6 Key Factors That Can Make Your mHealth App Successful

It’s the year of mHealth –and according to a recent market research report by MarketsandMarkets, this will also be true for the next few years to come. By 2025, MarketsandMarkets predicts the mHealth Solutions Market with be worth $213.6 Billion!

The global mHealth solutions market has witnessed exponential growth — It was predicted to reach a whopping USD 59.15 Billion by 2020, and grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 33.4%.

According to mHealth App Developer Economics Report 2015 report by Research2guidance.com, 45,000 mHealth app publishers have published at least one mHealth app into a major app store.

But, we have another consideration in this picture. How many of these apps go on to be successful, both in terms of usage, downloads, and profits? The actual numbers paint a completely different picture.

What then, makes an mHealth app successful? Here are 6 key factors to consider:

1. What is the primary purpose of the app?

mHealth apps cover a wide gamut of uses. So, the first success factor would be to arrive at the app’s primary purpose. Be it tracking or monitoring, medical condition management, nutrition and fitness, diagnosis, data collection or education, the app should serve one clear purpose.

2. Who is the app’s intended user group?

Based on the purpose of the app, the next step would be to focus on who will benefit from the app. The target user group could be very well defined in some cases (for example, a pregnancy resource app or a diabetes management app). Or it could be more generic (like a fitness-tracking app or an app for running enthusiasts).

Once there’s a clear vision of who the app can help, it’s much easier to align it with functionality and features.

3. What is the potential outreach of the app?

How many different people can the app reach?

Was the app built on a specific platform like iOS, or can it reach a larger audience through the Android platform?

And what devices can use the app? – Is the app available on only a smartphone or for other devices like a smartwatch, glasses, etc.?

Each of these factors can potentially increase or decrease the number of people who can download and use the app.

4. What is the app’s unique differentiator?

Does the app use unique sensors? These could be device-specific sensors like an accelerometer.

Or it could be associated with a wearable, medical device like a blood pressure monitor, etc.

The goal here is to ensure a unique selling point (USP) that sets the app apart from the many different competitors on the market.

5. How will the data be protected and used?

With any app comes data – and lots of it. Therein lies its potential.

It’s critical to know if the app is collecting protected health information (PHI), how it’s been collected, where it’s being stored, and how it’s being used.

Data privacy, HIPAA compliance, and user privacy are the cornerstones of any successful mHealth app.

6. What’s the distribution and publicity strategy for the app?

• Is the distribution strategy in place for the app?
• Can the app be downloaded through the public app store?
• Or is it something that’s more private and can be downloaded only by select users?
• Would a physician or healthcare provider specifically recommend it to their patients?
• Or would app store ratings and feedback sway potential users?

With the plethora of apps on the market, answering key questions like this beforehand can make all the difference in an app’s success!