How to Convert Your osCommerce Site Into A Mobile App

It's the new era of mobile ecommerce and more customers than ever are shopping on their phones. If you want to ensure you don't miss out on this new wave of opportunity, you need to be prepared. Turning your osCommerce store into a mobile app is the perfect way to reach more customers and increase your revenue.

In this post, we'll explore the benefits of turning your osCommerce store into a mobile app, including increased reach, conversions and revenue. We'll also provide a step-by-step guide on how to do it quickly and easily without breaking the bank.

Keep reading to learn more.

Why You Need a Mobile App

In 2022, mobile dominated more than 72% of the ecommerce market share, witnessing a notable surge from slightly over 52% in the five years leading up to it.

This aligns with the overall trend of mobile internet usage, which increases thanks to smartphones each year. Currently, mobile holds over 50% market share when compared to desktop and tablet.

Adding to this trend, 15% of Americans today rely solely on smartphones for accessing the internet. This signifies the future of ecommerce: customers who prioritize mobile to the extent of being exclusively mobile-oriented.

While optimizing your website for mobile is an important step, that alone is no longer enough. Apps offer an enhanced user experience on mobile, leading to improvements in various key metrics, including:

• Higher conversion rates
• Increase in average order value
• More products viewed per session

Further data indicates that users of mobile ecommerce apps are twice as likely to return to the store within 30 days compared to those using mobile browsers.

Apps also offer the advantage of leveraging mobile push notifications, which have high opt-in rates, open rates and click-through rates on both Android and iOS devices.

It's no surprise that apps serve as a powerful tool for nurturing loyal, returning customers.

So, you may be wondering if it's time to prioritize converting your website into an app. While it depends on your overall goals and bandwidth, we can confidently say that an osCommerce mobile app can yield tremendous benefits for your business.

Can You Create Mobile Apps for osCommerce?

You can’t just launch a mobile app out of osCommerce as it is solely designed for webstores. So to get a mobile app based on osCommerce, you’ll need something extra to bridge the gap, such as:

1. A third-party osCommerce mobile app builder.
2. A tech-enabled service to turn your osCommerce store into a mobile app.
3. A group of developers to create apps for Android and iOS and connect them to your osCommerce store.

Can I Turn My osCommerce Store into an App?

You can turn an osCommerce store into an app using any of the methods mentioned above.

But we recommend that most store owners avoid the third option of hiring developers to create native apps. The main reason is that mobile apps can be costly. Designing a native app can cost between $30,000 and $150,000, and that's only for one operating system. So, if you want apps for both iOS and Android - which is highly recommended - then double the cost.

Creating apps is complicated, time-consuming, and expensive to begin with. Even moreso if your developers have to build an API and link the apps' back end to your osCommerce store.

In all likelihood, you don't have the resources for this - that’s without factoring in the expense of keeping your app up and running every year.

The Recurring Cost of Having an App

Not many people remember to factor in the yearly fees associated with app launch. Keeping it running smoothly – with OS, osCommerce, bug repair, new features and development – can cost at least 15-20% of the starting budget annually.

Rainbow Apparel studied this in detail prior to their own launch, and established that the expense could be as much as a million each year. David Cost, Rainbow Apparel's VP of Marketing, shared:

“Even if we had endless resources, we would still end up forking out half a million to a million dollars annually for maintenance.”

Considering all of this, we can conservatively say that $150,000 is the average cost of producing an app for both mobile platforms. On top of that, you'd have to pay roughly $30,000 a year just for updates and maintenance.

That's too hefty for many store owners. And this is all without taking into account the additional hard work you'll have to put in if you have multiple platforms to manage, compared to just having your website.

The Best Way to Turn Your osCommerce Store into an App

The most sensible solution is to transform your osCommerce store into an app with the help of a mobile app builder.

These creators will convert your current osCommerce website into a look-alike mobile app that individuals can download, install and easily shop on their gadgets.

The best app builders will give you a mobile app that supplies 90-95% of what you would get with a native app, but cheaper and with much less hassle on your end. You should be mindful that not all options in the market are suitable for building high-traffic, professional mobile apps that accurately reflect your branding.

How to Convert osCommerce to App

If you’re a big brand with a lot of money and resources – like Nike, Target, Zara, etc – you could hire people to design your shopping osCommerce app from the ground up.

But if you're not a big company, then MobiLoud is your best option. It's easy to use, cost-effective and fast. Plus, it's cheaper to maintain your osCommerce apps in the long-term.

Let's take a look at the process, step-by-step.

Step One: Preview Your App or Get a Free Consultation

You have the choice of two options.

1. Generate a free preview of what your app could look like using our MobiLoud builder.
2. Or, book a free consultation call with one of our app professionals to review your project and get a better understanding of how the procedure will work.

In either case, the majority of the app creation work is already done, as long as your site already has a mobile-friendly design.

If you need help making sure your site is optimized, let us know and we'll be happy to assist! This is an essential phase to make the remainder of the process as smooth as possible.

Step Two: Work With Our Team to Build Your App

When you’re ready to begin creating, sign up to MobiLoud. All of our plans come with a 60-day money-back guarantee, and there are no long-term commitments necessary.

You’ll collaborate with our team to set up and design your app. Remember that a lot of the work is already done. You don’t have to build a new UI from the ground up, only a few modifications to make it appear and act as a native app.

Once you’re pleased, we’ll get to work and build your mobile app. We take care of all the technical aspects, so you don’t have to write code or understand anything about coding.

If you would like our team to manage the whole process, start to finish, we can do that as well. Our full-service package contains everything essential to set up, design and publish your app, allowing you to take a step back.

Step Three: Prepare for Launch

Once your app is built, you'll be ready to launch it to the public. It's crucial to have a well-structured launch plan to encourage app downloads.

We offer assets for app store descriptions, launch announcements for your website and email list, press releases, and more. Additionally, you can set up extra features at no additional cost, including smart app banners and app-exclusive discounts, to motivate your existing customers to shop using the app.

Step Four: Launch and Submit Your Apps to the App Stores

Lastly, we'll put out your apps on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

The entry procedure for these app stores can be difficult, particularly for those who are new to apps and development. But in our case, we’ve gone through the process thousands of times and are extremely familiar with it.

Our team handles the full app submission process with both Apple and Google. With our 100% app approval guarantee, we'll take care of any subsequent submissions and make sure to implement any necessary changes required. No action needed from your end.

Once your listings are live, you can officially begin getting downloads, and experiencing all the advantages of having your own osCommerce mobile app.

Wrapping Up – Why You Should Use MobiLoud to Convert Your osCommerce Store into a Mobile App

We are witnessing a mobile revolution, and it's highly probable that most of your revenue today is driven by mobile users. If not, it won't be long until it is.

Your osCommerce store requires more than just a mobile-optimized website. To maximize your revenue potential from mobile users, it's crucial to provide your own branded app.

Nowadays, transforming a osCommerce store into a mobile app is easier than ever, as long as you follow the right steps. Instead of investing thousands of dollars in mobile developers, MobiLoud offers a highly accessible and straightforward solution.

Here are a few notable advantages of using MobiLoud's osCommerce app builder:

 
• It costs only a fraction of what custom app development would typically require.
 
• You can launch professional, high-quality apps in less than a month.
 
• Your apps will retain all the outstanding features that make your website exceptional, including product collections, payment gateways, plug-ins, tools, themes, and more.
 
• Everything remains synchronized across the web, Android, and iOS platforms. Any modifications you make on your site will be immediately reflected in your apps.
 
• You can rest assured about app store submission — our guarantee ensures approval without any worries on your part.
 
• Our dedicated team will guide you through every step and handle the challenging aspects, so you can focus on your business.

This user-friendly app builder requires zero coding skills, enabling you to effortlessly launch your own shopping apps and secure a place alongside the world's major brands in the app stores.

Contact us now to explore more about how we can assist you in launching an app for your osCommerce store. Book a free, personalized demo, and one of our app specialists will provide you with a comprehensive walkthrough of the entire process.