How Often Should You Update Your Mobile App?

App makers have a broad range of frequencies that they stick to when updating their mobile offerings. From weekly to yearly updates, and sometimes never, mobile apps are typically updated based on user response and having a set schedule, among a number of other variables that pertain to a specific mobile app. It is completely understandable if you are unsure of how often you should update your app. While you may have a preference, or instinctual urge to update a certain amount, sometimes that can be misleading. To optimize how often you update your mobile app, here are a few quick tips.

 

Listen To Your Users

 

One of the best ways to know how often to update your mobile app is to simply listen to its users. If you are not already receiving feedback from them about your app, then you should soon ask for it. It is more than likely that they will be glad to let you know what they think, that is, if they have not done so already. The feedback cycle from users to the design team of an app is best streamlined directly, and often plays an integral part in the frequent updates of many popular apps. Typically, what happens is an app will be initially released, or provide an update, then, the users will immediately weigh in on its shortcomings and bright spots. This plays a big part in how often an app should be updated.

 

For instance, if an app has a bunch of problems that users are complaining about and it provides an update in response but only fixes some of the issues, then upon further user feedback, it may need a subsequent update within a week or as soon as possible. An example of this was a recent update of the Craigslist app. Some users had been having trouble using the location service, as well as seeing the price listed for various classified listings on their mobile devices. The developers at Craigslist eventually thought they fixed the problem, and then realized the update had only taken care of some of the issues. They then provided a subsequent update only a short time after.

 

Set a Consistent Update Schedule

 

Besides feedback from users, it is a good habit to have a regular set schedule for your app's updates. This way you can stick to regularly updating your app, while still leaving the opportunity for unscheduled updates when problems with the software arise. For example, you may set a regular update schedule of twice a month, but due to certain issues reported by users, you may end up updating three times one month, and four times another.

 

Conclusion

 

Deciding how often to update your mobile app can be a bit difficult to gauge. If you update too often, then users may begin to question the competence of its programming and the skills of your design team. If you do not update it often enough, then users will likely begin to lose interest and perhaps think that you lack integrity in your mobile offering. However, if you listen to what your users say in terms of feedback and adhere to a set schedule for regularly updating your app, then you should be fine. Once you have all that taken care of, then it should be smooth sailing for future app updates further down the line.

 

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