Can’t do in app purchases with websites. App Store does a lot to help your app a chance to get discovered without SEO. Google will likely list thousands in front of you where as App Store will get you up there unless you are in a most popular category. Of course, lots of ideas don’t fit apps such as company websites or bios
Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
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Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#452Can’t do in app purchases with websites. App Store does a lot to help your app a chance to get discovered without SEO. Google will likely list thousands in front of you where as App Store will get you up there unless you are in a most popular category. Of course, lots of ideas don’t fit apps such as company websites or bios
This has not been my impression at all.
With Google you have a chance to do SEO and improve your ranking and discoverability. With the App Store your only chance of discovery is their crappy search box where you compete with 100s of spam apps that somehow made it through the “rigorous” app store approval process.
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#453I'm gonna play devils advocate here and say web apps aren't as pleasant to use on mobile phones as mobile apps and that's why mobile apps are still a thing. I'm especially looking at things like touch gestures and native integrations (launcher icons, notifications, "share with" providers, maybe even a home screen widget). I know PWAs are a thing but afaik they don't solve all of the above problems or don't solve them…
Try https://usebx.com/app - we built it 2 years ago. It's a PWA, and our users find it better than many native alternatives. I think it's all in the execution really.
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#454Of course I'm not interested in downloading a friggin app for Dominos pizza
And I also don't believe I'll ever find a webapp that can favorably compare with my notes/calendar/email/other utility app of choice.
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#45580% of apps are uninstalled in the first 10min (especially if they ask for information or creating an account). Once uninstalled very unlikely they will ever install again. In my dev shop, I always advise clients to look into website MVP over apps unless IT IS CRITICAL to the functionality. Websites can always bring back ppl who were initially uninterested. Faster development/instant updates. Better tracking and UX a…
This would work unless, the client wants to monetize via freemium model; in that case an IAP with native app would be far more intuitive than a web app as integrating a payment gateway which accepts global payments (Stripe is not available in all countries) is harder than integrating In app purchase on iOS or android.
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#456Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yes. Lurking around the app store of your device and installing random apps is a behavior for first-time users of the platform. Back during 2010 to 2015, almost everyone was a first-time user of the platform. From now on, downloading random apps is a job for ever younger audiences.
Crikey. I'm 48, a developer and I still install random apps.
Yes, I see and it's not binary like there's people who download random apps or not and there's people who are young or not, it's just that the numbers are clearly going in specific directions really fast.
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#45780% of apps are uninstalled in the first 10min (especially if they ask for information or creating an account). Once uninstalled very unlikely they will ever install again. In my dev shop, I always advise clients to look into website MVP over apps unless IT IS CRITICAL to the functionality. Websites can always bring back ppl who were initially uninterested. Faster development/instant updates. Better tracking and UX a…
Where does that 80% stat come from? Do you have hard data or just gut feeling?
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#458Earlier quoted context omitted.
> I don't even bother installing apps anymore, I don't have time to research whether or not they are going to abuse my privacy or have some horrendous TOS. I'm going out on a limb but I'd wager you're not exactly representative of the general userbase for which apps are developed.
I would take that even further and venture a guess that 99% of HN readers are not representative of the intended general userbase of 99% of the apps for ios/android.
As a side note, 99% of the statistics are made up, including this very sentence.
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#459Thank you! Finally someone says that here on HN \o/
Re: Start with a Website, Not a Mobile App
#460Every single app I install immediately starts showing me upsell notifications. So the first thing I always have to do after installing an app is go to the Android app manager and disable its notifications.
Websites don't have this issue. This is just one of many reasons why I'd rather go to your website than install your app.