This article is designed to help eCommerce store owners who are searching for ways to boost their online presence. Whether you’re brand new to eCommerce or an established professional, you’ll likely have noticed that reaching a wider audience is easier with a mobile app. The number of smartphone users in the United States reached 298 million in 2021, and this number is expected to grow even more. More mobile phones means more mobile shoppers, and by 2024, the number of mobile buyers is expected to be 187.5 million! Looks incredible!
While it’s easy to see why an app would be important for your business, you may not have the 3+ years of iOS or Android development skills to build your own or the budget to hire your own team. Choosing an eCommerce app template will help you bridge the gap.
What Is an App Template?
An app template is a fully-fledged application that already contains the necessary functionality and allows app creators to customize interfaces, adjust the images, and use their own colors, themes, and content. In short, templates help you create a mobile app even if you have no coding skills, saving you time and money.
How Do App Templates Help eCommerce Store Owners Create Apps?
There’s a bit of a glut of app templates on the market which can be quite overwhelming. The good news is that you can find templates created specifically for eCommerce sites. These templates already contain pre-built eCommerce-specific functionality: store navigation, item search, filtering, product descriptions, carts, check-in, check-out, and more. All you have to do is customize the template, and you’ll have a ready-to-go application. It’s easy to edit and customize templates, so your app will look exactly how you want. You can replace banners, adjust visual element colors, apply new color settings, and more — all using step-by-step instructions without a single line of code.
How Do I Create an eCommerce App with an App Template?
Let’s use a Shopify site as an example. We’ll walk you through the steps of creating a mobile app with the Appery.io eCommerce app template. There are only five steps:
- Link your store with the app template
- See how your site looks on a mobile device before customization
- Customize and edit the interfaces
- Test your customized app
- Export the app to Android or iOS so it can be installed on mobile devices
These steps are quite straightforward, so you’ll have a mobile app in no time.
Choosing an eCommerce App Template
Here are some examples of eCommerce app templates that will help you build your own mobile app:
1. Zappter
This eCommerce app builder contains ready-made eCommerce templates that will help you start developing an app. The process is pretty straightforward as well. After signing up, you have a choice of hundreds of templates. Choose your favorite, modify and customize it, use the suggested plug-ins if you need additional features, and publish your app.
2. Builderfly
Builderfly is a mobile app builder focused on eCommerce, and it offers several popular templates in its marketplace. In addition, when the app is ready, it has a feature to track user behavior by tracking activity in real time and sending relevant offers with discounts or ads.
3) Appery.io
Appery.io offers a template for Shopify users. The template syncs the Shopify website catalog with a newly built mobile application and provides codeless customization; you can change color settings, replace banners, adjust elements, and more. It also allows you to preview the application before publishing it on the App Store or Google Play.
4. Instappy
With Instappy, you can create your eCommerce app for iOS or Android by choosing one of the numerous app templates from their “Themes” section. In their Shopping and M-Store category, you will find templates for food & beverages, furniture, clothing & accessories, books, shoes, and other types of eCommerce stores.
5. ConstApps
ConstApps integrates with WooCommerce, Shopify, and Magento and contains a number of ready-made themes that you can use as a template for your mobile app. You have the option to choose a default theme or choose a specific “clothes store” theme or a “restaurant” theme.
Have you tried one of the solutions listed above? If yes, please feel free to share your experience and also name the app you’ve tested.
Useful Tips for Choosing an eCommerce App Template
Here are some tips that will help you choose an eCommerce app template for your store:
- You’ll almost always get a fully-developed app with an eCommerce app template, but keep an eye out for extra plug-ins if you want to add more integrations or functionality.
- Make sure that the platform you choose offers documentation with an explanation of how things work. As mentioned above, the steps can be easy and straightforward, but step-by-step guides with instructions never hurt.
- See whether or not you will have complete ownership of your new mobile app created with the help of an eCommerce app template.
Conclusion
If you want to boost your eCommerce business’s conversion and sales, don’t forget that a significant number of your customers may be spending most of their time on mobile phones. Consider eCommerce app templates to build your first mobile app and supercharge your business.
