3 reasons why “traditional” companies are prioritizing their app experiences

Shopping. Dining. Traveling. Working out. As technology becomes an ever-greater part of our daily lives, even activities not thought of as “digital” increasingly have digital elements. There’s a lesson there for businesses. Companies that care about their future are investing in their app experiences, no matter what their industry, history, or product. 

In a digital-first world, every company is a software company. Here are three reasons why even “traditional” companies are putting a premium on the app experience they provide to their users.

1. No matter what you make or sell, customers want to interact with you digitally

As consumers, we want convenience, and that means being able to explore product offerings wherever we are, whenever we want. Even for those companies that have long considered themselves classic retail, brick-and-mortar operations, providing users with seamless, intuitive, and relevant digital experiences is no longer just a nice to have—it’s a must have. 

Even if you sell a physical product or provide physical services, you want customers to be able to learn about what you offer, understand the value you can provide them, and make it easy for them to take that next step in the buyer journey—whether that’s booking an appointment, signing up for a free trial of a product, or making an actual purchase. To give users the best possible experience (and set your business up for the best possible outcome), leveraging product experience software is key. A platform like Pendo will empower you to build digital experiences that are intuitive and relevant, as well as support that’s timely and contextual.

2. Your app is where the magic happens

With product experience software, your app can become the center of the wheel for your business. It’s a sales tool, a training platform, a marketing channel, a feedback hub—all rolled into one. No matter what goods or services you provide, your app can and should be at the center of your business model. 

This may sound hard, even daunting. But with a product experience platform, it doesn’t have to be. Pendo lets you maximize your ROI on the digital customer experience with the one-two punch of In-app Guides and Analytics. With the former, you can offer your customer the digital experiences they want and need—whether that’s tailored support, tours of the app so they can discover what’s on offer, or relevant promotions. No matter what the specific motion, the end goal is the same: help the user see value, quickly.

Once you have these motions in place, you can leverage product analytics and feedback collection to see what’s working—and fix what isn’t. Are those new product announcements driving better awareness? Is that new onboarding guide leading to better adoption of a new app feature or area?. Armed with the answers to these questions and more, product teams can refine and improve their way to ideal customer experiences. 

3. A better user experience means better business outcomes

What moves the needle for your users can move the needle for your business. Better digital experiences mean a better bottom line, whether that comes in the form of increased revenue, or saved resources. For example, iRobot (of Roomba® fame) leveraged Pendo on its app to create personalized in-app communications instead of doing so manually. In doing so, they saw a staggering 75% reduction in engineering effort required and a 50% increase in time to production. 

In a similar way, JLL, the storied commercial real estate company, deployed Pendo on key internal-facing homegrown apps in order to free up developer time. The result? What used to take engineers three days to build could now be done in an hour. 

With the power of product experience software, these and other “traditional” companies are showing their customers that they’re anything but. The trend is clear: Digital strategy is becoming increasingly synonymous with business strategy itself. And getting your app experience right can be the difference between surviving and thriving. 

Want to learn more? Check out our new report on how non-tech companies are forging ahead with digital transformation here.