Apps not always the best mobile solution
Sheldon's Harley-Davidson in Auburn launched a mobile app two years ago to set itself apart from other Harley dealerships and local businesses.
The Worcester Art Museum is one of the many local businesses listed in the new WOO Pass app, Discover Central Massachusetts’ 21st century answer longtime Worcester staple the WOO Card.
As mobile phones and tablets start to become the Internet device of choice, Central Massachusetts businesses are finding new ways to reach their customers and realizing there are more options than apps.
At FedWell Pet Foods in Sudbury, owner Emily Lagasse has found traction using social networking sites. She uses Instagram to share photos and videos of her all-natural dog foods, stores where they're sold, and even behind the scenes looks at the healthy foods and care products she makes for her African dog, Fenway. Most of her social media traction comes from Facebook, she said.
“A lot of the stuff I post to Instagram, I'll share on Facebook as well,” Lagasse said. “It's so great because it's very picture-based and people like posting pictures with dogs. We can get pictures of really great dogs doing cute things, lots of pictures of dogs, lots of pictures of milestones we reach, stores we're in, things we're a part of.”
Though her website gets a lot of mobile orders, an app for Fedwell isn't on the horizon, Lagasse said.
“Our website is mobile-friendly, and going in through the website, I can see people are using their phones [to order],” she said. “I don't know what people would use [an app] for.”
The move for businesses to become more mobile-friendly has been ongoing since the iPhone was launched in 2007, but the pressure became all the more important in April when Google started giving preferential treatment to websites that were mobile-friendly. While the onus under the iPhone regime kicked off the need for firms to develop apps, the new change with Google meant mobile-friendly websites were the new barometer in a company's tech savviness.
Have a purpose
Apps can be an asset to a business, but they need to be created with a purpose, said Chris Tieri, president of Sturbridge marketing firm Idea Agency.
“If you are truly delivering a unique customer experience not found elsewhere and is particular only to your business, then go for it. But do it properly with purpose and strategy as well as [user interface design/user experience design] and impeccable design in your planning,” Tieri said.
According to a study of 350 small business owners by Washington, D.C. research firm Clutch, 15 percent of respondents said their business had its own mobile app, a third of which were made in 2014.
Clutch found while 18 percent of the small businesses it surveyed planned on developing an app in the future, 40 percent said no and 27 percent said they were uncertain.
Two years ago, Sheldon's Harley-Davidson in Auburn's advertising agent came to the dealership with the idea for a mobile app. Many large Harley-Davidson branches have their own app, said Chad Clark, the branch's dealer operator, and Sheldon's decided to launch its own to set itself apart from other dealerships and local businesses.
The free app has event listings, as well as a forum to send emails directly to management.
“In order to compete in today's retail environment, a business has to continue to change and adapt in order to get their message to the consumer,” Clark said.
A small business has a lot to gain by making its website more mobile-friendly, and a lot to lose by ignoring mobile. According to a 2014 study by Google, 70 percent of the 1,000 consumers surveyed said they use a smartphone to search for businesses. That's almost as much as laptops or notebooks (75 percent) and more than desktop personal computers (64 percent).
Reach the mobile crowd
Since so many people use their phones as their primary Internet device, businesses with consumer bases have to cater to that, said Lori Allen, program manager at the Center for Women and Enterprise, a Worcester entrepreneurship advisory firm for women.
“If I'm out running errands and get hungry, but I have a food allergy and can't download your restaurant's menu to see if you have options for me, I'm going to very quickly move on to another restaurant. Likewise, if your address is buried in your website somewhere, or I can't easily click to get my phone to map directions there, I'm going to give up and move on quickly,” she said.
Several Worcester lawyers have mobile apps, including Gregory Casale and the Sharry Law Office. Both apps are operated by AttorneyConnect LLC and have appointment calendars as well as directions to the firms. The Beechwood Hotel also has an app to make it easy for guests to call a cab or check out what's going on in the area, and Blackstone National Golf Club in Sutton allows visitors to book a tee time on its app.
This fall, Discover Central Massachusetts launched the 21st century version of its longtime staple the WOO Card. Called the WOO Pass, the mobile app will eventually consolidate all the benefits of the punch card into one place and serve as a connector between businesses and the people they serve.
Unlike the WOO Card, which functions largely as a rewards card, the WOO Pass will be an all-encompassing electronic visitor's guide to the region, said Christina Andreoli, president of Discover Central Massachusetts. A loyalty aspect to the WOO Pass will roll out this spring, she said.
“Say I'm near the Hanover Theatre, if I'm walking or driving by, there will be an event near where you are right now, you'll get a notification on your phone,” she said. “When you favorite things that you like [on the app], you get an instant notification on your phone, like alerts.”
Andreoli said she hopes the WOO Pass will become the go-to guide for locals as well as visitors to the region. As of December, about 50 local businesses paid the fee to be listed on the app, but Andreoli expects that number will increase after a bigger push this spring.
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