Mobile UX Best Practices For User Retention

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User experience denotes the ability of any virtual object or material to be accessible, understandable, and easy to use. When a user logins into your mobile app or website, what features do they find that compel them to “come back?” Think about how long it takes for a user to return to Twitter after trying out a new application when there are millions of mobile apps out there.

Keeping the user retention up can be a daunting task, especially today when a sea of applications battles up in popular app stores. Yet, there are practices and steps that you can leverage to stay at the top of the game.

Our colleagues at NS804 share the best practices for mobile UX user retention to help keep your users engaged through a superior UX design. Apart from the discrete functions, the overall app’s design makes or breaks it. Keeping the right mix of customer experience, features, and support can go a long way when user retention is low.

1. Fluid User Experience

Completing actions from start to end is an optimal solution for any app. The linear app flow estimates the time needed to conduct any activity, providing a clear view of what the app has to offer. With a clear-cut direction – users will not feel lost swiping through multiple screens. One action in every screen will simplify the process, keeping unnecessary complexity out of the equation.

2. Attractive First Impression

For users to visit your app for the second time, you need a great first impression. The first few screens must be simple, succinct, and appealing, tucked in one package. The overall UX design in the first few pages should host all the core functions, clearly explained. It’s advisable to declutter irrelevant information to separate the wheat from the chaff.

3. Mix with Animation

Motion design is gradually taking the front seat in the app market, especially after the release of the iPhone X. With gesture-based techniques now becoming a spotlight, animated hints help users become aware of app functionality. Animation clarifies the relationship between AI elements while maintaining the overall app smoothness.

4. Use HD Images in Correct Order

App users value relevant content that matches the logical order and structure of UI elements. So, it’s advisable to maintain a set of high-quality images. App owners must set enhanced visuals that highlight certain elements and significant information. In our experience, contrasting colors work best sometimes when users are forced to take desirable actions.

5. Deliver Personalized Content

Conveying messages in a language best understood by users immensely helps to keep them around. App users are exposed to different content every day – from TikTok videos to fresh, sizzling tweets on emerging socio-economic issues. Some of the content the app users are engaged in is confusing to navigate through. That’s why it’s advisable to personalize app content with relevant emoticons and images and provide content that conforms to your target audience.

Note that emoticons also offer a great way for users to interact and rate certain aspects of your application. This informs you about any potential future improvements.

Contact NS804 to obtain useful insights on using UX best practices for user retention.

Enhancing User Acquisition and Retention Strategies

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There’s no doubt that a central tactic for driving mobile app success is achieving user acquisition, engagement and retention. However, without an effective acquisition and retention strategy that keeps active users around, higher rates of downloads won’t yield any lifetime business value.

Mobile app engagement and retention are two critical metrics that give a clear and accurate insight into the success of any mobile app. Lower app retention and engagement rates are a sure-fire recipe for disaster.

App developers, brands, and enterprises must know that achieving sufficient app engagement and retention is difficult. For instance, Statista reports that only 32% of mobile users will return to a mobile app ten times or more after downloading. What’s even surprising is that a whopping 25% of users will abandon an app after one-time use.

Enhancing user acquisition, engagement and retention leads to an active user group that drives leads and sustains growth. The following tips for increasing user acquisition and retention will help you reduce your app churn rate and help your enterprise see the desired ROI and the results it anticipates from your app investment.

Let’s delve right in!

  1.   Efficient Onboarding

While it may seem simple to welcome users to your app, not all apps kick-start an efficient onboarding process. Therefore, it’s advisable to make your onboarding process as simple and as efficient as possible to initiate user acquisition and retention. The more difficult it is to use an app, the more likely new and existing users will abandon it.

Some of the ways to simplify the user onboarding process include:

  • Cut down the number of steps required to set up a new account — and capture multiple registration platforms (Facebook, Google, Twitter, and others)
  • Educate users throughout the onboarding process to launch the app’s functionality, but don’t overload users instantly.
  • Teach and educate through actions and pointers to show the main gestures in the app’s functionality.

An efficient onboarding process equals faster and easier user acquisition and engagement.

  1.   Track Data Early Enough

To accurately evaluate and measure data and improvements, you need to start tracking your app’s data early enough. Early data collection and tracking will give you what you need to evaluate performance. It will also help you fast-track which features and strategies affect engagement and retention.

  1.   Push Notifications Right Away!

Users who experience personalized brand interaction are reportedly more likely to return to a mobile app for ten or more sessions. To put it simply, if you walk into a retail outlet and you aren’t acknowledged, you’d most likely feel disgruntled. Consider app experience the same way.

An app interaction can be as simple as sending a push notification, thus providing valuable information as users leverage the app. Successful mobile applications use this approach to shape the customer’s journey. They’re strategic and thoughtful in how they access and engage new users. For instance, giving relevant retail deals based on user patterns and geo-location are clever approaches to promoting app retention.

  1.   Offer an Incentive Program

If your business model allows you to offer loyalty or a reward program, it’s vital to capitalize on this opportunity. Not only do reward and loyalty programs incentivize users towards the app, but they also make users feel recognized and part of the brand.

Realize that apps that utilize in-app purchases as a monetization approach, especially the quick router set-up (QRS) applications, offer time-sensitive discounts. However, freemium mobile apps can be incentivized with usage-based discounts instead of monetary benefits.

  1.   In-app Messages

The more disposed your app experience is with your users’ needs and preferences, the more likely users will continue using the product. Brands utilizing in-app messaging to communicate with users will see a retention rate within a month.

In-app notifications denote notifications that don’t demand immediate action or response but are altogether crucial in the customer’s engagement journey. These messages can capture notifications or warnings about version upgrades, app issues, or payment failures. Therefore, remember that not every notification you see is relevant to every user. Fragmenting your audience ensures the information you convey is relevant to their needs and expectations.

Contact NS804 to discover how your app can respond to new user acquisition, engagement and retention needs.