The importance of User Experience (UX) in mobile app success cannot be overstated, as it directly impacts user satisfaction, retention, and ultimately the app’s success and revenue. And this user experience starts right from the the splash screen – the first interaction of your user with your mobile app – and continues when a user attempts to make an online payment or tracks a delivery status. As a product development strategist, I have witnessed that the most profitable mobile apps started with exceptional user experiences – the ad revenue, in-app spending and affiliate commissions came later!
In this article, I am giving you a quick guide on optimizing the user experience of your mobile app to increase the app revenues and profitability. By the end of the article, you will know:
- Why user experience is more important than we realize
- How user experience, user engagement and app revenue are connected
- How you can optimize the user experience of your app to increase revenues
- How you can analyze the user engagement and user experience impact with key metrics
About Hady Shaikh
Hady Shaikh is the Senior President Business Unit and Strategy at CMOLDS UAE — and principal product strategist at heart who spends his typical day building product strategies, custom technology stacks, monetization frameworks and startup funding opportunities for mobile app entrepreneurs in the Middle East.
The Importance of User Experience
The User Experience is the first impression
And believe me, first impressions matter for websites and mobile apps! The initial interaction a user has with a mobile app sets the tone for their entire experience. A well-designed and intuitive user interface creates a positive first impression, captures users’ interest and encourages further exploration of the app’s features and functionalities.
The User Experience helps users achieve goals
A seamless and enjoyable user experience leads to higher levels of user satisfaction. When users can easily accomplish their tasks, find relevant information, and navigate the app without frustration, they are more likely to have a positive perception of the app, engage, view ads and make purchases.
The User Experience increases retention and spending
Mobile apps with exceptional UX tend to have higher user retention rates. Users are more likely to continue using an app that meets their needs, provides value, and delivers a satisfying experience. Happy, satisfied app users that choose to stay are more likely to make purchases than users who aren’t!
User Experience adds to competitive advantage
App users now have countless options at their fingertips and a superior UX design can serve as a key differentiator. Mobile apps that prioritize UX innovation and user-centered design stand out from the crowd, capture users’ attention and gain a competitive edge over rivals.
This is more relevant for retail brands and quick service restaurants that have on-demand and ecommerce applications. Better the user experience, more the user engagement and higher the ROI.
User experience improves conversion and monetization
Intuitive and user-friendly design elements can improve conversion rates within the app. Whether it’s completing a purchase, signing up for a subscription, or engaging with premium features, a well-designed UX streamlines the user journey and encourages users to take desired actions, leads to increased conversions and revenue generation.
User Experience and mobile app revenue are directly related – here’s how
The User Experience (UX) and user engagement are both fundamental to the profitability of mobile apps – more than any other digital product.
UX is the overall experience that users have while using the mobile app. It includes aspects such as usability, accessibility, aesthetics, and emotional satisfaction.
User engagement is the degree to which users interact with and invest their time and attention in a product or service provided by the mobile app.
So mobile app developers firstly craft a compelling user experience to drive, increase and improve user engagement. Here’s how UX and user engagement are interrelated:
- positive UX enhances user engagement.
- Intuitive design encourages exploration.
- Personalization drives relevance and interest.
- Emotional connection increases loyalty.
- Feedback loop improves iteration.
- Continuous improvement sustains engagement.
And ultimately, engaged users view ads and make in-app purchases on free apps, and subscribe for coming months, quarters or years in premium apps.
4 strategies for improving user experience to drive revenue
Prioritizing user-centered design and usability testing
Prioritizing user-centric design means that your designers and developers place the needs of your users at the forefront from conceptualization of web or app to execution of development and throughout the maintenance and scaling processes.
That is possible when your team takes time to understand the user behavior and pain points – then creates user journeys and sprint stories accordingly and prioritizes the problem-solving approach throughout the testing as well.
If your app is already in action, you can go for beta testing. Select at least 25 members from the target audience who would be willing to test your app as well offering web development services dubai and functionality – then ask them to give honest feedback about:
- How useful was the app? – this could be marked on a scale
- Did the app solve the primary problem?
- Why would they want to or not want to switch to this app?
Implementing personalization and customization features
Personalization means individual app users can tailor their own experiences in the app – at least to an extent. The quickest example of super-helpful personalization option is dark mode or offline mode which give users the freedom to read at the brightness they would like, or without internet connection when in low connectivity.
Example of customization is the option for setting push notification frequency. Users can choose if they want to be reminded about discounts, free deliveries, or may be other rewards and challenges how many times during the day – and then at what times.
With personalization and customization, developers can create a more relevant and engaging user experience. These features enhance user satisfaction and do increase user retention because of the sense of loyalty users have coming from the usage freedom.
Optimizing performance and speed for seamless user experience
Loading times directly affect the bounce rate – then user experience and then the retention rate. While this is true for mobile websites, this is logical for mobile applications as well.
Whether it’s a mobile game that engages users, or an ecommerce app that helps users place an impulsive order – slow loading speed will negatively impact the user experience and hence the revenue because users would either:
- Switch to another app, find their specific product or service and place an order – considering the other competitor app showed results faster
- Or, be put off, distracted, and won’t place an order – altogether!
That’s why, optimizing performance and speed is essential for a responsive user experience. In fact, slow loading times, laggy interactions, and frequent app crashes can frustrate users.
When coding and maintaining, make sure to optimize the code, frontend and backend to reduce the app size and leverage caching and compression techniques. This way, you can provide users with a smooth and enjoyable experience that would encourage engagement, strengthen usage habit and thus the incoming revenue.
Leveraging data and analytics to iterate and improve UX
I have worked with several app entrepreneurs and mobile app development companies in Dubai and one thing was common in most reputable ones – they would always process data and reflect on numbers their apps had achieved.
Developing a mobile app, publishing it, sending an update or two, introducing three new features in three months and then forgetting your app altogether – is the worst thing you can do with your app business.
You have to cyclically analyze the user feedback you get in the reviews and ratings, record metrics and evaluate your performance against your set metrics targets.
This will allow you to gain valuable insights about user behavior and usage patterns. You’ll get to know more about the favorite feature, or the worst app crash moments and may be get a recommendation or two to scale in future.
With data-driven decision-making, you’ll find out areas to improve and the opportunities your app can tap on. As an app developer or entrepreneur, you’ll be able to transform the user experience by looking into what numbers tell you about the app design and security.
Key Metrics for Measuring the ROI of User Experience
User Engagement Metrics:
- Time Spent
- Session duration
- In-app interactions
- Active Users
- Frequency of visits
Retention Metrics:
- User Churn Rate
- Retention Rate
- and Repeat Usage
Conversion Metrics
- Click-Through Rate (CTR)
- Conversion Rate
- Revenue per User (RPU)
Conclusion
Mobile apps with engaging and intuitive user experiences drive higher levels of user engagement. By optimizing user experience and analyzing user engagement metrics, mobile app developers in Dubai can create opportunities for monetization through advertising, in-app purchases, subscriptions, and other revenue streams.
Also read:
