The benefits of integrating social media with apps

By: Nancy Craft | Tags: analytics, connection, e-commerce, Facebook, feedback, forecast, functionality, Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, recommendations, sales, social media, Twitter | Comments: 0

In the technology sphere, two of the largest growth areas — mobile devices and social media — are focused on communication. Both are personal and instantaneous. But why would combining one with the other benefit your business? Because integration can result in loyal champions of your brand! Let us show you six benefits:

1. Functionality and ease of access

Through allowing a user to log in to your app using Facebook reduces a complex task into a relatively easy and more convenient one. It eliminates the sign up/confirm step/create an account step most users find inconvenient.

Through integration of social media on your app, sharing of purchases, services, events, and announcements becomes immediate. Likes, favorites, wish lists, recommendations and reviews offer enhanced functionality, giving the customer more reason to return to the app.

And through social networking, your customer can see recommendations for your product or service made by their connections.

2. Social sharing in your app

Through integrating Twitter, Facebook and other social feeds into your app, you can keep your customers aware of events, announcements, and offers, and develop conversations and comments. Therefore, you keep traffic on your app rather than outside it. Your app becomes home for your customers’ communications, another convenience coup.

3. Increase downloads and exposure

Currently, they are approximately 2 billion active social media users worldwide. Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Pinterest, and Instagram are very successful. Users are influenced by what they see on these social sites and, in turn, help to shape public perception.

Integrating your app with social media does not just mean inside the app, it means promoting your app on your social networking pages. Providing links driving users to download your app leads them to become members and possibly loyal customers. When users share their success with your app on a social media site, their connections are instantaneously made aware — and that exposure could mean new customers.

4. Increases popularity and usage

Because social media encourages interaction and dialogue, it is not only one user’s connections, but connections of connections of connections. A strategy of announcing new enhancements, offers, deals, and products could go viral and become a huge promotion for your app.

Using social media, your customer enjoys being a collaborative feedback partner, not an information target. This is bound to create a communication relationship that can only benefit your brand’s popularity.

5. Obtain analytics to improve forecasts

Feedback from your app’s users can give you insight regarding likes, engagement times, use frequency, interests, and location, providing a comprehensive tool to conduct research, gather details, and identify target groups. Algorithms that track purchases are starting to predict what the user and the user’s friends will buy and make recommendations. Knowing what their friends are buying can be a powerful enticement for a user to make purchases.

6. Increased benefits for e-commerce app retailers

Lastly, for a retailer, all of this exposure leads to sales. If your app integrates Facebook, customers who sign up can see purchases made by their friends. Signing up to your e-commerce app using a social media site means your customer can start purchasing right away, a time-saving advantage. If your e-commerce site allows your user to create organized and shareable wish lists with Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest, it can generate more revenue.

Let us help you with your goals and create your social media integrated app. Tell us what you need!