Ever since the first mobile app was created in 1997 by Nokia (the popular arcade game snake) and popularized by Steve Jobs, phones have been increasingly using apps. However, some studies have shown that the number of available apps has begun to overwhelm users. A recent survey from Gartner found that 41% of mobile users have not downloaded a new app in the last six months and that mobile users spend 85% of their time on their phones using only five apps. This trend affects Managed Care Organizations (MCOs) and contributes to the growing problem of why engagement rates among members for mobile apps are down. With more than 1.96 million apps available on the app store, this ever-increasing trend is called app fatigue.
How can MCOs overcome this challenge and better connect with their members? By turning to the alternative of mobile apps: mobile-friendly websites. Mobile sites offer many of the same benefits as mobile apps without requiring the member to download an app. In addition to being more reachable than mobile apps (websites are accessible by mobiles, desktops, and tablets), websites offer greater opportunities for efficient technology upgrades and better customer service. If your MCO is looking to overcome app fatigue’s difficulties by using mobile-friendly browsers, here are three things to keep in mind.
Optimize Website for Mobile Traffic
Market trends indicate that mobile traffic has now exceeded desktop searches. Your members will be looking for your website through their mobile phones, and ensuring a quality user experience is vital for capturing and keeping their attention. Members look for three things when visiting a website: accessibility, responsiveness, and speed. These should be the first elements to examine when analyzing your website on the small screen.
Accessibility is the degree to which all people, regardless of age, disability, or impairment, can view the content on your website. We examined the benefits of creating a senior-friendly mobile design in a previous post with tips on improving your site’s access. If your website is slow to load, check to see if you can remove bloat from your website’s code and enhance its responsiveness of mobile screens. Doing these little things right can help boost your website’s effectiveness and combat the downfalls of app fatigue.
Pull Your Audience to Drive Engagement
The goal of your mobile website is to motivate visitors to take the action you want. The theory of motivation teaches us that everyone is either pushed or pulled toward an action. Pushed motivation is when individuals drive themselves toward completing a task or goal, while pulled motivation occurs when individuals feel naturally inclined toward achieving an action. While both can be useful for MCOs, your website should focus on pulling your members toward a specific goal.
An example of a pull motivation for MCOs is creating effective rewards programs that connects with members and drives engagement. On mobile-friendly websites, organizations can capitalize upon the psychology of pull motivation by providing easily accessible resources or ways members can contact your organization. Keep in mind your members’ needs and act as the guide for delivering them the critical information they want. Incentivizing website visitors to take action on your website because they want to will always be the most effective way to boost engagement and completion rates.
Embrace New Technology
One of the critical benefits of mobile-friendly websites is that they typically require less maintenance and upgrade costs. Unlike mobile apps, which require series and copies of sequential updates, mobile sites need to be edited only once. This one edit then extends out toward all customer touchpoints.
This feature enables MCOs to efficiently and flexibly conduct A/B tests, launch outreach campaigns, and – most importantly – implement new technology features. 85% of website visitors expect the mobile site to be as good or better than the desktop site. Adding new technology, such as Chatbots, can help ensure that your website is meeting expectations.
Sagitec’s HealConnect solution offers MCOs the mobile, browser-based software solution to become a Medicaid member champion and effectively change member behavior. See how our solution can help your organization by clicking the link below.
