Business apps as a competitive advantage

By trying to be a tailored to the customers and market needs, companies increasingly turn to the business mobile apps. Move towards mobile solutions can bring considerable benefits for each organization and allows to strengthen our competitive position.

The increase in sales of smartphones and tablets has caused a change in finding information, communicating with the world and making decisions, including purchasing. We Are Social Service shows that in the world there are over 3 billion Internet users. In Poland, Internet users represent more than 67% of the population or 25.7 million people. In contrast, 15.9 million are known as a Mobile Internet Users who browse the Web and use applications through their smartphones.

Mobile world

Mobile trends also caused a change in the business. Due to the increasing number of users who have access to the Internet from your tablet or smartphone, companies decided to meet the customers’ expectations. That is why almost every day we can notice appearing of new mobile applications in various sectors – banking, medicine, entertainment, restaurants, hotels, navigation etc. For mobile apps users from different businesses is above all a very convenient solution. Applications can be used regardless of time of the day, place or current actions. It is available around the clock, is at hand, requires only access to the Internet. Mobile solutions make it easy to find interesting information, communicate with others, comparing ads, mobile shopping and booking accommodation.

According to IAB Poland, 10.1% of all traffic in Poland in the first quarter of 2014 comes from mobile devices and it is a trend.

Companies with business mobile apps for their clients are perceived as modern, reaching up with the times, focused on continuous communication with customers and solving their current problems. Since mobile applications are used to attract and retain current customers, whether it would be possible to design an app that would improve business processes, workflow and inventory management? The answer is, of course, business mobile app.

Enterprise Mobility the key to success

Mobility has become a feature of many companies and organizations. Mobile applications support different areas of the business and facilitate work and communication. They are not only used to present products to customers or checking inventory. Business mobile applications are used most often in industries such as:

• ERP systems – to create/edit orders, invoices and receipts, billing, customer base, full base of goods with photos, shopping cart, print documents, document templates, management of contractors;
• Transport and logistics – to optimize routes, order fulfillment, inventory;
• Finance – for mobile banking, checking account balances, transfers, repayment installment, opening deposits;
• M-commerce – for mobile payments, coupons, offers, compare prices;
• Production control system – documentation management, control and status reporting of production, orders, employees;
• Events – for conferences, festivals, cultural events, workshops, registration of participants, notification of changes, sharing maps (music festivals), conference schedule, the festival;
• Medicine – for registration to the doctor, the patient document management, calculation of medical services, workflow;
• Insurance companies – the purchase of policies, reporting damage, comparing ads;
• E-government – for navigation, Public Information Bulletin, a travel guide with maps, filtering and notification, downloading and submitting applications.

IAB Poland predicts that the services that will become increasingly important in the context of mobility are:

• banking,
• purchase of newspapers, books, and music,
• tickets for public transport and parking services,
• maps and navigation,
• transport services, eg. a taxi or booking air tickets.

According to We Are Social, 20% of Poles use mobile banking. In subsequent years the dynamic development of this segment is expected, mainly due to the standardization of payments in the market and expand the network NFC. IAB Poland estimates that by 2020 the NFC services will benefit more than 400 thousand. people and the market will be worth around 140 billion.

Mobile business benefits

The Business apps for companies is a package of benefits that will contribute to increased profitability, improved communication within the company and with the environment (eg. from suppliers) and most importantly, make the business more competitive. Among the most important benefits of having such innovation in your hand can be distinguished:

• improving service quality – which translates into increased customer satisfaction,
• improve the process of submission and execution of orders,
• more efficient and more effective execution of tasks by employees,
• saving time and money.
• continuous access to data and the ability to exchange information at any place and time.
• streamline the communication process, faster flow of information and documents.
• a reduction in operating costs, which translates into greater profit,
• immediate response to customers and situations in the environment.

Applications of business mobile apps are as many as many companies claim the need to be mobile. Each time the app should be tailored to the specific nature of the business, focusing on the needs of employees, used technology systems and, above all, be intuitive and secure. Mobile business is faster, and hence causes cost reduction, better respond to the market and sustainable competitive advantage