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Blockchain Software Technology

6 pitfalls to avoid in blockchain application development

Knowing your target audience is important to launch a successful dApp. With any dApp blockchain technology should form the basis of a product and deliver utility to end-users. So many blockchain application development projects so far have focused on the buzzwords and not on how the product will actually work. When people ask me about their dApp, they want to know why they haven’t seen much user adoption. I often have to list some of the things that could have made their blockchain application development project more profitable.

When users buy your tokens, they become part of the project in a similar way that shareholders become part of a company. Therefore, it’s important to have the interests of all actors aligned with similar goals. In this article, I will present 6 reasons why projects lack user adoption and ways to do it differently.

The dApp is unusable


Creating a profitable dApp blockchain business is all about finding the right product/market fit. Launching a product that your users will like for what it is and not because of the technology behind it is critical. After all, few really care about how services such as Paypal work under the hood.

All that matters in blockchain application development is that the product works and that it’s convenient to use in the end. Adopt this approach when dealing with any new technology, but blockchain especially.

Don’t assume that your users will know how to use MetaMask, or MyEtherWallet. The customer experience must be as smooth as possible, to remove as many barriers between the company and the customer. Good UX design also goes a long way to improving usability and building trust in any dApp

Every operation that requires an active behavior from your users (token sale, airdrop, interaction with the platform) should be an opportunity to educate them. A resource center where users can find small videos and/or presentations to guide them through your platform is essential to success.

The tokenomics model is not sustainable

Usability aside, token supply and demand play a huge role in the success of any blockchain application development project. Most dApps have a native token. Since the token — in theory — gains value, it’s important to design an economic system involving the token (tokenomics)  that will regulate that value.

Usually, blockchain application development projects choose a deflationary model inspired by bitcoin. In the bitcoin model, there is only a fixed set of tokens in existence and because of that, the price of the token will go up. 

However, this system only works for projects that aim to use the token as a store of value — as digital gold — not as a utility for the dApp blockchain platform. If we compare the storage of value effect and the utility effect of a token, there’s clearly a divergence of interests between users. Some want to use the token and thus don’t want its price to fluctuate. While others want to speculate. Since most projects are based on a utility token, the deflationary model alone does not work.

Some projects use an inflationary model, this model reflects real-world monetary systems. While this is very complex to design and set up, it brings unique advantages. One of the most famous blockchain projects implementing inflationary tokenomics is STEEM.

Carefully designing the right tokenomics model for your blockchain application development project is a crucial step that will contribute to the longevity and the economic stability of your project. Do not underestimate the importance of a well-thought tokenomics.f the token price drops to zero, the project is dead.

No one can find the token on exchanges

Once the blockchain application development is over, it’s time to list on exchanges. Centralized exchanges are big actors in the decentralized landscape. As strange as it sounds, the activity of an exchange (even a crypto exchange) is highly regulated and people have been fined and shut down for running illegal exchanges.

High listing fees and tough conditions are typical for the major players. This tremendously complicates the listing process. In order to list your dApp blockchain token with big exchanges such as Kraken or Binance, you need to have a large community and plenty of funds. If you go for smaller exchanges, users might find it difficult to use their platform and to find your token. Listing on smaller exchanges also means less liquidity.

One of the suggestions that we have is to look for alternative ways of distribution. There are different ways of distributing a token without going through exchanges. For example, airdrops, private shops, and atomic swaps are all solutions that can help consumers access tokens.

The dApp attracts the wrong crowd

Many entrepreneurs, not specifically in the blockchain industry, fail to grasp the importance of attracting the right users. They’re fooled by the lofty promises of a network effect and feel compelled to attract as many users as possible. Regardless of who they are.

A quick glance at major dApp blockchain groups on social media reveals that the main topic of conversation is the price of the token. Of course, this is usual in the crypto community. But should the price-obsessed be the main target of your platform?

At its core, there is a chasm between the interests of users who want to spend your token and the users who want to hold it to make a profit.  Since your goal is to drive mass adoption of the platform, you shouldn’t target the crypto community specifically because the vast majority of its members only care about price.

If we look at how usual companies operate, the share price does not necessarily reflect how the company is doing financially. Companies like Tesla, Pinterest, Facebook do not (or did not for a very long time) generate any profits.

As opposed to companies quoted above, most blockchain projects do not have any products because they focus on the price of the token rather than building one.

The reason why internet companies have value is because of their users. User adoption is the most important metric out there. A quick look at DappRadar can show that most dApps have no more than 50 users apart from airdrop groups.

If you target users in the crypto community, yes you’ll have some traffic, yes you’ll give the impression that your project is hot. But as soon as the selling window of your tokens expires, those users will simply switch to another project.

Aside from the number of users, the quality of those users is a far more valuable measure. I always suggest my clients avoid only targeting users in the crypto community. Some of them just want to pump and dump. You want to build a sustainable decentralized business.

The airdrop was poorly organized


As explained in a previous article, airdrops can be your best tool as they can be your worst enemy. There ’s always a risk in attracting the wrong users to your profile. You don’t want to have your main communication channels polluted by a flood of “when exchange” and “when moon” messages.

On the contrary, you want to have smart users that are asking critical information about your product and engage with the community. If you do it well, a lot of the support can be performed by those same users who will educate the newcomers.

There are numerous mechanisms that can prevent users from selling their newly acquired tokens on the exchanges and causing a major drop in price while still benefiting from the exposure offered by the airdrops. However, you have to organize each airdrop in a unique way, tailor-made way. We at Espeo have a history of successful airdrops and will be happy to talk about your options with you.

The dApp does not have a clear competitive edge

Before you start a blockchain application development project, ask yourself: What is my edge, what is my unfair advantage?

Time has passed where you could simply copy an ICO website, quickly write a sloppy white paper and expect to raise $20 million. If you want to make it, you need a strong value proposition. What is your value when you’re literally using the same pitch as 100 ICOs before you, what is your edge when you develop the 10th KYC on blockchain solution that will change the world?

Building a strong project takes time, efforts and resources. Creating a fancy website, adding some animations, and hiring content writers to produce “sales-y content” is pretty easy. But what’s your edge on your competitors? What will drive the users to come to your platform, apart from the tech?

A dApp blockchain platform has to actually create value for end-users. This can get very complex and it requires an extra mile of work. It may also require a second-layer of reflexion regarding the goal and project architecture. Yes, it takes more time, but it’s worth it. We always forget the time spent on a project, but the value of a project remains. And that’s where Espeo stands for.

Our team of experts can help you strengthen your projects by understanding the technical challenges that you’ll face as tech entrepreneurs. We can help lead you toward a profitable blockchain business.

Conclusion

As already mentioned above, many dApps lack a basic proof of concept. There are a lot of new concepts, and indeed a lot of nice investor pitches. However,  there are very few established prototypes.  For any successful dapp blockchain technology has to actually benefit end-users. Fixing this is already something that will set you apart from your competitors.

After, all technology is a tool. But how people adapt and react to technology has not changed. This is why it’s crucial to think about the way you target your users and how you present the product. People react to what you say. If you create a project that’s simple to use and solid economically you’ll have no problems finding the right users. Before any blockchain application development project, follow a few of these tips to launch a great product the market actually needs.

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Blockchain Design Software

Designing for blockchain: How to build trust through good UX

I recently sat down with blockchain product designer, Ariel Hajbos to get his take on some essential elements of good blockchain design and some of the trends in blockchain app UX. Creating an elegant, responsive design is important in all web and mobile projects, but designing for blockchain poses new challenges. Trust-building features and even color choice are vital to an overall comfortable user experience.

Blockchain UX and UI remains a major hurdle for people to actually use the technology. In an earlier interview, blockchain consulting director, Dominik Zyskowski said good design is the key to widespread adoption. “Designers,” he said, “have to create a simple, frictionless experience to attract more users.”

So far, blockchain-based apps act much differently than traditional ones. For us who work with the underlying tech every day, it’s obvious, but if you don’t, blockchain apps may not behave as you expect. They tend to lag — and when you’re seeing charts, numbers, and of course your account balance, this can cause a lot of anxiety. Building trust through good UX is the main goal. Designing for blockchain apps involves regular feedback and trust-building features that create a pleasant user experience. Better UX will encourage more consumers to incorporate the technology into their daily lives.

Ariel Hajbos is a product designer at Espeo Blockchain and has been designing for blockchain projects during his time on the team. He started his career in graphic design and has since become integral in Espeo’s blockchain design projects such as the derivatives trading platform, CloseCross, and the mobile version of the crypto exchange, Trade. io.

In your opinion what is the most important aspect of blockchain design? What’s challenging about designing for blockchain projects?

I would say that the most important thing when designing for blockchain is that the apps often deal with financial assets — users approach these applications will a lot of distance. They’d like to get to know the apps better, know the deliverables, and know the company that built it. That’s a common thing. So it’s super important in my opinion to always design for trust. My role as a designer is to win this trust from users and communicate the ideas behind the application as well as possible so they feel comfortable using it.

The principle of designing for trust is something which is useful in other categories as well. It’s not only with blockchain, but any kind of application you build, you’d like to achieve this.

That’s an interesting point — about building trust through design. How do you do it, actually? What are some features you’ve incorporated that do this?

You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. If there are some patterns that users are familiar with that would be the very best first step. Using a design system and being consistent in your blockchain design creates this feeling that everything is sound and everything in the user interface is in its place. It’s also good to avoid jargon — you can’t assume that all your users will know it so it’s good to present things clearly. If you approach it in the proper way — if you keep in mind some things that are important in UX design in general, you can build trust.

The last thing I would say is creating a feedback loop — some kind of active guidance where users see a responsive design. Even if we build something and release it it’s only the beginning of the road so it’s important to be with the users through the whole app-building building process — and its future development. End users should feel as if they have the opportunity to leave their feedback, and that we’re listening and implementing changes.

In some of the projects that you’ve worked on, what were some common features you’ve changed?

Aesthetics, number of clicks, how the app presents data, and the general flow are some features we’ve received feedback on and changed. It’s always good to discuss those matters with the actual users too. It’s a very common thing because we work in an integrative process.  We build something, we analyze it, gather feedback, and correct it — again and again and again to reach our goal no matter what the goal is. Whether it’s a business assumption or usability.

I also encourage product owners to show the UI and UX to the people that will use their app — a demo group — and gather feedback from them.  it’s also good to clash that feedback from the business perspective and then for the user’s perspective and then get something good from that.

What aesthetic changes have end-users asked for and how does it affect blockchain design?

The applications that I built with Espeo were in general, were pretty consistent. They were focused on a goal It had to be achieved according to some of the steps. There wasn’t much space to think about adding something new. However, when we designed the Trade.io mobile application, and they were happy with the UI and UX, they requested we add additional features such as different color modes in the app. We cranked up the interface to add a dark mode and a color mode.

This wasn’t only an aesthetic decision — some of the users were accustomed to shifting between different color modes. It was easier for them to analyze data and they lacked this feature in the app before we added it. While I’m designing for blockchain apps, it doesn’t seem very important at first glance but if you start to think about it but it’s something really helpful when users have to analyze data quickly and act on it.

So it had nothing to do with how the app actually works, just how it looks?

Yes, it was only about how it looks. However, you have to remember if this is a blockchain app so we were struggling with presenting a lot of data, a lot of numbers, and a lot of charts. It’s always in the context of something positive and negative when you gain or lose assets.

For some people, different color approaches for gains and losses were less stressful. Magenta/cyan (pictured above) instead of green/red was an easier approach. It felt less stressful — more like a game. It’s a kind of user approach for such a topic. It’s not only about using a clean and simple minimalistic UI it’s not always the super idea that will satisfy all users.

What values among blockchain app users influence design do you think? I mean blockchain people skew skeptical — they don’t trust anything. How does this influence UX?

Yeah, so there are a few layers to that — first of all users have to trust the machine. It’s important that the user believes that the device is responsive And that he’s getting all the information that he needs to get. It’s also connected to blockchain technology itself.

Since it’s a decentralized technology, we have to think about why users will trust the blockchain and why blockchain technology is so important to them. These are new opportunities and it’s something very exciting. So this trust in the machine and in the algorithm is a challenge for us. Designers have to help users to trust the mechanisms blockchain technology.

Aside from blockchain itself, users have to trust the people building the applications as well. For instance, in the CloseCross app that we helped design, users predict the value of assets in the future and you have to be sure that it’s accurate and that you’ll receive your assets back. To combine those two things the trust for the application itself and the trust in the UI and the UX of the application a designer’s role is to demonstrate this trust.

Reducing cognitive load, guiding with consistency, and displaying messages properly goes a long way. All those things are connected to blockchain design and UI/UX design generally. It’s a designers role to demonstrate these things. With blockchain apps, you have to signal to the user and say ‘hey, you’re fine, your assets are fine, everything is happening as it should.’ Grasping this proper flow is something that I strive for.

How do you get into the minds of everyday users — those who may not know, or really care about how something works, just that it works.

It’s always a matter of communication. You always have to listen to users and also the people you’re working with. Designing for blockchain is a collaborative process. You have to be an open, empathetic person. I have to think about different approaches to look at a problem from a different perspective. It depends on the project —  lots of our projects aren’t structured in a super strict flow.

There’s not always time for a lot of proper research. My role is to always try to understand the product as well as possible — try to pick through it in layers and from different angles of blockchain design. But my job doesn’t end there I also help guide in the implementation phase because I’m one of the few people, along with the product owner who knows the interface entirely.

I have to be a communicative person — I have to speak up with the product owner and present as many methods as possible based on the resources you already have. If there’s a space, I speak up and discuss with the users. If there’s time, I also map out a user story, write a backlog, and discuss it with developers. It’s a matter of constant discussion and analysis.

Which project that you’ve worked on are you the proudest of?

For sure Trade.io and CloseCross. For Trade.io there was already a web platform we didn’t build. Instead, we had to transform and migrate those functionalities and features to a mobile app. That was kind of challenging, however, the client was very helpful during the research part and they delivered a lot of already started wireframes and ideas for the UI. We didn’t build it from scratch but we built on top of something that already existed it was a super nice input at the very beginning that helped us to start from a good level.

With CloseCross, it was a project we helped design this platform in very close corporation with Vahibav Khadikar, the CEO. We had really long and intense sessions analyzing the UI in various versions — we did several versions. We had to think about the features, prototype it rapidly, verify the idea, and then build something on top of that.

CloseCross is a really large application with a lot of design features. As I said earlier, collaboration is something super important — it helps you to come up with really nice ideas and extend your possibilities because there’s no way one person could build something totally from scratch.

What are the main trends in blockchain design?

Trends in blockchain design are constantly changing — but the principles are the same. Design thinking, proper user research, quick evaluation of ideas like low fidelity wireframes. Those are essential tools that deliver really nice outcomes. Designing for blockchain involves trust-building features. The main trend is designing for the global nature of the blockchain — with proper localization and device agnostic.

You’d like to deliver your outcome and deliver the design you working on to as many people as possible so it’s super important also for trust to think about different languages and different devices. You have to design systems that work well across environments. 

Conclusion

Even though one blockchain technology’s greatest strengths is ensuring trust, Many users remain skeptical. Blockchain design is the most important challenge for widespread adoption. Cumbersome user experience will only hamper further adoption of blockchain among the wider public. Effective UX design is essential to create useful, valuable blockchain apps. designing for blockchain apps involves building trust through regular feedback and frictionless navigation.

Getting blockchain design right to make end users comfortable — and maybe not even notice the underlying tech, needs innovative solutions. Hajbos and designers like him are driving greater adoption of blockchain applications.

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Software Technology

Client and Server Side Rendering Static Site Generators

Client and Server Side Rendering Static Site Generators

In the last few years the popularity of Single Page Applications has slightly increased. Before the SPA revolution, the majority of application logic was done back-side with some AJAX additions and the user interface improvements were done by JavaScript. Due to the fact that only a small piece of content was added asynchronously almost the whole content was rendered Server-side and available even while browsing without JavaScript.

When the SPA application appeared, in the era of Backbone JS, Ember and Angular, the first versions of all search engines crawlers were clear. None of them supported javascript rendering. Crawlers were just receiving the content rendered by servers and indexed by web pages which ended up with a terrible SEO so common while relying on javascript too much. Technology is evolving very fast, so a question arises whether the SEO problem is still valid for SPA applications in 2018/2019.

What is SSR? Do we need it?

SSR stands for Server-Side Rendering. It is a way to prerender parts of the application on the server like in a classical back-end language. A browser makes a request to a server, the server runs application pre-rendering, as it goes, and responds with a generated html. On the browser site the JS logic is automatically attached to the rendered state and the application can used as usual.
On the opposite end, we have Client-Side Rendering which is a standard method for all SPA frameworks. Such applications generate whole content in the browser runtime. Typically the client-side applications receive from the server a basic html structure with an empty placeholder “div” where all application components will be rendered.

There is also a third method similar to Server-Side Rendering called Static Site Generation. Although it may be confused with SSR, but the idea is a bit different. With this method during a building phase  html files are generated which will be served from the server. Such html files can be effective at rendering hundreds of components which will take time if done on client-side.The application can be pre-rendered once in a specific state, only to send it to the end user in simple html files in the fastest way possible while using http hosting.

We have 3 options to choose from. So, which one I should use?
Each option is used in specific cases and fulfils different needs. Let’s hope the following paragraphs will help you choose the best one.

Which solution I should use?

Client side rendering, server side rendering, static site generators

The infographic below shows a general idea behind each approach. The final effect is the same: fully functional application. The difference is in a way it is achieved.

At a first glance, all three graphics look almost the same with the same number of steps. The key difference is timing for each action. In client-side rendering, application stays long in the “loading” state, while it is making ajax request for necessary data, compiling views and injecting everything into DOM. Server load will be small even for a considerable number of requests. The browser side is overloaded with work which may even work longer and slower on weak computers or phones.

For server-side rendering most work is on the server-side, which does most of the job. The server executes the application code and generates html based on it in order to create a response.
After that the browser will need to attach all the events to the existing html, create virtual DOM etc. When does the server-side work the most? If the server is not powerful enough, the response time may increase slightly. With the server-side rendering we need to think how much traffic the application will generate and whether the server is able to handle it fast.

The third option is to use Static Site Generator which is the fastest one. The server just sends previously prepared html. On the browser side the framework that is being used is attached to the existing structure, as a result the application is ready to use. Neither the server nor the browser is excessively overloaded.

Let’s make a small comparison table for all the 3 solutions:

ProblemClient-Side renderingServer-Side RenderingStatic Site Generators
Social media sharing⛔??
SEO, search engines❓it’s complicated 🙂??
High traffic?⛔?
Frequently changed dynamic content??❓it depends
Easy to implement?⛔❓it depends

Quick notes about the above points:
In the case of social media sharing like Facebook or Twitter, they don’t execute javascript. With the client-side generated application there is always the same set of OG tags and meta properties, there is no possibility to share a specific page/route in our application/website. If social sharing is a must, then it is better to choose SSR or Static Site Generators.

SEO remains a big mystery. A few years ago the situation was clear because none of the the search engines  understood javascript. So, no content rendered client-side was indexed. The situation changed once Google announced that their crawler would finally render javascript. (The following paragraphs will contain small test to check them out). With SSR and Static Site Generators we are certain  that the content will be indexed, whereas in the case of CSR it’s a bit more complicated issue 🙂

For high traffic websites it is always  better to put as much as possible to the client, and CSR seems to be a reasonable option.

Static Site Generators don’t work well with a dynamic content because all html files are created much too often. Naturally, there can be parts which don’t change, to fully render the server-side and the dynamic ajax content on the client-side, in such a case Static Site Generators will do the job.

The easiest option to implement is a standard SPA app done client-side without any additions. With server-side rendering we have to maintain server part, which may be tricky based on solutions. With Static Site Generators depending on the chosen framework, the implementation will take as much as for client-side but with some additions.

How do crawlers work?

Crawlers are automated scripts which browse www to collect information about web pages and the connections between them. They are connected with search engines and pass on information to them. Based on the knowledge web crawlers/spiders collected search engines decide on the order in which search results appear.

Historically, no crawlers were executing javascript. Client-side rendered application was not indexed at all. The situation changed a little when Google announced that crawlers they were going to use execute javascript. It was great news but let’s remember there is world outside Google. And, there are more search engines on the market such as: Bing, Yahoo, Ask.com, Baidu, Yandex, DuckDuckGo and others.

According to market share calculations Google powered 76% of all searches. It means that 24% of searches around the web are done with different engines! How should we know how they will see our pages?  Here you can find fantastic tests with different frameworks and the most popular search engines. The results of this comparison are clear: only Google and Ask.com understand javascript and are able to index client-side rendered application correctly.

While creating a an application constantly ask yourself a question whether it is fine to be indexed only by Google and Ask.com or maybe it would be a good idea to consider other search engines on the market.

How will Google crawler see my page?

A while ago Google provided a great tool for developers in order to check how Google bots/crawlers can see our web pages. With just a few simple steps we can run a diagnostic of our page and see whether all information that is posted  is correctly rendered by the bot script. Bots may either reject some external scripts that are included or not render something if the execution time is too long. Unfortunately, there are no similar tools for other search engines and the developers learn about their functionality only from experiments like the one linked in the previous chapter.

Let’s test few simple examples using fetch as google tool. In the experiment we will check how Google render client-side rendered React application in different configurations.
Google needs to verify you as the owner of a webpage to be rendered by bot. There are multiple methods to achieve this. The simplest one requires uploading a file to the server or adding a special meta tag to the webpage.

Test 1 – a simple React application with nested components

Test 1 - a simple React application with nested components

The above example simple application with 2 nested components is being rendered by displaying image from an external link and a simple text. Everything is correctly rendered by Google bot. This proves that Google can handle correctly such a simple javascript rendered app.

Test 2 – a React application with a content loaded by slow AJAX response

Test 2 - a React application with a content loaded by slow AJAX response

In the above example there is an extended application from the previous example which adds a third component by requesting content from the server by using ajax request. The example adopted NASA api and it also added a small delay of 5-6 seconds for the content to be available the the application. When the content is ready both the image url and the simple text paragraph are rendered. Looks like again the bot has handled it correctly.

Test 3 – a React application with a very slow AJAX request

Test 3 - a React application with a very slow AJAX request

In the third example the first problem occurs 10 seconds have been added to the loading time for the AJAX response. The component is not rendered at all and it was skipped by Google bot. The example has used a single AJAX request with long loading time which probably would never happen in reality. But what about having a very complex application which has been created from hundreds of components and has relied on multiple external data endpoints? If there are some who require all Promises to be resolved then it is possible to end up with the same situation as the one above, some parts of the content will not be available for Google crawler and will not be indexed. In such a situation the only solution is to pre-render  SSR or Static Site Generators.

Summary

While developing a new Single Page Application we should carefully think over our needs. If we are going to implement an internal application, the admin panel where user needs to log in, we don’t need to worry about SEO, indexing or the social media stuff, client-side rendered application will do it for us.
Taking social media sharing into consideration use specific Open Graph tags for particular pages, having different titles and descriptions for each page etc. requires SRR or Static Site Generators. Social media tools don’t execute javascript so replacing meta information for specific routes will not be possible.

When we want to develop a website which should be indexed by search engines we need to be careful. If we only care about Google we can write client-side rendered application and in order to make sure that everything will be correctly indexed we should frequently check with fetch as google tool. Too long loading/rendering times may result in a part of the content not being indexed at all. If we need to support other search engines, the only solution will be to go for SSR or Static Site Generators solutions, because they are not prepared to oversee javascript applications.

While choosing between SSR and Static Site Generators we should consider how often our data will change. If we implement a highly static website we can choose one of the existing solutions for Static Site generators and develop our website in the technology we love to work with.

There are multiple libraries providing SSR and Static Site Generators solutions for top SPA frameworks. There are solutions for React, Vue or Angular. What are the differences and how to use them. Hope the lecture of my next article will help you choose proper tool for your next application.

See also:

Categories
Software Technology

TOP 5 Analytics tools to Measure App Success

TOP 5 Analytics tools to Measure App Success

Measuring app’s success helps you keep track of its performance and valuation for your app. There are different metrics you can use to measure the app’s success. However, you might also consider using analytics tools, which provide more credible results by eliminating the human error.

Before deciding which analytical tool is best for you, it would be a good idea to learn about different types of analytics tools and how they operate,  this knowledge will prove beneficial to make an informed choice.

Basically, there are major types of analytics tools; marketing analytics, in-app analytics and performance analytics.

1. App marketing analytics

This type of analytics helps you discover ways to monetize your app. How do users discover and learn about your app? Do they find it while browsing an application store or maybe somewhere else, e.g. on other websites?

2. In-app analytics

In-app analytics focuses on user behavior within the application. What do they do once they have opened your app? Do they, for example, click on the ads? The data you collect and analyze concerning your users will be huge help in the post-publishing development phase of your app. This could give you an insight into the most frequent and most valuable users.

3. App performance analytics

App performance analytics deals with the mechanical part of the application. The tool  identifies factors and malfunctions which cause your application to crash. Which devices register slow crawl and so forth.

This kind of analysis plays an important role because without it the app would be doomed.

How to go about selecting app analytics tools? There are many factors to consider, some are basic such as:

  • Key features – Some features are universally provided by most platforms. What makes this particular tool stand out? Does  it offer A/B testing, for example?
  • App needs – What kind of analytics do you need? If your app is very original then you might want to consider customizable metrics instead of the standardised ones.
  • Level of support –  Will the tool be helpful and reliable when things go south? Do they have an active customer care?
  • Size of  SDK –  How easy is the implementation process? Remember to choose the one that is simple to implement and not too complicated to master. Some SDKs can slow your app down and, as a result, reduce  its performance.
  • Cost – You can find platforms in various price tiers. Choose the one that is within your budget but also has all the features that you need.

Bearing all these elements in mind below you will find a list of top 5 app analytics tools.

1. Google Analytics for mobile

Google Analytics Logotype

Digital marketers may know Google Analytics as a website analytics tool but what they may not know is that it can be used as an app analytics tool. Some aspects such as user engagement can be tracked and measured with Google Analytics providing a very deep and valuable insight into the app visitors’ behaviour.

Google offers in-app analytics for both Android and iOS.

Pros of Google Analytics

  • Helps to understand the app user characteristics, traffic sources and volume
  • Shows what actions your users are taking
  • Measures in-app payments and revenue
  • Customizes reports specific to your business
  • Visualizes user navigation paths
  • Chunks and structures your data to understand different user groups’ behavior and enables you to isolate the user behavior thanks to the User Explorer Report

One major disadvantage of Google Analytics is that it’s not the most user friendly tool to use. It lacks support service in case something goes wrong, so you’ll have to go through tutorials and search for answers on your own.

2. Flurry

Flurry logotype

Flurry.com has been acquired by Yahoo Developer Network and is now the oldest mobile app analytics tool. It comes with many advantages and is absolutely free for iOS, Android as well as Blackberry. Flurry offers basic features necessary to manage and monitor the performance of your app.
The tool enables you to view the user’s experience in real time and as a result an insight into the user’s behavior.

Pros of  Flurry:

  • Provides user acquisition analytics
  • Displays data on the number of app sessions
  • Gives an accurate volume of active users, the demographics and frequency of use
  • Monitors add performance
  • Offers funnel management
  • Measures app retention

3. Mixpanel

Mixpanel logotype

Mixpanel has gained the trust of AirBnB, WordPress as well as match.com users. One of the strongest points of the tool is the installation speed, which is just under ten minutes. In addition, it is filled with analytical tools. Mixpanel supports both iOS and Android.
This particular analytical tool has a free plan as well as plans going up to $999 per month.

Pros of Mixpanel

  • Offers A/B testing
  • Gives app retention performance reports
  • Provides activity feeds and enables you to track revenue
  • Provides people analytics
  • Funnel  management
  • Targeted push messaging is enabled
  • Measures retention rate

Although it is a freemium, it is worth noting that the free version is limited to 25,000 data points per month.

4. Appsee

Appsee logotype

Appsee offers developers qualitative mobile app analytics. The insights are visual and may include videoing user behavior during sessions. This includes every action and activity  carried out by the user, it is automatically captured and tagged by Appsee’s technology. It has been recognized by Gartner as the leader of qualitative analytics.
The touch heat maps allow developers to see in-app user behavior comprehensively. This includes small details such as swipes which are displayed in color-codes. This app offers a 14-day trial after which the tool rolls into the premium version.

Pros of Appsee

  • Seamless integration (5 min)
  • Touch heat maps
  • Records user sessions
  • Provides crash reports
  • Offers retention analytics
  • Action cohorts
  • Retention analytics

Cons of Appsee

  • There is no freemium, just a free trial

5. Localytics

Localytics logotypes

If you are looking for smart targeting of your audience as well as marketing automation, then Localytics is you for you. It offers a diversity of features, both traditional and modern ones. Apart from the app analytics tools, Localytics is known for its personalization capabilities, which are achieved by targeted in-app messaging and push messages.
It also helps you re-engage with those who have uninstalled your app in order to convince them to come back and reinstall your app.
It comes with both free and paid subscription plans tailored to  your needs and budget.

Pros of Localytics:

  • Uninstall Tracking
  • Targeted in-app messaging
  • Push messaging
  • Funnel management
  • Life-time value tracking
  • Retention analytics
  • Enables A/B testing

It is worth noting that there are no funnels in the free version.

Conclusion

Technology evolves every day. Therefore, new app analytical tools are introduced every day. If you consider the criteria that the app has to meet, then the question which one to choose in this diverse and large market shall be an easy one. Choose the one that gives you the features which you need but is within your budget. On top of everything, choose the one that is easy to navigate. The above top 5 mobile app analytics tools have various features – so the choice is yours.

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