Should your church, ministry or organization offer a native smartphone app or just stick with a responsive website?
First, let’s make sure we understand all the jargon.
A native app is what you download to your smartphone. Usually it’s for the iPhone or Android, and in most cases, are offered free of charge by most churches and ministries. By tapping on the dedicated icon, you are launched into a menu based touch system of navigating through content.
A responsive website, is a website that is designed to flex, change and respond to the size of screen being used by the web visitor. So, if someone is visiting your website with their smartphone, the website responds by automatically changing form. If you’ve visited a responsive website on your smartphone, it feels a lot like an app, but it’s really just the same website rendered differently.
So, if you’re using a responsive designed website, why would you ever need a native app? Moreover, why do ministries like Desiring God go to all the trouble to create one?
Here’s a few reasons to consider:
Native Apps
- Access to device sensors, such as GPS.
This can be really handy when it comes to maps and directions for conferences and churches. - Once downloaded, the content is easily accessible.
One tap and you’re in. There’s no opening the browser and looking for a bookmark. Plus, the user sees your icon every time they scroll through their apps. “Click-me, click-me!” - Content is available offline.
Again, this can be really handy for churches and conferences, as schedules and basic info can be accessed wether there’s a signal or not. - Notifications.
You can take advantage of push notifications, if the user allows them.
Responsive Design
- Bypass the App Store approval process.
Although Android is easier than Apple, if you use a service like ROAR, this isn’t a factor. - No user intervention needed to download an app.
This is a two edge sword. Sure, a user can go whenever they please without downloading anything, but they can just as easily leave and never return. - Content distributed cross platform.
For all good and purposes, what you’re rendering on the Android will be what you’re rendering on the iPhone. Again, this isn’t a factor if you use a service like ROAR. - Content updates driven by a CMS.
This is huge. Being able to update your content is vitally important. However, at the risk of sounding like a broken record, a service like ROAR offers a CMS service, so this point is mute.
The Bottom Line
Mobile web sites are a great way to deliver details about who you are, but struggle to deliver a high quality visual and audio experience since everything is dependent on the users connection. Native apps on the other hand run local on the device providing fast response sharp graphics and an overall experience users love and expect. They do this by taking advantage of local device resources that a mobile web site can’t.
Finally, it’s interesting to note that Marc Jeffery, Director of Social Media and Technology for The Potters House — TD Jakes Ministries, said,
We had more people access the live stream for the conference over the mobile app than the mobile web site.
I don’t know about you, but I can also tell you from personal experience, that I access resources via my Desiring God app far more because it’s a native app.
To learn more about getting an app for your church, ministry or organization, contact ROAR. These guys are awesome!
Adam Shields says
Boing Boing just posted about Tech Review killing its app because no one was paying for it and it created a bunch more complexity because of the need for both landscape and portrait views. They decided that a single html 5 site was better use of their resources.
http://boingboing.net/2012/05/08/why-tech-review-is-di.html
Eric Dye says
A paid app for Boing Boing? Yeah. That’s a problem. Plus, they’re not going to be serving much that would benefit from a mobile app in the first place.
Adam Shields says
No it was a paid app for the Technology Review Magazine. Boing Boing was just reporting on it.
Eric Dye says
Ah-ha! Gotcha.