Turning a Shopify store into a mobile app is the natural next step for your e-commerce business. It’s also natural to have some worries about wrong decisions and mistakes spoiling the hard work. This post will discuss common mistakes to avoid when turning your Shopify store into a mobile app.
Not choosing your mobile app builder carefully
Building a mobile app is an ongoing process. Even when your app is live, it requires changes and updates periodically to meet a business’s changing needs. Given this, your mobile app builder should offer high-quality support, quick response times, and 24/7 customer service.
The first question you will encounter when building a mobile app for your Shopify store is which mobile app builder to choose. Your knowledge of selecting the best app builder for your store will determine the final results and your satisfaction with them. Hiring a Shopify application development company is the right way to do it.
Nevertheless, you should know what you expect from your mobile app at the primary level. Change and update your app after it’s ready and live. Your mobile app builder should support this.
An excellent mobile app builder to convert your Shopify store into a mobile app should have the following qualities:
- It should support Shopify app integration
- It should have a user-friendly dashboard
- It should provide ongoing customer service
- It should have a good number of mobile app layouts
- It should be easy to use
Not designing your mobile app in an appealing way
A common mistake when designing a mobile app is having too many product images on the homepage. It creates a confusing and crowded design that users feel uncomfortable with. Instead of showing products on the homepage, an excellent mobile app design will keep it simple and organized.
Another mistake in mobile app design could be a clear app opening screen. You should prefer a minimal opening screen to ensure it is clear, impressive, and confusion-free. The best option for a Shopify store owner is to seek professional help from Shopify development companies.
You should avoid using website URLs to redirect visitors to your website. Your app visitors prefer apps, which is why they are here. Redirecting them to a website defeats the purpose of having an app. You should have the product details on the app so that visitors have a complete shopping experience on the app itself.
A mobile app is best when it is simple, easy to use, and efficient. For this reason, Shopify development partners will create clutter-free apps, and visitors should be able to find the content or information they seek quickly. For enhanced aesthetics and functionality, consider utilizing Shopify design services tailored specifically for mobile experiences.
While planning the design of your mobile app, you should pay special attention to the images you use. Your images should be high-quality and attractive. Vertical images work better on mobile apps. Your images should give voice to your brand and support it. Finally, a call to action should be added to the collection images.
Not designing menu navigation in an intuitive way
A Shopify application development partner will make app menu navigation easy. The app should provide clear and easy navigation to shoppers, who should be able to find the content or products they are looking for effortlessly.
Menu navigation can play a key role in both conversion and bounce rates, so be careful how you design the app menu.
The common mistake in planning app menu navigation is cramming it with unnecessary elements. It should not be confusing or crowded. For example, the same element should not be mentioned twice or more. It’s enough to have it once at its proper place on the navigation menu.
A menu can have a straightforward design even if it has many elements. For example, all the elements can be organized for easy navigation and integrated into a collapsible menu.
There is nothing right or wrong when choosing between the tab and the left menu. However, a Shopify custom theme development company will use icons when they choose a tab bar for your app menu. This ensures a clear menu appearance. Using icons for the menu is an excellent choice as it makes it attractive to users. However, you should use icons that are uniform in size and style for a clean and professional appearance.
Mistakes with App Store and Google Play Store listings
A common mistake when filling out the app listing form is using a few sentences for description instead of a descriptive and comprehensive account. Similarly, another mistake is using a few keywords in the description instead of the maximum number of related keywords.
Your mobile app will be hosted on Google Play Store and App Store, and your customers will download it from there. Your mobile app’s presence on these platforms should be such that customers find it for the products or services they are interested in. SEO plays a role here, too, like in search engines. Keywords and descriptions greatly affect your app’s App Store and Play Store ranking.
Shopify development partners are aware of these technicalities, and they ensure you make the right decisions at this stage.
Sending screenshots of your mobile app pages to the App Store and Play Store for review is essential for launching your app on these platforms. Please send the screenshots by their respective guidelines to avoid app rejection. While you can rework and resend the screenshots, reviewing such requests takes longer.
The App Store and Play Store require five screenshots on the listing page. One screenshot should be taken for each home page, product listing page, product page with details, menu, and cart page.
Takeaway
Opening your online store on Shopify is a great decision. It quickly gets you started with a professional online store. Next comes building a mobile app for your Shopify store. As mobile apps are the preferred mode of shopping for many, you should create a good and professional mobile app. If you work with Shopify development partners, your mobile app-building experience can be smooth. You can expect a polished and professional app at the end.
However, you must list out all that you expect from your app. Next, you must choose the mobile app builder that accommodates your expectations and priorities. The most important ones are being cooperative and available when you need their support. Shopify trains and certifies their app builders to offer reliable and professional mobile app development services. Your Shopify application development partner can help you further, as several other aspects we’ve mentioned in this post need to be taken care of.
With almost 1.85 million merchants using Shopify, it is a top e-commerce platform. The site has received over 1 billion visitors in the past six months, demonstrating how well-liked it is by online buyers. Shopify achieved a noteworthy feat in the second quarter of 2024, reporting a 21% increase in revenue to an astonishing $2 billion, which reflected its strong market presence and powerful growth.
