Dive Brief:
- Understanding the goal of how to best help students is one of several points to consider in developing an institutional mobile app.
- Researching best practices among peer institutions, gathering intel on price point and maintenance, and testing strategies are vital considerations before selecting a developer for an app creation and launch.
- Branding the app presents an ideal opportunity to dive into institutional photo repositories and to engage students in creating and designing the function and appeal of the app.
Dive Insight:
Much like university websites, students and faculty generally only look for institutional web functionality for contact information, logging into web-based academic or service platforms, or to receive breaking news. With this in mind, campus officials should be discerning about promises vendors can make about app appeal, versus what campuses really need.
Campus apps can help with recruiting potential students, but the greatest pool of users will always be current stakeholders looking for customized experiences like push notifications for campus alerts, academic notices, and easy-to-access systems for online learning or departmental contacts. Creating an app experience around these core functions can make or break the interest and long-term usage of an app, and justify its costs for launch and upkeep.