According to a study by Statista, the global mobile health app market is predicted to cross the $40 billion mark in 2019. Better physician-patient communication, personalized exercise programs, customized diet charts, etc. are some of the primary drivers behind the success of healthcare and fitness apps.
At the same time, instant access also makes mobile health apps a must have for every health conscious smartphone user. Be it a fitness app or a typical healthcare app, launching a mobile app that helps users stay fit and healthy indeed a great business idea.
People are becoming more health conscious, and the abundance of fitness and health apps on App Store and Play Store is a reflection of this trend. Joining this bandwagon does come across as a good decision.
As an entrepreneur, you need to be aware of the ten commandments of healthcare app industry before you launch yours…
Thou Shalt Choose Thy App Carefully
Creating a healthcare mobile app gives you three choices: native, hybrid and progressive web app.
Native apps are best for customizations, scaling and high performance. Since they are created for particular mobile platforms, the cost of creating a native app is often high. But they ensure amazing return on investment.
Hybrid Apps are built for multiple platforms. They are more affordable than native apps but don’t offer an extensive scope for customization.
Progressive Web Apps are web applications that give a native like look and feel. They work seamlessly even in flaky networks, but they can’t be scaled up as much as native apps. PWAs are generally good for testing your app’s feasibility and acceptance in the market. They are more or less like a test run.
Discuss your requirements with a mobile app development company to figure out the right solution.
Thou Shalt Be Clear About Your Approach
Be absolutely clear about what you want your healthcare app to do. Different healthcare apps have a different set of features. Choose a niche that you feel you will be able to handle most efficiently. Proceed accordingly.
Thou Shalt Focus On UI/UX
UI/UX is often given utmost attention in lifestyle, gaming and ecommerce marketplace apps. But as a digital entrepreneur, you must realize the importance of great UI/UX in healthcare apps too.
Whether it’s finding the right doctor on a medicare app or right workout program on a fitness app, it should all happen with minimum taps on the screen. The longer the user journey, the tougher it is to keep them hooked.
One effective way is to use gamification. It’s an approach that makes the user journey better, more engaging and highly interesting.
Thou Shalt Focus On Improving Lifestyle
A common mistake that many healthcare app owners make is using terms such as “improved quality.” Such broad spectrum terms do not identify the quality of what. Measuring quality in the healthcare industry is not easy.
Therefore, healthcare app owners should focus on making apps that give easy to understand data. Instead of simply telling users to count their calories, give them tips on how to do it. If their BMR/BMI reports suggest they need more calories, guide them foods that have good calories.
Thou Shalt Be Careful With OTC Medicines
Selling over the counter (OTC) medicines is a common practice on almost every pharmacy app. However, patients with prescriptions must be guided and educated not to take any medicine without consulting a doctor. As a matter of fact, every user must be educated about contraindications.
Thou Shalt Take Digital Marketing Seriously
Lifestyle and ecommerce marketplace app users have a fear of missing out (FOMO) latest deals. In a similar way, healthcare app owners also have a fear of falling behind the competition. And yet, they only focus on SEO, PPC and many other digital marketing strategies, while completely forgetting about app store optimization (ASO).
ASO is what will maximize your app’s visibility on the App Store and Play Store. The best way to do is to talk to a digital marketing agency that has extensive experience in ASO.
Thou Shalt Be Trustworthy
Bringing patients and doctors on the same platform is not enough. You must ensure that your healthcare app also helps users make the right connections. The core idea is to make medicare easy, effective and highly efficient.
Create health concern categories to help patients find the right doctor in the fastest way possible.
Thou Shalt Not Ignore Reviews and Ratings
Reviews and rating feature helps in establishing credibility among new users. Testimonials are utterly important to know which doctor or personal trainer offers the best services. Ratings and reviews help users make a more informed decision, and also enhances user experience.
Thou Shalt Be Proactive In Service
The moment a user is done consulting using your app, a reminder must be set if there’s an appointment booked for a particular date. Moreover, a healthcare app that also reminds users to take their medicines on time further help in keeping them healthy.
Reminders, alerts and automatic calendar updates are useful features that you must include in your healthcare app.
Thou Shalt Keep Room For Scaling
It’s a good practice to test waters in a small zone, especially when you aren’t sure about your app’s success. But eventually, your business will scale up, so make sure your healthcare app is robust enough to accommodate more traffic and data that comes with it.
Conclusion
All the Thou Shalts and Thou Shalt Nots mentioned above will help you create the most efficient healthcare app for your budget. At the same time, also make sure to conduct thorough market research revolving around:
- Your target audience
- Their Demographics
- Your Competitors
- App Feature List
The right knowledge can help you create a solid base for your app from where you propel your business to great heights.
