Location-based apps are all the rage these days. You will find many mobile apps integrated with geolocation features.
But how do you create a location-based app and how can it benefit your business?
Location-based mobile apps they are not only for those who want to find addresses, places or people.
Retailers are already using technologies like geofencing to message people when they are nearby. Social media apps allow users to tag locations while posting text, videos, or images. Weather apps access the user’s location to send alerts about real-time weather conditions.
There are numerous use cases for location-based mobile apps. In this blog, we’ll cover the steps for building location-based apps, key features, and ideas for 2023.
Let’s start with the basics first.
Location-based apps : What are they?
Location-based applications are mobile applications that allow companies to offer their services based on the user’s location.
For example, you may have received a notification from Google to rate a restaurant you just dined at.
Using the same technology, other businesses can send personalized alerts to their users’ locations. Location details are transferred via Wi-Fi, cell tower, and satellite/GPS.
Now the big question is, how does this feature help businesses improve their bottom line?
How does a location-based app benefit your business and customers?
Location-aware apps are becoming popular in the business world .
You can easily find gym and restaurant apps with route tracking features, social media apps with geotagged images, dating apps with location services, and apps with map navigators.
Here are the four key features of a location-based app that make it stand out.
- Information feature: Provides information the user about the closest objects.
- Social function: the ability to know the location of other users.
- Communication function: the ability to register a place on the map, leave comments about visiting a place or read reviews of others, and link your content (a photo or text message) to a specific place on the map.
- Marketing function. Targeted Incentive Marketing Campaigns for Consumer Engagement.
Let’s take a look at the different ways businesses can use these functionalities to target and engage potential customers.
1. Provide accurate and fast services
Location-based apps like Uber allow businesses to provide accurate and fast services to their customers.
GPS technology helps to find the precise location of your customer, and you can send your products or services very accurately in a very short time. Thus, it helps build trust among your customers.
2. Relevant offers in real time
Businesses can use location-based applications to offer their customers relevant promotional offers at the right time.
These apps can help businesses connect with target audiences and reap the benefits of location. In addition, companies collect data on the behavior of their customers and develop a personalized marketing plan.
3. Improved User Experience
User experience can make or break your app. With geolocation features, companies in particular industries, such as travel, can improve the user experience and use the engagement rate.
For example, a travel app Based on location you can allow your users to :
- Check the route and how to go from one place to another.
- The weather update along with the weather in the area that they are likely to visit.
- Popular visits by location.
- Festivals and shows in the area.
- Historical places to visit along with famous places.
Similarly, a delivery service application can allow its customers to:
- Keep track of the final product in real time.
- Check the status of the product.
- Evaluate the expected time of arrival of the product.
And, a Dating app can enable your clients to:
- Meet based on their preferred location.
- Easily connect within a specified radius of distance.
4. Virtual Tour and Navigation
Businesses have started to use the concept of AR with location tracking, which makes for impressive virtual tours and navigation.
Additionally, combining geolocation capabilities for your app can:
- Improve conversions
- Increase user engagement
- Attract new customers. And,
- Provide high-quality data for business marketing.
Key Features of Location-Based Apps
These are the features that are all the rage in the world of location-based apps.
1. Using the map as an application interface
A simple newsfeed interface is out of fashion anymore; its use is considered deprecated. The map as the UI of your location-based app is a great feature, instead of the newsfeed.
Users can track any location-based updates in real time.
2. Notifications
Location apps can better communicate with users through helpful notifications. Users can receive information about deals of the day, dangerous situations, or just timely information about upcoming events in their local community.
The user won’t have to scroll to find information, because once it’s tagged on a location-based platform, the user is notified on the spot.
3. Information filter
Based on location belongs to a different area. Therefore, they can contain a lot of additional information.
A useful feature is when users can easily filter the information they need and receive reminders only on chosen topics. Also, the user can filter the information that is not relevant to him.
4. Personalized Suggestions
Sending personalized suggestions is a nice feature. Once the app knows the user a little better, it can send personalized suggestions about local events, news, or others based on the user’s profile, interests, and who they follow.
5. Rewards program
It is an excellent gamification feature for local businesses.
For example, users can get points or accumulate rewards for attending some events. Later, they can redeem these points for maybe a free ticket.
6. Location-based AR
When combined with GPS, augmented reality and location sensors are poised to transform the way we connect and move through our real physical space.
The user experience associated with sharing data, images and other content on a location-based platform will be amazing.
Location-based application development technologies location
Before we explore the different technologies used in developing a location-based app, let’s first understand how a location-based app works.
Location-based applications establish a connection to satellites with the help of a mobile device’s operating system. The application obtains information about the location of the device from the operating system. By collecting and processing data in real time, it determines the movement and location of the device.
Read on to gather information about different technologies to create a geolocation app.
Outdoor geolocation technologies
1. GPS
GPS – Global Positioning System is a radio navigation system, and uses radio waves between different satellites and mobile chips to provide location and time information.
Did you know that our smartphones are equipped with a built-in GPS receiver chip that allows users to access GPS? This allows the devices to determine the current location with an accuracy of around 60 feet. To perform this function, GPS needs to obtain data from at least three satellites.
Let’s look at the advantages and disadvantages of using GPS:
Advantages:
- GPS signals are available worldwide.
- The location is determined quickly.
- The accuracy of the result is usually high if conditions are good .
Disadvantages:
- High power consumption which reduces battery life.
- The GPS signal does not pass through concrete walls, underwater, indoors, in dense tree regions, or in underground installations.
- Insufficient reliability due to electromagnetic interference and other factors.
Despite some shortcomings in GPS technology, it is still considered a useful technology for developing geolocation applications.
2. Cell ID
In case it is not possible to use satellite signals for some reason, you can use cell phone towers to implement geolocation application development.
This is a less popular approach due to its poor coverage outside of large cities. Cell ID is used to determine the location of the device with the help of the cell tower.
Advantages:
- It is an excellent option for geolocation when dealing with large metropolises.
- There is no dependency about the operation and availability of the GPS signal in the area.
Disadvantages:
- It gives a low precision, only up to several hundred meters in some cases.
3.A-GPS: Assisted GPS
This technology combines GPS and Cell ID, providing a higher level of accuracy than Cell ID or GPS alone.
Generates combined data collected from the server and satellite and then transmits the information over the Internet by connecting via Wi-Fi or cellular connection.
Advantages :
- Provides good speed to determine the user’s location.
- Higher sensitivity in areas with tunnels, dense forest, etc.
- Better energy of the battery consumption.
Disadvantages:
- Some A-GPS features work well only in cellular coverage area.
4. Wi-Fi
Compared to Cell ID, Wi-Fi covers smaller areas, allowing the technology to be more precise. In the development of geolocation applications, Wi-Fi works well with RSSI and also with Google Maps.
For example, when comparing mobile data with Wi-Fi hotspots, RSSI (received of a signal strength indication). . When it comes to Google Maps, the profile of frequently visited locations within Wi-Fi access identifies the user’s location.
Advantages:
- Easy to use. The user simply connects to Wi-Fi using an active network, whose location is known.
- Location is determined fairly quickly.
Disadvantages:
- Coveres a smaller area compared to GPS.
- The system will work well only as long as the connection remains stable.
Indoor geolocation technologies
1. Geofencing
The use of geofencing in location applications is gaining a lot of popularity. It is based on GPS, which is used to determine how close a user is to a particular point. It is frequently used in the advertising area to provide users with relevant advertisements and offers. However, there are many other use cases available.
It is based on the use of a virtual perimeter with a radius of approximately 500 meters: for example, when a user enters the specified zone, a trigger is fired and they receive a promotional SMS message or a PUSH notification .
Advantages:
- Coveres larger areas, compared to wi-fi.
- Brings a lot of unique opportunities to improve a business strategy.
Disadvantages:
- Relatively high power consumption.
2. iBeacon and Eddystone
Apple and Google created iBeacon and Eddystone. These technologies are based on BLE – Bluetooth Low Energy signals. Some triggers can be sent to a device only when the user is within range.
Advantages:
- Both Beacon and Eddystone have a high level of accuracy for user location.
- Easy to use.
Disadvantages:
- Expensive – initial investment may be required.
- Periodically, the device will need to be updated, as well as its batteries.
- It has a small radius of action.
Trending ideas to create amazing location-based Applications
There is a lot of potential in the development of applications with geolocation services. Let’s review these trending ideas for building apps with some amazing location-based features.
1. Health and fitness apps
There is always a demand for a good health and fitness app. Many features can be added to make it an attractive app for users by integrating location services.
It can help users keep track of their training activities. GPS data can monitor the user’s walking, cycling, and running routes and record additional physical activities such as swimming.
You can add more features for users to find a nearby running buddy or find a place to eat something healthy after exercise.
2. Tourism and Navigation
Imagine using a mobile app integrated with AR and location services to provide a guided tour to your user traveling to a new city.
This app can guide the user around the city with a virtual tour and notifications about local businesses and sites.
3. Location-based social networks
These applications may allow users to set a radius within which they would like to join the public chat.
This app may also have features for live video streaming to update and find what’s happening nearby, find local parties for travelers, or find support groups in a new city.
4.Hospitality
Hotel applications that use geolocation can offer self check-in/out services and mobile restaurant menus. You can even use indoor navigation systems to enable electronic keys.
Creating a Location-Based App: The Step-by-Step Approach
The The steps below describe how you should approach the process of developing a location-based app.
So, let’s get started!
1. Study the market and explore opportunities
Exploring the market is the first step in creating a successful location-based application. It is essential to start by researching similar geolocation apps currently available on the market and their unique features.
You can use this information to find the gaps your application is expected to fill and serve as a complete solution to the problem you are trying to solve.
In addition, you should do the following:
- Talk to some potential users and try to understand their expectations.
- Read reviews of similar apps .
- Research existing market leaders in the domain.
2. Create a Unique Idea
Once you’ve checked out competing services, do the following:
- Shortlist the unique benefits of your app that will appeal to users and differentiate you from your competitors.
- Based on the above, create a unique idea for your location-based app.
3 . Select a Reliable App Developer
The success of your app depends on the ability of the app developer or app development company. With the right app development company at your side, your app idea becomes a possibility.
It is essential to:
- Opt for an application development company with the right experience and a compelling portfolio in the domain.
- Ask the app developer for a list of location-based apps they’ve developed in the past. Download these apps to measure their usability.
- Remember, it’s unlikely that the app company will perform better on your project than on these older apps.
- Check if the app company has experience on the platform you want for your app: Android or iOS.
- Find the best combination of price and quality.
4. Select the right tech stack
Your app’s tech stack is determined by the app’s platform (iOS, Android, or web) and your business goals.
You’ll need to add the correct location-based SDK to your app to access the most precise and accurate location data from the user’s device. Add maps based on Google Maps data to your app, with the help of the Maps SDK for Android and iOS.
To display the location on the map, in addition to using the Google Maps SDK, use Apple MapKit for iOS. Both are completely accurate but offer differences in data quality, routes, AR, offline maps, and privacy.
The Google Location Services API is used to locate Android devices. It has low power consumption and allows you to locate the user’s position via GPS, Wi-Fi, and cellular networks.
If you want to add more location-based features to your app, you can consider some other frameworks: HERE, OpenStreetMap, MapBox, Foursquare API and Facebook Places.
When making your choice, keep in mind that GPS-based applications drain the user’s battery quite quickly. Take care to make these apps fast and reliable.
5. Decide on Features
Key features of each geolocation app include the following:
- Map view
- Location detection of user
- Route mapping
- Nearby places finder
- Location-based notifications
- Location history
You can add more functions, depending on the purpose of your application. For example, you might consider adding a feature to:
- Set the radius
- Rating and recommendations
- Share location with contacts
- Weather forecast pinned to the map
- Location search by photos
- Real-time updates on traffic congestion
Remember to keep the number of features to a minimum for the initial release of your application. It is advisable to create an MVP first, as it is a low-risk strategy to verify your idea.
6. Create UX and UI
Create a visual prototype of your app.
Start working on what your app will look like and what screens it will include. Your app design should be clean and intuitive. This will validate your idea.
7. Make the application secure
With stricter regulations on data security, it is recommended to give importance to the security of the application. During this step, your app will undergo data privacy and security compliance.
User data is the most valuable asset you can own, and you need to ensure that you have adequate processes in place to collect and store this data and manage any potential security risks. You should:
- Work on data security to make your GPS application secure.
- Remember that your data can be lost due to accidental deletion of files and folders. In this case, you must have data recovery software.
- Make sure to comply with local regulations in the countries you want to target.
8. Develop and test
The coding process is done in the development phase. This is where the back-end coding happens. You should never ignore the importance of application testing. Extensive testing helps eliminate bugs and ensure code quality.
After going through all the steps mentioned above, your app is ready for launch.
Create a powerful location-based app with Imaginovation
Creating a location-based mobile app can be an exhausting process. If you want to know more about geolocation services for application development, contact us.
We will be happy to help you develop the best location-based application for your business. Let’s talk.
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