The psychology and loyalty of app users + iOS 17.4 update | Median Minute
Welcome to the latest edition of the Median Minute, a semi-frequent series scannable in one minute, powered by the team at Median.co, and built for you.
💡FEATURED STORY: How important is app user psychology?
Getting your app’s Google Play Store approval or Apple App Store approval is just half the battle. The real struggle starts with making your webview app or native app stand out from among countless other mobile apps present in both stores.
App user psychology plays an important role in app engagement — so it’s vital for you to consider this aspect when creating an app. The way people think about, talk about, and use your app are great indicators of how well your app may fare.
Luckily, extensive research reveals applicable insights into user behaviors, patterns and concerns that can affect app engagement, and how to best approach your own app strategy.
Insight #1: Encourage a genuine social experience.
Social media is a thing of everyday life now. Why fight it? Embrace it because social media is where it's at. Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, X — there are over a billion people globally that use at least one of these social media apps and that is because people are longing for online communities, especially people suffering from depression or loneliness, a social app can be their only source of having a social life — making social media apps high in demand + boosting with engagement.
Insight #2: Recognize that app users might be feeling nervous.
Safety is a huge concern for app users worldwide. Online privacy can be the deciding factor of whether an app will make it or not. Securing your app by following Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) Framework is one way of showing users that they can indeed trust your app. Trust and security truly play an important role, look at TikTok — we saw how its current privacy and security efforts have been challenged by the US to ban TikTok because of it.
Insight #3: Remember that people have lives beyond the screen.
When thinking about app user psychology, it is important to know that many app users are often multitasking while using your app. Understanding that the digital world and the real world come into play together with app use will allow you to create apps that enhance the user’s experience beyond just the digital landscape.
More insights await in our latest blog: How to make your app stand out in 2024: A research-based guide to app user psychology.
🆕New @ Median
Median x OneSignal webinar: “First Touch to Loyalty: App Strategies for Success”
If increasing app user engagement and cultivating their unwavering loyalty are a part of your 2024 goals, then Median’s on-demand webinar with OneSignal is worth a watch.
In it, Median CEO Kingsley Gifford and OneSignal Enterprise Customer Success Manager Sasha Regan discuss:
✅ How to leverage app engagement features to ensure user loyalty
✅ Ways to improve your app’s activation and conversion rates
✅ Plus: Other critical engagement milestones/goals in the first month after download, and how to achieve and capitalize on these opportunities.
Watch the comprehensive 45-minute webinar here.
🗞️Apps in the news: March edit
Apple’s iOS 17.4 update. Android 15’s anticipated new features. In an update-centric mobile app space, we’ve been glued to a few mobile app news stories this month.
Apple’s iOS 17.4 update is here! New features, emojis, and + more
Apple’s most controversial / most anticipated iOS update — iOS 17.4 — was released on March 5, 2024. With it comes some notable additions like:
- 6 new emojis: Lime, phoenix, mushroom, broken chain, and shaking heads (see image), plus 8 people and body emojis that face in different directions.
- Apple Podcasts: The podcasts now has transcripts that allow users to follow an episode with text in sync with audio (in English, Spanish, French and German)
- Bug fixes and other enhancements: Siri can now announce received messages in any supported language. Plus, Stolen Device Protection now allows for increased security in all locations.
EU fines Apple $2 billion for interfering with music streaming competition
The EU is calling out Apple for unfairly favoring its own music streaming services over competitors like Spotify. According to the EU competition commissioner, the fine is due to Apple prohibiting competitors by not informing users about different payment options outside of iPhone apps — which violates EU laws. Apple plans to appeal the decision. Read more about it here.
Google is app-solutely embracing AI with new Play Store feature
Google is integrating AI into its Play Store specification in its Play Store app description section. This new feature uses AI to summarize an app’s description in the Google Play Store to provide users a quick overview of the app — highlighting an app’s key features. Read more here.
Google Play Games for PC goes native-first
Google Play Games for PC will now expand support for native PC games. This means users will be able to discover and play a larger selection of games that are designed specifically for PC through Google Play. Read more here.
An app store for AI Chatbots fails to attract developers and users
AI giant OpenAI just launched its AI Chatbot app store, one that allows developers to publish and monetize their AI chatbots. But it’s failing to attract developers and users. Why? Well, with OpenAI’s app store being so niche, and the chatbots only reserved for premium subscribers, your audience will likely be minimal. A report by The Information shifts the blame on OpenAI’s lack of support in providing more data and analytics on the users trying out the different chatbots from the app store.
Android 15: New feature may be coming to your mobile screens
There have been reports of Android 15 introducing a new feature — the ability to store app data in your phone’s storage space instead of deleting it entirely.
If Android adds this feature, it will change the app industry for the better — users won't have to uninstall an app due to storage issues (phone storage is one of the biggest decisive factors for app deletion).
Apple to add Google’s Gemini AI engine into iPhone 18
According to Bloomberg, Apple is considering collaborating with Google to integrate Google's Gemini AI engine into next-generation iPhones — iPhone 18. Neither tech giant has confirmed this, but analysts suggest that this collaboration will benefit both, with Apple potentially receiving payment from Google to include the AI and enhance its current AI — Siri — and for Google to rank higher in the AI market from its competitor, Microsoft.
AI-mprove your fitness goals: Fitbit app to integrate AI from Google
The Fitbit app — not to be confused with the Fitbit Learn app — is getting a major update this year — AI from Google. Turns out, Google is looking to expand its AI capabilities to the healthcare industry and the first to try this new initiative will be the Fitbit app. Google’s AI will assess user insights and data based on their activity and provide users the information in easy-to-understand formats such as charts and infographics. Additionally, Fitbit users will also have access to a chatbot where they can ask specific questions about their health and the AI would provide insight data accordingly. Read more here.
📱Anatomy of an App: Native plugins
While an app’s features, user experience, performance and speed, and visual elements such as screenshots, icons, and app splash screens are important elements, a native plugin is equally vital for an app’s success and can significantly enhance your app’s overall functionality.
What exactly is a native plugin?
A native plugin is a software that is added to a mobile app to improve its functionality using the app’s specific native programming language — JavaScript.
These plugins are developed specifically for an app platform — like iOS or Android — and are integrated directly into its native codebase.
Native plugins not only improve an app’s functionality but it allows for an app to have specific features such as push notifications, location services, native media players, etc.
Examples of native plugins
Median has an array of plugins that you can add to your app. Let’s look at some native plugins you can seamlessly integrate into your app:
In-app purchase plugin: Allows users to buy goods and services directly within an app by integrating itself to Apple’s App Store or Google’s Play Store for in-app purchases.
QR/ Barcode scanner plugin: Allows for users to scan QR codes and barcodes with their phone camera within a mobile app.
Push notifications plugin: Integrates push notification services to your app, allowing for the app to send notifications to users even when the app is closed.
Enterprise security plugin: Ensures an app is fully compliant with all your organization's mobile app and security policies. This plugin improves your Enterprise app’s security and meets corporate IT compliance requirements by adding specific capabilities and functionalities unique to your app.
Social login plugin: Allows users to sign in to their native apps using their social logins — this is great for enhancing user experience and makes for an easy use of an app. Most app deletions come from the need of creating a new account to use an app, and this plugin fills out the unnecessary form required to create an account with easy access to social login.
Native media player plugin: Allows for audio files to play seamlessly in the background within your app — even when the app is closed.
Want to learn more about our native media player plugin? Get some practical tips in this recent article from Sidebar Magazine.
You can also read more about our plugins here.
Want to learn more about our plugins?
Launch a full-feature native app without native development!
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📢Overheard @ Median
Yes, as a matter of fact you can.
While we understand that Android System WebView comes with several limitations, our engineering team can integrate a custom WebView component that is embedded directly in your app.
Some of these limitations include:
- Resources are shared across all apps that are using the System WebView component
- During an update of System WebView all instances of webview are stopped causing apps using WebView to crash
- Edge case bugs remain open such as delays in user input which can cause poor UX for some apps
To battle these limitations, our engineers can make use of GeckoView — a browser engine developed by Mozilla that allows the embedding of web content within Android apps.
GeckoView allows developers to customize solutions for integrating web browsing capabilities into apps while remaining true to the app’s performance and avoiding security risks.
Note: Median offers GeckoView as a premium option for our customers who have very specific requirements.
You can learn more about how to add GeckoView to your Android app with Median by contacting us here.
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⏰ Time’s up (for now)!
We’re here to help you make sense of all things mobile. Have specific questions? Get in touch with us here, or visit our website.
Wishing everyone a successful rest of the year!
– The Median Team
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