to do research in advance, so you can make informed design designs. That means learning about market trends, app technology, and what your competitors are doing. You should also have a clear idea of who your users are, what they’re looking for from your app, and how they would benefit from downloading your app.
Unfamiliar with research? Do a competitive audit of your competitors’ apps to see how their app functions, and how they may or may not be solving your potential customers’ problems. Assess both the user interface and the user experience of the app.
Once you’ve done that, start talking to your customers. Ask them what pain points they’ve experienced using your website, or how they may use your app or website. Knowing who they are, and how they behave will help you design an app that works well for them.
Your mobile web app won’t be helpful if your customers don’t know how to use it. That’s why you need to invest extra time and thought into the navigation and usability of your website. Navigation needs to be obvious and consistent throughout the app.
If it isn’t, users won’t know how to get around. Content should also be laid out in a logical way so users can orient themselves to whatever screen they’re on. You can determine your content and website structure makes sense by studying up on information architecture and user testing your app with customers.
Optimize for Different Screen Sizes
Mobile experiences can greatly differ depending on the screen size of a customer’s smartphone. What a customer sees on an iPhone 5 can look very different than what someone with an iPhone X would see. That means you need to optimize your experience for different screen sizes so that UI elements are consistent no matter the device type.
A good general rule of thumb is to start with the smallest screen sizes first. This will help you create app content that is scalable across device types. The last thing you want to do is create an app experience that is delightful for all users.
Keep Things Clean & Simple
In general, mobile users tend to be more preoccupied and distracted than people browsing on computers. They’re often on-the-go or in an environment where they can only offer up short spans of partial attention. Because of this reality, you need to create an app that makes it easy for users to complete tasks without their full energy or attention.
How do you do this? Avoid overcommunicating on your app by not cramming in too much information on a screen. Try to make sure that every primary screen only requires the user to take one key action.
By reducing the information overload, you can avoid stressing out your customers. You’ll also have a better chance of clearly communicating important messages to them.
Beyond that, try to have your interactions be thumb driven. Most people rely on just one thumb to achieve actions on their phone, so doing this will make things easier for them.
Try to design for the flow of the thumb zone and test your app’s effectiveness by seeing if users can perform a set number of actions with one hand in just one minute. This will help you quickly determine how easy and usable your app is.
Mistakes to Avoid with Your Mobile App
Mobile app development takes time, energy, and money. The last thing you want to do is undermine all of that by falling victim to poor design practices. Here are some common mistakes you should know of and avoid with your app design.
Don’t Make Your Onboarding Too Complicated
First impressions are everything when it comes to mobile apps. So don’t bore or overwhelm your users with a tedious and overcomplicated onboarding experience. Chances are they’ll just swipe through it blindly if it’s too long.
Instead, focus on when and how to disclose onboarding information. Your customers may not immediately know how to use your app, but that doesn’t mean they need to know everything upfront. Try to put the most exciting and engaging features at the forefront and show them how to use the app along the way.
If you can, have customers beta test your onboarding flow. This will help you identify customer pain points and see if there are any design issues you may have not picked up on.
Don’t Create an App Just to Have One
Often times, businesses create apps simply because they’re competitors have them. But apps are a big-time (and phone space) investment on behalf of users. So, if you create a lackluster app just to have one, you may actually alienate your users.
Enter your design process with clear intentions. Know how and why users would benefit from using your app versus going to your store or using your mobile website. By knowing why your users need a mobile app, you can avoid creating an unnecessary experience that doesn’t serve them.
Final Thoughts on App Design
Creating an awesome mobile app isn’t easy. It requires knowing the answer to “which is a good design app practice?”, and avoiding rookie mistakes that can undermine your app. But by following the tips in this article, you create a truly great app experience for your customers.
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