Apps World London
Universally Apps are looking forward to another exciting year at Apps World London – by far one of the UK’s biggest digital shows.
We are exhibiting once again this year – find us at C17, come and have a chat with the team and find out how we can help 🙂
Info@universallyapps.com
Universally Apps @ Cloud & DevOps World Olympia
If you’re interested in learning about localisation for digital media – you need to speak with us the Cloud & DevOps show at Olympia London, on the 21-22nd June 2016.
Arrange a meeting with Kieron – KBaker@universallyapps.com
WE ARE @ APPS WORLD BERLIN 2016
Universally Apps are at Apps World Berlin 2016 !
Contact Kieron to arrange a meet up – KBaker@universallyapps.com
Russia, a market not to be missed
by James Cartlidge
Since the birth of the Apple App Store (July 10th 2008 – that’s 7 years ago… feeling old yet?), the rise of the “smartphone” and its market has grown dramatically year on year.
The need to be always connected to the internet is becoming less of a luxury and more of a necessity in the modern age.
In terms of growth, nothing has been more surprising to me than that of the Russian apps market and I’d like to tell you why.
At first glance the Russian apps market currently stands as the 5th largest market (combined iOS and Google Play downloads), below the United States, China, Brazil and India. These downloads are primarily driven by the Google Play market.
Taken at face value, this doesn’t actually sound that impressive. However, their current smartphone penetration is only around 55% and is predicted to increase to over 70% in the next 3 years – still a massive portion of the population that has yet made the leap.
Moscow International Business Centre
(source: http://wikimapia.org/353/Moscow-International-Business-Center)
To help them make the leap, Russia introduced a policy of technology neutrality. This ruling allows the expansion of 3G and 4G signals across the nation, including urban areas with at least 1,000 residents, and upgrading areas with at least 10,000 residents. This was approved in December 2013 and is responsible for the market’s steady growth year on year, at an average of around 15% overall. If you separate this into its dominant market, Google Play has seen growth of around 25%.
So, what does all the above tell us?
It shows that the Russian app market, which is still a year younger than the rest of the developed world, hadn’t initially taken to the app generation. However, now because of this recently introduced policy, it is quickly catching up and developing its own trends.
So, let’s put this in monetary terms.
According to research that was conducted by J’son & Partners Consulting (a managing consultancy based in Russia), the mobile apps market in Russia is predicted to grow at an average rate of 186%, and in 2016 is likely to reach $1.3 Billion (USD). Included within this is research are some very interesting facts:
- 50% of tablet and smartphone users run video apps every day, surf the Internet at least once a day, and play mobile games daily.
- It is also reported that 40% of mobile Internet users would rather be deprived of television than of their smartphones.
Ok. Now we know that Russia is definitely not a market to pass up on just yet. However, as with most markets, certain app categories do much better. Games account for around 50% of downloads in the Russian market and around 75% of the revenue (this is based on a 3 month period ending May 2015, combining both iOS and Google Play – source: http://blog.appannie.com/russias-mobile-app-economy/).
Singling out Google Play, the dominant marketplace, this generated around 90% of revenue. Strategy games such as Game of War – Fire Age and Clash of Kings seem to be leading the market – but for how long?
Behind games, social media is becoming very strong, driven by a dominant Russian network, Odnoklassniki, and a range of dating and messaging apps which appear to change depending on trends. This trend is certainly one to monitor closely.
“To succeed in the Russian market, an app should be adapted and localized, because the vast majority of Russians ignore foreign-language apps.”
IN SUMMARY…
On the face of things, Russia seems as large a market as the United States or the other developed world countries.However, when delving deeper, it is growing at a faster rate than other markets, and ultimately has yet to “settle”, making Russia a market not to be missed.
Watch Becky’s Billion Pound Journey
How can Universally Apps help your business? watch Becky’s Billion Pound Journey
Universally Apps Introduces Language Customer Support
By James Cartlidge
Universally Apps are proud to announce the launch of a unique new service level – Language Customer Support.
So, what is this service and how can it help your business?
Our Language Customer Support service takes advantage of our project managers and linguists to offer their talent for support queries and/or community management. This would allow you to invest in a new market and demographic without the worry of being unable to support it in house.
We offer round the clock support, so that your customers are responded to in real time, to prevent frustration and negative reviews. We have the advantage of using teams of customer support experts who will correspond with your community in their native language, therefore minimising the risk of a misunderstanding.
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What can this service level include?
- Social Support : let us look after your social media in over 60 languages
- Email Support : real time support for your customers’ emails in over 60 languages
- Community Management : let us monitor your forums in over 60 languages
Our new Language Customer Support service is a unique A* bespoke service, tailored to your business’s individual needs. Talk to us today to see how we can adapt any of our services levels to suit your requirements.
A little translation can go a long way – why you should localise
by James Cartlidge
The internet has changed the world in many different and wonderful ways. The news has become a much more major talking point in the office thanks to 24hr updates, and information has become much more accessible – not only that but it has allowed the consumer to be able to purchase or browse goods and services at the click of a mouse, the tap of a screen, or even shouting at your watch, phone or tablet – pretty cool.
But more importantly than that, the Internet has connected the world – we are now a global marketplace, greater than we’ve ever been before!
Since the launch of Universally Apps (www.universallyapps.com) I have been traveling to events around the world, from small community developer events, to global stages. And one thing has really surprised me – the majority of developers and businesses don’t think globally about their product, or project.
Of course the above statement doesn’t apply to lots of global brands, and big businesses – but with the rise of the “indie” or the “start-up” company this is a rather large concern. How else do you expect for your product to be a success if your only focus is on only one market?
So – why should you localise??
That is a very good question. Most companies I have spoken with wrongly assume English is THE “global” language – and in some cases you’re right, it is spoken in the largest number of countries. However, after a simple Google search it trails 3rd, behind Spanish and Chinese for the approximate number of speakers.
- Chinese – 1,197,000,000
- Spanish – 414,000,000
- English – 335,000,000
- Hindi – 260,000,000
- Arabic – 237,000,000
- Portuguese – 203,000,000
- Bengali – 193,000,000
- Russian – 167,000,000
- Japanese – 122,000,000
- Javanese – 84,300,000
(source: http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0775272.html)
Surprised?
50% of the countries on the top 10 list of App downloads and revenue are non-English speaking countries from Europe and East Asia. (source: http://blog.apptopia.com/app-localization/)
56.2% of consumers say that the ability to obtain information in their own language is more important than price. (source: http://www.gala-global.org/why-localize)
Combine these 2 statements together and you can clearly see that if you create your product only for the English speaking market, then you are ignoring a massive consumer base that could significantly boost your revenue and overall downloads.
After reading the “Can’t Read, Won’t Buy” report, published by the Common Sense Advisory in 2014. One quote really stood out to me:
“The basic lesson from this study is that people don’t buy what they can’t understand”
(source: http://www.commonsenseadvisory.com/AbstractView.aspx?ArticleID=957)
And this is more so the case than ever for the consumer in the digital age…
How frustrated would you feel if you purchased a product and you couldn’t use it? Or remember the frustration of trying to register for a website form that doesn’t recognise your postal address?
The impact of localisation and translation is huge and I don’t think businesses or companies realise how much of an impact that it could have.
The rise of the interconnected world has encouraged the development more multi-cultural and multi-lingual societies.
According to the aforementioned article, 72.1% of consumers spend most of their time on websites in their own language, and 72.4% say they are more likely to make a purchase if information is available in their native language. And this is not just across countries and their official languages – it’s also the same among communities.
A Linguistic Map of London
(source: http://oobrien.com/2014/10/tube-tongues/)
Above is a linguistic map of London. Each colour represents a different language spoken in the city and where they are located in relation to the tube map.
It’s very interesting to see a visual representation of the different languages spoken across the capital. These are second to English; do you feel that your App is marketed to and targets these groups?
In the USA, current research suggests that by 2050 the Hispanic demographic would have increased to 30% of the overall population. It is currently estimated that the Hispanic economy represents $1.5 trillion in buying power – that’s insane! Do you feel an opportunity such as this can be ignored? (source: https://hbr.org/2014/02/will-spanish-help-you-reach-the-u-s-hispanic-market-it-depends)
IN SUMMARY…
When speaking with developers and businesses from around the globe, the common theme I hear is that their App or service is available everywhere – and that it appears they automatically assume that makes it global… However, they have not yet incorporated different languages or, more importantly accommodated to cultures outside of their own. This to me does not support the perception that the App is “available everywhere”.
Embracing languages and cultures is a golden opportunity to expand into new markets and ultimately increase your revenue and market share. A little translation can go a long way.
Universally Apps @ the App Promotion Summit 2015
by James Cartlidge
Finally after a superb day navigating overground London on foot during a tube strike (not recommended by the way) we find ourselves on a train tapping away on keyboards, summing up the highlights of the annual App Promotion Summit.
The conference this year was held in the very exquisite Jumeriah Carlton Hotel, London. A very popular and appropriate venue to meet with the very best in digital promotion.
This year we we’re treated by some very big named guests from the tech industry, including;
Becky Bui – Facebook. @beckyparker
Ross Sheil – Twitter. @rossysheil
Thy Dinh – New York Times.
among many others, all with help, advice, opinions and more importantly inside knowledge of how these organisations work – mainly in terms of marketing, but also how there platforms can be used to help the small and indie developer.
One thing that stood out to us, was a quote by Marie Steinhaler (Hopster/@marmarlade) – “When working with Apple and Google – show them that you care for the user”
This is something that rings true with Localisation, and Translation of your product or App. Ultimately the user experience is one of the more valued aspects of your App, and with the global reach of the Apple App and Google Play stores – it has become more apparent that just marketing your App for one demographic will stump it’s growth or reach.
And as the above statement suggests it will help build your relationship with Apple and Google.
So, time to dig deep into our notepads and inboxes to help the next generation of Apps succeed in this global playing field.
Please get in touch if you feel that we could help you and your brand – info@universallyapps.com
Universally Apps @ WWDC + Enterprise Apps World
It’s been a very busy month for all us here at Universally Apps with the official launch in May. So what have we been up to…
Well firstly it was our first time attending the World Wide Developer Conference, or WWDC in San Francisco which is hosted by Apple.
Such an experience to not only be in such a fantastic and inspirational city in terms of technology, but also to see, hear and feel the buzz from all the developers, designers and entrepreneurs building their latest project or working on improving their brand.
Highlights of the conference & keynote;
- iOS 9 – brings lots of new features and improvements to the platform. It will also go into a public beta test in July (click here for more info https://beta.apple.com/sp/betaprogram/) to prepare you for the changes to come. Official launch is to be confirmed in August.
- Siri – Siri will become more proactive the more you use it, and will even start to understand your daily routines.
- ApplePay – Good news for the UK consumer. Apple Pay will finally hit the British shores in July, having only been available in the US ‘till now. Having used it, we at Universally Apps are really excited to be finally getting a look at it in action.
- AppleMaps – Apple Maps will get a public transport update.
- News App – Apple will be releasing a new News App, which will help to pull all your news feeds into one location.
- Apple Watch – watchOS 2 is going to bring a big change to the new favored timepiece. Allowing developers to be more open and for it to become more independent (check it out here https://www.apple.com/uk/watchos-2-preview/).
- HomeKit & CarPlay – allowing developers more control over 3rd party technologies.
- Oh, and one more thing… Apple Music – a brand new music service brought to you by Apple (check it out here https://www.apple.com/uk/music/).
Lots of very cool updates and changes coming to Apple enthusiasts, as well as lots of features for developers to get stuck into and improve our lives.
Along with WWDC, we also attended Enterprise Apps World. This is a 2 day event based in the heart of London, which brings together technology and business to create a global playing field for any budding developer and tech entrepreneur.
Some fantastic talks and discussions from the elite of both worlds to help and inspire the next generation.
Now, it’s time for us to delve into our inboxes and to catch up with all the correspondence, and projects.
See you all again next year!