Why And How Often You Should Update Your App
After the first wave of application downloads blows over, it might slow down, and if you do not update your app, then you may leave it drifting in the ocean of others. Like any business owner, when investing in a product, you expect returns from it. The initially set correct coordinates lead to desired results. Your application is a ship, while updates in it are a fair wind, which helps provide consistent value for users.
In this post, OpenGeeksLab will uncover how often you should update your mobile app. Keep on reading to know all the ins and outs of app updates.
Why Do Apps Need Constant Updates?
In today’s endless application universe, it is not enough to provide just a quality digital solution. The world of technology is developing rapidly. To survive and compete with other applications, your product also should not stop. Regular app feature release updates not let it rust, and users receiving new opportunities, not abandon it.
1. Follow Trends
The application market is directly dependent on new trends. People love new products and the more, the better. Among the main benefits of updating apps is the provision of new and useful changes, as well as bug fixing updates in the application. The best way to make sure your users are updated to the latest version of your product is to take care of their wishes.
2. Make Room for a Renovation
In our century of technological revolution, there is nothing permanent, everything around is moving and transforming. For application success, you should get rid of unnecessary piling up of idle and worn out functions, freeing up space for new promising updates. All this applies to the application market. Why do apps need constant updates? A good application made yesterday, tomorrow may not satisfy users’ needs. It is a race in which no one wants to be left behind.
3. Maintain a Good Reputation
iOS and Android apps users can always check how often you update your app, especially if they need it in everyday or frequent use. Users do not want surprises in the form of delay or loss of functionality. They expect stable and improved releases. If you do not pay due attention to updating your app, then your application may lose both regular users and newcomers. With sparse updates, a product will not be taken seriously.
4. Amend Your Mobile Strategy
Profound app analytics is a must for your app maintenance. There are two reasons for updates: practical updates (corrections & functions) and strategic updates (following trends & improving marketing). Anyway, you should think strategically and get the most out of your upgrade. Always check statistics, keep track of trends, expand your application capabilities. All this will help you update your app to your advantage, as well as amend mobile strategy aligned with changes.
5. Improve User Experience
Continuous app maintenance, regular updates show how much you care about your customers. As a result. constant improvements have a positive effect on your application rating in app stores, consumer reviews, and the user experience as a whole. If your application is developing dynamically, then downloads will be not long in coming, and the investments will bring the expected results and you achieve a reasonable rate of return.
Every Week or Once a Month: How Often You Should Update Your App
Consumer demand has become higher, therefore expectations from today’s app market too. Updates can be divided into:
1. Regular Updates
They work as scheduled, providing significant changes and innovations.
2. App Bug Fixing & New Feature Release
These updates designed to respond to malfunctions quickly.
3. Updates at Will
It means that you can choose which updates you wish to release regardless of schedule.
As stated in Instabug research, the top 100 grossing applications are released approximately every 14 days. Appbot noted that update frequency for the top 200 free applications is 18 days.
How often you should update your application, depends on your business targets and application functionality. We can say that in case of a free app, you should release updates more often, every 20–25 days. It is so because you must monetize it via providing ads, paid premium features, in-app purchases. You have continually expand application functionality and improve it. In case of a paid app, updates should occur less frequently, from 50 to 55 days. Summarizing all the above, the best option is to release updates from 20 to 40 days.
Reasons to Update Your App
Let’s dwell on common reasons to update your app.
1. App Bug Fixing Updates
No one is ever immune from mistakes. No matter how well you try to make an application, bugs can appear in the later stages, especially if you are in a hurry to application release. The good thing about errors is that they can be found and corrected. If you do not alter the situation in time, you can significantly reduce a customer base.
2. App Feature Release Updates
As we said, people love new products. Updating legacy features and adding new ones will surely please users. For them, this will be a signal that you are still here and work on apps that need to be updated. It will also help you keep up with competitive apps. Follow trends, find app update frequency specifically for your marketing strategy, be flexible and constant.
3. Enhancing UI/UX
In any application, as in candy, content is most important, but we must not forget about the wrapper. Design is the first thing users see during encountering with your app. Consider some reasons for updating, changing and enhancing UI/UX:
1. Meeting Guidelines
App stores regularly release new design guidelines. In this case, you are about to change UI/UX as the old one can look awkward against updated requirements.
2. Outdated Design
Your design should not contain all the new updates in UX/UI, but you should adjust your application to current trends.
3. Overcomplicated Interface
Your application design should be accessible, simple and understandable for users, otherwise, they simply will not be able to figure out how to use it.
4. Rebranding
You should update your app aligned with current branding not to mislead users.
5. Updated OS
You should regularly release system app updates under the conditions of iOS and Android operating systems updates. When ignoring updated OS requirements, your application performance may slow down.
6. Get User Feedback
Users are the first helpers and advisers that will help you add only the necessary functions when you need to update apps. Gather their wishes, conduct polls, and, most importantly, listen to them. How to notify users about an Android app update and get a response? For this, social networks come into play. You can explore app reviews, which are similar to yours, and define what you should pay attention to and what you should not waste time on. If you doubt the need for one or another update for iOS and Android app, then try the step-by-step introduction of updates. Thus, before installing the original version, you can check how useful your application with the update will be.
Active App Modernization
People quickly switch to something better, and they quickly get bored. Inform them of new features in updates and work done on bugs. Show users that you are actively developing your application and give them reasons to use it further. Your application is a tool that adds convenience to users’ lives. If your system app updates are regular, then your customers will not switch to a competing platform.
Start Refine Your Application
As you see, updates are a lifespan for your application. App update frequency depends on your business targets, but still, mobile market set tone and dynamics of development. If you do not want to get lost among other similar applications, release regular updates. If you want to attract new users and keep existing ones, doing app bug fixing in time and be interested in customer reviews. You do not need to add everything in a row just because it is in demand.
The right choice of what you need will help rationally use resources, time, and efforts. OpenGeeksLab, in turn, is ready to maintain and update your app, in addition to developing it. Just drop us a line for detailed info on how to refine your application with no worries.
