Mobile app user_survey_failing_meet_user_expectations

© 2015 Dimensional Research.
All Rights Reserved.
www.dimensionalresearch.com
Introduction
Users are reaching for mobile devices numerous times every day specifically to use mobile apps. The power and
freedom of connected mobile computing continues to raise expectations but users have little patience for problematic
apps. Mobile device users heavily rely on peer reviews and star ratings to help them choose their apps. Once a
mobile app is installed, that app is judged for its speed, responsiveness and stability which define the user experience
and overall satisfaction. Yet this study finds that users are experiencing app issues regularly. Critically, this report
reveals that apps that exhibit issues are quickly abandoned after just a couple of occurrences.
For a company who creates mobile apps, while good performance can lead to satisfied user and app downloads,
poor performance will result in quick app abandonment. The findings indicate that the key to loyal customers from
mobile apps is directly related to the mobile app performance, stability and resource consumption. Metrics defining
the mobile app user experience must be measured from the customer’s perspective and ensure it meets or exceeds
expectations at all times. The consequence of failing to meet user expectations is not only app abandonment – it also
leads to a tarnished brand with lost revenue opportunities from both current and future users.
Key Findings
• Mobile App Users are impatient
-- 61% Expected apps to start in 4 seconds or less
-- 49% Expected apps to respond in 2 seconds or less
• Users are intolerant of issues and are quick to abandon mobile apps
-- 80% Indicated they will only attempt to use a problematic app three times or less
-- 53% Uninstalled or removed a mobile app with severe issues like crashes, freezes or errors
-- 36% will stop using a mobile app due to heavy battery usage
• Users blame the mobile App and the company who made it
-- 55% Hold the app responsible for performance issues
-- 37% Stated that mobile app crashes or errors make them think less of a company’s brand
FAILING TO MEET MOBILE APP USER EXPECTATIONS
A MOBILE APP USER SURVEY
Dimensional Research | February 2015
Sponsored by

Page 2
Detailed Findings
While 80% of participants indicated that they reach for a mobile device up to 15 times a day, it was interesting to
note that 18% of users access their device up to 50 times daily. As mobile apps continue to mature and offer more
services, often with user specific context, the value of mobile apps will continue to rise. We expect the number of
apps used each day to rise in the future.
While many products are often chosen by price, in this study we find that price is only the third selection criteria.
Users stated that they initially search for mobile apps based on desired functionality, but the actual mobile app
choice is based on peer reviews and star ratings. Users want a 5-star mobile app more than they want the cheapest
one. This clearly indicates that functionality and user experience, as defined by stability and performance, directly
influence user satisfaction. This forms a product cycle in which apps that deliver a better user experience will
generate positive peer feedback – thereby driving more downloads.
80%

18%

2%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

1
–
15
15
–
50
More
than
50

Approximately
how
many
1mes
each
day
do
you
use
a

mobile
device
in
order
to
use
mobile
apps?

Star
ra&ng
and

user
reviews

34%

Promised
func&onality
(what
the
app
is

supposed
to
do)

34%

Price

29%

Number
indica&ng
how
many
&mes
an

app
has
been
downloaded

3%

When
choosing
a
mobile
app,
which
of
the
following
most
inﬂuences
the
app
you
pick?

Page 3
Nearly all users (96%) stated that performance is important, while over three quarters (76%) shared that it is very
important or critically important. This indicates that users’ satisfaction with an app is directly correlated to their
perception of the app’s performance. App performance is not only based on app load times but responsiveness to
selections as well as the speed at which it performs its actions.
Nearly half (49%) of those participating in the survey indicated they expect a mobile app to perform its actions in two
seconds or less. But only a small number of users (9%) would be willing to wait four or more seconds which redefines
the range of expected performance. This finding may also signal that long held “3 second rule” is being superseded
for mobile apps. Given the high importance participants placed on app performance, it is critical that developers
design and ensure the mobile apps they deploy should meet the two second threshold that half the market expects.
To understand the quality and performance of apps today, participants were asked how often they have issues with
mobile apps. 12% of the respondents indicated they have app issues daily, while 17% stated they have app problems
21%
55%
20%
3%
1%

0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%

How
important
is
the
speed
and
responsiveness
of
mobile
apps?

Cri0cally
important

Very
important

Important

Somewhat
important

Unimportant

7%

14%

28%

23%

19%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Less
than
a

second

1
second
2
seconds
3
seconds
4
seconds
More
than
4

seconds

In
your
opinion,
how
fast
should
an
app
respond?

Page 4
weekly. That means that over a quarter of the market (27%) are having at least one app issue every week. While
another 19% stated they have a problem at least once a month. Adding those three segments indicates that nearly
half (48%) of the users are having problems at least once a month.
Participants were further asked about severe app issues where the mobile app may have crashed, stopped working or
returned an error. Over the last six months over half the users indicated that they had experienced a severe app issue.
Having learned the importance of performance and now seeing the high frequency of issues users have with mobile
apps, developers need to ask themselves, what are the real world ramifications of users having issues?
In order to understand where users place responsibility for app performance and issues, we asked them what they
thought was the cause of mobile app issues. 55% placed the blame squarely on the mobile app itself, which means
that regardless of the actual cause, over half of all users will hold the app responsible. Many survey respondents
Never

30%

Mul,ple
,mes
a
year

22%

Mul,ple
,mes
a
month

19%

Mul,ple
,mes
a
week

17%

Mul,ple
,mes
a
day

12%

On
average
how
o,en
do
you
experience
issues
with
mobile
apps?

Yes

53%

No

47%

Over
the
last
six
months,
have
you
experienced
a
mobile
app
that

crashed,
stopped
responding
or
had
errors?

Page 5
(39%) indicated that they didn’t know what the cause was. But clearly device, the OS and mobile network share
much less of the user blame than the app. This means that those companies offering, managing and developing
mobile apps should expect the finger pointed at them more often, regardless of whether the app is really at fault or not.
When asked what they did with a mobile app that performed slowly, three of the top four answers were sobering
and indicated that users abandoned the app. 48% fully removed the app from the device, while 33% simply stopped
using it, and 32% looked for a replacement. 30% didn’t abandon the mobile app but shared they used the app less
often. However, 37% did take additional action by looking for an app update to remedy the performance issues.
29%

13%

18%

22%

55%

0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%

I
really
don’t
know

The
phone
or
tablet

The
phone
or
tablet
opera=ng
system
(i.e.
iOS,

Android,
Windows)

The
mobile
network

The
app
itself

When
mobile
app
issues
arise,
what
do
you
think
is
the
cause?

16%

4%

6%

7%

30%

32%

33%

37%

48%

0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%

Nothing,
I
s6ll
use
the
app

Other

Wrote
a
bad
review

Gave
nega6ve
‘star’
ra6ngs

Used
the
app
less
frequently

Looked
for
an
alterna6ve
app

Stopped
using
the
app

Checked
for
an
app
update

Uninstalled
or
removed
the
app

What
have
you
done
when
you
experienced
a

mobile
app
that
regularly
ran
slowly?

Page 6
Participants responded similarly when asked what actions they took with apps that had severe issues, such as
crashes, stopped responding and produced errors. Most users (53%) removed the app completely, and 37% stopped
using the app, while 28% looked for an alternative. But the findings are quite clear: companies that produce poor
performing mobile apps or apps with severe issues will not see those apps used for long, resulting in lost customers
and revenue opportunities.
This next question investigates how many chances a problematic app has before a user decides to abandon it.
Participant’s responses are striking in that users don’t have a lot of patience for mobile app issues, as 80% of users
indicated that an app will get a maximum of three chances before they stop using it. The result is three strikes and
you are out. Furthermore, more than half (56%) of users will only give an app two chances and 6% will abandon an
app at the first sign of an issue. Companies that offer mobile apps have a very tight window for remedying issues
before users depart.
14%

4%

7%

8%

21%

28%

34%

37%

53%

0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%

Nothing,
I
s6ll
use
the
app

Other

Wrote
a
bad
review

Gave
nega6ve
‘star’
ra6ngs

Used
the
app
less
frequently

Looked
for
an
alterna6ve
app

Checked
for
an
app
update

Stopped
using
the
app

Uninstalled
or
removed
the
app

What
have
you
done
when
you
experienced
a
mobile
app

that
regularly
crashed,
stopped
responding
or
had
errors?

6%

15%

35%

24%

6%
8%
6%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

I
won’t
try
the

app
again

1
2
3
4
5
More
than
5

When
you
experience
a
problem
with
a
mobile
app,
how

many
a5empts
will
you
make
to
retry
the
app?

Page 7
While much of the study focused on direct usage and performance of a mobile app, we wanted to understand if the
indirect effects of an app upon a mobile device mattered to users. Thus, participants were asked whether an app’s
impact on battery and data usage was important to them. Over a third of the users (36%) had actually stopped using
a mobile app because of heavy battery usage and 20% ceased using an app because of the amount of data consumed.
Mobile device users know that heavy battery usage means the risk of not having their device available when they
need it most – forcing them to frequently search for charging options. Data usage for most users has a direct
monetary impact given that mobile device plans are defined by data usage with stiff penalties for exceeding plan
limits. Thus users are showing that app choice and ongoing satisfaction is also affected by battery and data usage.
Mobile device users were asked if issues with devices negatively reflected on their opinion of the company who
made the app. 37% of the users who experienced a mobile app that crashed or froze thought less of the company
that made the app. Slightly behind, 36% of users who had experienced slow performance issues had a lower opinion
of the company. Users also showed that apps that are difficult to use (28%), are costly (25%) and have heavy battery
use (25%), all contribute to a negative perception of the company. Thus not only will a company lose customers
when an app has an issue but the company’s brand becomes tarnished as well.
54%

20%

36%

0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%

None
of
these
issues
caused
me
to
stop
using
an
app

Heavy
cellular
data
usage

Heavy
ba@ery
usage

Have
any
of
these
issues
ever
caused
you
to
stop
using
a
mobile
app?

31%

1%

15%

16%

17%

17%

25%

25%

28%

36%

37%

0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%

No
issues
change
my
opinion
of
the
company

Other

Heavy
cellular
data
usage

Missing
features

Consumes
signiﬁcant
device
storage

Low
user
reviews

Heavy
baHery
usage

Price

Diﬃcult
to
use
app

Slow
performance

Frequent
crashes
or
freezes

Have
any
of
these
issues
caused
you
to
have
a
lower
opinion
of
the

company
who
created
the
mobile
app?

Page 8
Summary
Users are reaching for mobile apps numerous times each day, providing fertile opportunities for businesses. The
mobile apps users initially choose are heavily influenced by peer feedback, but we find the user satisfaction is
directly linked to performance, reliability and battery life. Apps that have slow performance as defined by a new two
second standard or exhibit issues such as crashes or errors are abandoned after just two or three incidents. Poor user
experience will not only make its way into peer feedback that results in a diminished number of new users for an
app, but it also negatively affects a company’s brand. Whether a company has mobile apps as their primary business
or as an added value service, they must take performance and stability of the app and other related user experience
seriously. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the user experience, specifically the performance and stability of an
app, but the metrics must be monitored from the user’s perspective.
Survey Methodology
Mobile device users from an independent database were invited to participate in a web survey on the topic of mobile
device apps. A total of 3011 respondents across Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Netherlands, United Kingdom,
and United States who used mobile apps completed the survey. The survey was administered electronically and
participants were offered a token compensation for their participation.
United
States

&
Canada,

1502

Europe,
1509
50% 50%

Page 9
About Dimensional Research
Dimensional Research®
provides practical marketing research to help technology companies make their customers
more successful. Our researchers are experts in the people, processes, and technology of corporate IT and understand
how IT organizations operate. We partner with our clients to deliver actionable information that reduces risks,
increases customer satisfaction, and grows the business. For more information visit www.dimensionalresearch.com.
About HP
HP creates a new style for IT and the possibility for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses,
governments, and society. The world’s largest technology company, HP brings together a portfolio that spans
printing, personal computing, software, services, and IT infrastructure to solve customer problems. More information
about HP (NYSE: HPQ) is available at www.hp.com.

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