# Business development
Website vs. mobile app: What's best for your eCommerce business?
Red Rocket teamJul 19, 20246 min read
In This Article
Key Takeaways Understanding the Difference Between Mobile Apps and Websites Benefits of Mobile Apps for eCommerce When to Choose a Mobile App Benefits of Websites for eCommerce When to Choose a Website Cost Comparison Hybrid Approach – How and When to Combine BothMany of you well remember a time when you could only use your phone to make calls. Fast forward about 10 years and today we perform many routine tasks using our smartphone, including shopping in stores. According to the reputable Statista website, 75% of users choose to use their smartphone to visit retail platforms. At that time, the desktop version took up only 21% of the total. Such statistics make online store owners think about choosing between app and website for business.
Economists say that the eCommerce market will reach the $7 billion mark in 2025. This signals that entering this niche is still a very promising endeavor. However, for the success of your business, you must develop a promotional strategy, learn to adapt to changes and choose the best platform for eCommerce business. In this article, we will make a detailed comparison between the website vs mobile app so that you can find the best solution.
Key Takeaways
- In 2024, mobile apps will take up a larger share of user traffic than websites.
- Mobile apps can be more functional than websites, as smartphones have more features.
- A reputable eCommerce business should have both an optimized website and a mobile app.
- Business owners can choose the option that meets everyone's needs - hybrid software that presents the app on a web page.
Understanding the Difference Between Mobile Apps and Websites
Before choosing one best platform for eCommerce business, it is necessary to understand in detail the difference between mobile apps and websites. Actually, this may seem like a simple question, but businessmen often fail to understand the main point of difference.
Website
A website is a page or set of pages on the Internet that are optimized for different devices. Speaking about mobile gadgets, websites are optimized in such a way that the user can conveniently browse the catalog, place an order and much more. Online shop websites should be intuitive and simple. In order to get to the website, the client does not have to download anything to his device. It is enough to simply type the name of the site in a web browser or follow the link to the site.
Mobile application
Mobile application is software that has been designed in a special way to operate on smartphones and also tablet devices. A mobile app must be downloaded and installed on the phone in order to be used, unlike a website which can be accessed using the phone’s browser. Creating a own application is more costly but applications can be more individualized and extendibility as the integration of device functions.
Website for online store is more accessible than mobile apps, but the latter is more suitable for customization and optimally engaging the users. Most of eCommerce companies have both options.
Benefits of Mobile Apps for eCommerce
Remember about eCommerce giants like Amazon, Aliexpress, eBay and Rakuten. What they all have in common is the fact that they have mobile apps. If you look at their sales statistics, most of them are made by customers through mobile apps. Mobile app for eCommerce is a powerful tool that allows you to reach more of your target audience. We have gathered all the major benefits of mobile apps for eCommerce.
- Always available. Unlike websites, mobile applications are available even when there is no Internet connection.
- Reduction of promotion costs. Once you've built an app, you don't have to regularly spend money on SEO and other similar marketing campaigns.
- Increasing brand awareness. Research shows that a downloaded application on a mobile device significantly increases brand awareness among customers.
- Personalized customizations. Customization options help to call out key value propositions that make a business distinct.
A separate point we should highlight is eCommerce mobile app features. Due to the fact that modern smartphones and tablets have advanced functionality, different features can be added to mobile apps.
Such features demonstrate the best why choose a mobile app for eCommerce. Moreover, with the development of phone technology, apps are improving. For example, today on many devices you can set up face or fingerprint login to an app.
When to Choose a Mobile App?
It can be a decision that is not easy to make regarding eCommerce app development. As it has already been mentioned, apps offer a more individualistic approach to the store, but they entail significantly more effort. Consider the following factors when determining if the time is right for you to develop a mobile app:
Budget
It is important to know that developing a quality app, primarily one that is made for the iOS platform and Android, is not cheap at all. As with most development projects, costs begin at $ 50,000. Therefore, it is important to have sufficient capital to start the project.
Target Audience
Some of the recommendations are conducting surveys to know what your customers want. Enquire if they would prefer using a separate app for shopping for products, paying for the products, monitoring the orders, etc. If most of them give a positive response, there is clear demand.
Brand Recognition
Newcomers who are not well known in the market can benefit from a website more than from an application since the creation of a website is less complex and requires fewer resources. Website is effective because it allows you to dedicate more of your efforts towards more targeted and natural marketing strategies to increase brand awareness. When that recognition builds, and your customers demand further ease of use, a change to an app model becomes ideal.
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Benefits of Websites for eCommerce
First of all, we want to point out that almost every eCommerce business has its own website. Despite the fact that apps are more functional and work even offline, having a website for online store is a must-have thing. However, your website should definitely be adapted for mobile devices.
- Small costs. Compared to expensive mobile apps, a normal website can cost you a few thousand dollars.
- Covering new users with the help of SEO. You can promote your website online without significant investment. It's enough just to choose the right SEO strategy to get more organic traffic and better rankings in search engine results.
- Easier maintenance. Websites work on all available operating systems and you don't need to maintain them every time. Updates are applied to all devices.
- No download is required. Unlike mobile apps, you can get to a website without downloading it. Therefore, your device does not need to meet certain specifications and does not need to have a certain amount of free memory.
Don't forget about the importance of speed optimization for eCommerce mobile sites. If the loading speed is more than 3 seconds, a potential customer is likely to leave your page and go to another website.
When to Choose a Website?
We have already talked about when you should choose a mobile app. What about building a mobile-first eCommerce site? In fact, a website is recommended for any company, regardless of its size, location, or field of activity.
Beginning of the pathway
This is especially important in the early stages of an eCommerce startup because what you really want is to carve out your own niche rather than be lost in the sea of sellers in the large markets. It means that having your own website, even simple, will give you an opportunity to start the branding process, to create the needed look and feel, to clarify Your Unique Selling Proposition, to establish Yourself as a vendor, and to start creating regular customers.
Limited budget
Websites are also very cheap when starting, and this makes them suitable for affording large populations. As statistics show, you can create a good eCommerce website for a few thousand dollars. This is many times cheaper than eCommerce app development.
Cost Comparison
Today, companies that sell their products online must have a web storefront and mobile application to connect with the customer base. However, creating both of them do cost some money. Now let us investigate the main differences in common expenses that are necessary to launch and sustain an ecommerce website and a mobile app.
A simple eCommerce web created using platforms like Shopify or WooCommercer costs between $2,000 and $5,000 for the initial development. Annual costs include of website hosting, which is about $ 100 – $ 200 per year, the domain name about $ 15 per year and cost of maintaining and updating the site is about $ 300 + per year.
A custom native iOS or Android app will cost between $25000 and $50000 at the initial design and development phase. Other expenses may include backend and API, which can be in the range of one hundred to three hundred US dollars monthly, along with fifteen percent of the initial cost for the app maintenance annually. Further investment is needed for $5k+ as apps gain popularity for adding features and enhancing UI/UX.
Hybrid Approach – How and When to Combine Both?
If you still can't decide on a single option between website vs mobile app, you might want to consider a hybrid approach. What is it, and how does it work in practice? Hybrid applications are developed with web technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript but are covered by the native container, which makes it possible to have access to the functions of a mobile device. The primary benefit of hybrid apps is that you get the functionality of a native app, but the development is faster and less costly. They also very easily can run on both Android and iOS from the one code base.
Hybrid apps give the omni-channel experience to the customers as of native apps while at the same time enable the firm to make the changes as fast as on a website for eCommerce. When is it best to use a hybrid approach to build software?
- You need to create a simple program without complex elements.
- You do not need to use native functionality.
- The application is developed for several platforms.
It is surprising that many global companies have hybrid apps. For example, Uber can be highlighted as a popular example. We are sure that you have used the services of this company at least once in your life. This hybrid approach of Uber uses the React UI web framework, which allows Uber's mobile apps to run on m.uber.com.
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Conclusion
As we can observe a tendency of people’s activity on their mobile devices, it is strategically important for modern eCommerce companies to have a powerful mobile presence now. However, what has been the debate for a while now is whether a website or a native mobile app should be developed. Certainly, more and more sales today are made through mobile apps. However, almost half of the traffic visits online stores using websites. This means that you should reach as much of your target audience as possible. For this purpose, it is recommended to have both a website optimized for all devices and your own mobile app. It is this combination approach that will help you increase your sales and stay competitive in the market.
