If your mobile application is pending approval by Apple then it's probably a good idea to take a deep breath before reading further.
There are now some 775,000 apps in the App Store but guess what?
Various studies out there suggest the majority, more than 60%, have never been downloaded and about a quarter of those that make it are never used.
Food for thought and according to a recent study by Surikate and GfK, 81% of visitors to the UK App Store don't find their way past the top 50 apps.
That's bad news for all but one travel company, Skyscanner, which ranks 13 in the current list with easyJet its nearest rival at 102. Incidentally Google Maps is at number 4.
Skyscanner says it is seeing the 'organic halo effect' of good rankings which drives a certain amount of downloads as well as positive reviews about the service which also drives improvement in the rankings.
The company, which claims downloads of 3m in January, also says it ran an advertising campaign over Christmas in most of its markets which has also helped.
The Surikate research also shows that 82% find new apps by browsing the app store, predominantly the top 25, while two-thirds of users say they also find apps through friends and family.
It also shows that 75% of iPhone users will download an app from the charts without having any prior awareness of it, 85% say they need to see strong reviews, screenshots or price to be convinced.
Other findings:
- there are more than 52m visitors to the UK App Store every week
- Fridays from 6-8pm is one of the best times to be visible in the App Store with access to 2.61m users
- average user accesses the App Store six times a week
- 11.5 minutes is the average length of visit
- the average number of apps on a phone is 30 or less
- 86% browse the store from home, 23% on the go
NB: Mobile apps image via Shutterstock