Eight Reasons why People are uninstalling your App

June 21, 2019

Usually these types of uninstalls are easy to spot because it often happens not too long after the installation.

The stats about uninstalling that we want to find come from a variety of different actions and by knowing these you can improve your app development to retain a greater amount of users.

Here are eight (of the many different) reasons why someone may be uninstalling your app:

1. It’s Sluggish

People use apps because they provide quick access to a product, content, or service and much like a slow loading website you will find that app users aren’t going to stick around if the app is sluggish.

Many will bounce before it’s fully loaded and those that do stick through the initial load may later go ahead and uninstall because the rest of the experience is tedious.

2. Too Much Information

Would you want to install a simple to-do list app that also requires access to your personal data, GPS location, and so much more? It seems absurd considering the app is a dressed up notepad.

Asking for too much information is an instant turn-off for many users which will lead to an uninstallation. It’s best to only use the bare necessities for the app to work and nothing more that would irk the user because they feel it’s digging too deep into their privacy.

3. It’s Malicious

Forgot to update your app and allowed someone to inject malicious code? Competitor stepped in and made a knock-off that’s syphoning legitimate leads to a shady copy? These are things you need to keep in mind because if the app is presenting problems for their phone you can bet they will quickly delete the app as soon as they notice.

Malicious apps are becoming prevalent in the marketplace – don’t let yours become one of them else you’ll alienate any chance you had at retaining the user.

4. Lack of Content

The biggest losers are those that want to turn an otherwise great mobile version of their website into an app but fail to add any additional benefit between the two. In the app there may be less options, a lack of content, or fewer ways to engage compared to a flexible, mobile version of a site.

Much of this comes laziness in the app development. The app needs to be seen as a new platform to share content and connect with users rather than just a dumping ground for ideas, content, and promotions that you wouldn’t use on the normal offering. Make sure it can stand on its own, give people great reasons to use the app (content), and you’ll see less uninstallations.

5. Advertising Overload

You don’t need to worry if you’re creating a premium app for your business because you know it would be silly to send users to a competitor (or simply away from using the app). Those that would be effected are those businesses and developers that rely on advertising within their app.

You can go overboard.

When the ad gets in the way of fully using the app then all is lost. The users feel the apps main purpose is to garnish a click rather than providing something of value to them – that’s when they’ll find alternatives.

6. No Stickiness

Some apps are extremely simple – you get in, get what you want, and get out – but others there needs to be some form of community and a reason to open it each day because there is something new and exciting.

Adding new promotions, contests, highlights, and exclusive content is a great way to turn an otherwise passable app into one that users want to use each and every time they pull out their phone. Little incentives that keep them launching the app (along with elements of gamification) are the way to go and should be part of the foundation when the app is being built.

7. Trust Issues

What would you do if you had to hand over your social login, private information, and phone access to use an app – then once launched it looks deplorable? Your stomach would sink because you’d feel like you’ve just been a victim of a scam.

This comes back to the mention of malicious code in the app but also when apps aren’t frequently updated, there is little-to-now information about the developer, or that it has a very amateur feel.

Work hard on your app and run it through a small-scale test to hear feedback from early users about their thoughts on trust. Learn and implement what needs to be fixed to keep these users calm and understanding that their information is safe. Provide a safe environment and people will continue to use the app.

8. Size & Compatibility

Many phones are locked into a specific storage size whereas many may not even bother to use expanded storage which means a large installation may not be what users want when they are limited in space.

The same can be said about compatibility of the app. You may want to develop for the latest and greatest but if you ignore the legacy phones then you’re missing a huge market – those users will uninstall once they realize they can’t access features and it’s cumbersome on their system.

What makes you uninstall apps?

Image by Jeshoots

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