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Apple launched the iPhone a little over 10 years ago and dramatically changed the world.<\/p>\n
At the end of 2007<\/a>, a mere 6% of Americans owned a smartphone. As of 2016, that number was\u00a0over 80%<\/a>.<\/p>\n People have embraced mobile apps in ways that few industry insiders anticipated.<\/p>\n Need proof? Over 57% of all digital media usage<\/a> is through apps.<\/p>\n There are tons of mobile apps that can help increase your productivity<\/a>.<\/p>\n As we wrote<\/a> just a few years ago:<\/p>\n It\u2019s no secret that mobile web use has skyrocketed over the past several years, with smartphone ownership in the U.S.\u00a0nearly doubling<\/a>\u00a0between 2011 and 2015. And these smartphone users are all about the apps. The average smartphone user downloads 8.8 apps per month, spending 90% of their time on their phone in apps versus in mobile browsing windows. And there are a deluge of experts out there who insist that the development of brand-centric mobile applications is the future of marketing.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The ubiquity of smartphones, however, has also made it more difficult for a mobile app to stand out.<\/p>\n There are millions of apps in each of Apple’s App Store and the Android App Store. But, unfortunately, most mobile apps are used only once<\/a>.<\/p>\n The design of a mobile app<\/a> is one of the biggest factors in whether people will use, and importantly, continue to use, a mobile app.<\/p>\n A poor, disorganized, low quality mobile app design will turn people off. A strong, clean user experience (UX) and user interface (UI) will typically find loyal user\/customers. For more on UX and UI, we recommend you read 6 Ways User interface and User Experience Design Can Help Your Business<\/a>.<\/p>\n This is the reason why, for example, Snapchat has recently redesigned<\/a> its own popular mobile app.<\/p>\n App design has evolved over the years as people\u2019s familiarity and comfort level with smartphones has increased. We\u2019re now at the point where companies are confident enough in consumers to start tossing out long-held conventions (like physical home buttons) and bring in a host of new, innovative interactions.<\/p>\n App design has a visual component, and that part is most certainly influenced by trends and fads.<\/p>\n That said, apps are, for the most part, meant to be used and not just viewed. That means that mobile app trends are a little different than the other areas we\u2019ve looked at, like package design<\/a>, book covers<\/a>, web design<\/a>, or logos<\/a>.<\/p>\n Apps may need to look good, but even a beautiful app with terrible usability is bound to fail, and the app trends we\u2019re tracking for 2018 reflect that pragmatism.<\/p>\n This year may have its share of visual design trends, but as always, features and functionality play a major role. After all, it’s possible today to turn your phone into a high-powered mobile office for your business<\/a>.<\/p>\n If there\u2019s one overarching trend we expect to dominate 2018, it\u2019s that the user will rule.<\/p>\n Companies are focusing more of their efforts on creating experiences that connect with people through great functionality, easy-to-use interfaces, and \u201cyour needs first\u201d prioritization.<\/p>\n Here are the important mobile app trends we expect to see in 2018.<\/p>\n If there was one technology trend that blew up in 2017, it was voice. Amazon\u2019s suite of voice-controlled Echo devices had a huge Christmas season<\/a>:<\/p>\n The company says it was a \u201crecord holiday season\u201d for Amazon device sales, and that \u201cmillions more devices\u201d were purchased worldwide this year than during the 2016 holiday season. On its website, the $50 (currently $30) Amazon Echo Dot was the best-selling product sitewide, across any category. Several Echo products, including the Echo Spot, Echo Buttons, and Echo Dot, sold out completely.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n One of Amazon\u2019s smartest moves was to make their voice assistant Alexa easy to add to 3rd party apps and hardware.<\/p>\n The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2018 was packed with devices that had Alexa built-in, from fridges and light switches to very odd choices like showers and sink faucets.<\/p>\n Google also made a huge push into voice with their Google Assistant<\/a>. The company followed Amazon\u2019s lead and made Google Assistant easy to integrate. Third-party companies have taken notice.<\/p>\n And Apple?<\/p>\n Don’t count Siri out just yet. The company may have missed releasing their home voice device HomePod<\/a> in 2017, but with an estimated 85.8 million iPhone users<\/a> in the US, they have massive reach.<\/p>\n With all of the focus on voice as the user interface, developers have started making voice recognition and control a big part of their apps.<\/p>\n Need some examples?<\/p>\n You can now use Alexa to learn a new language via the buusuu app<\/a>. You can hear your email read back to you vis email app Astro\u2019s Alexa integration<\/a>, and send quick responses, too. Stalwart PVR company TiVo now lets you control your TiVo via Alexa and Google Assistant<\/a>. And apps like Todoist<\/a>, Evernote<\/a>, and even electric car trailblazer Tesla<\/a> now boast integration with iOS\u2019s Siri.<\/p>\n These are just a few of the dozens of apps which have announced or plan to add voice integration into their apps.<\/p>\n In 2018, your voice will most definitely be heard.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/images.crowdspring.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/27131407\/amazon-alexa-ge-appliances-geneva-skill.jpg\")
<\/p>\nYour voice is your passport<\/h2>\n
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