Mobile Monday: The Growing Role of Finance Apps and Shopping App Visits Up This Holiday Season

Digital Turbine is constantly keeping tabs on the mobile world, and every week, we’re sharing the most interesting and important need-to-know stories and articles. In this edition of Mobile Monday, we’re covering useful insights about finance apps and the  Learn all about these stories in this week’s Mobile Monday!

Five Things About Finance Apps

While finance apps will never be the most “fun” thing we do on our smartphones, they certainly are a vital piece of our mobile life. From banking to investments to paying friends, finance apps serve a regular and growing role on our phones. PayPal and other apps have not shied away from their desire to be “super apps” - a one-stop shop for all consumer needs. Our BRAG Index II reveals which apps are best positioned to be super apps, with those that have high engagement and consumer brand strength leading the way. 

What else can these Brand Insights tell us about finance apps? Financial Technology Today recently took a deep dive into the finance category and gave these 5 takeaways:

1. Financial Apps are the Fastest Growing App Category in User Interest: Thanks to the rising popularity of cryptocurrency and people’s general desire to be “smarter” about finances, overall user interest in finance apps is up 32% - higher than any other app category surveyed.
2. Financial Apps with Mass Appeal Turn to Mass Media for Growth: Remember that bouncing QR Code ad during the Super Bowl? Coinbase’s minimalist yet genius ad spurred them to 267% growth. Other apps that had similar growth, like Chime and CashApp used social media and celebrities to tap into the Gen Z audience.
3. PayPal’s Brand is Growing Beyond Payments Into An Industry Leader: PayPal is one of the most popular finance brands among consumers with a 25:1 ratio between people who like vs dislike the app. They have used this brand power to increase their offerings - into crypto, banking, and stock trading.
4. Consumer Sentiment Increases for P2P Apps Point to Gains in Users and Transactions: PayPal was joined by CashApp, Venmo, and Zelle as 4 of the Top 5 apps in Consumer Sentiment growth (Chase was the 5th) indicating the massive brand popularity of peer to peer payment apps. 
5. Finance Brands Need to Better Explain Their Consumer Value: Aside from the payment apps, finance apps in general have a knowledge “gap” in that even brands with high awareness suffer from a lack of understanding about what their app does. SoFi, for example, is a well known name thanks to aggressive sports marketing, but consumers lack education about the app itself.

Finance is certainly a category that will have its ebbs and flows. Consider just the year that crypto has had - with massive peaks and deep valleys affecting the popularity of several apps. Want to learn more about finance apps? Check out our recent blog.

Shopping App Visits Expected to Increase this Holiday Season

Black Friday and the holiday shopping season are just around the corner and retailers are gearing up for the biggest sales days of the year. While mobile shopping was certainly a common practice before the pandemic, the past few years we have seen this method of buying kicked into overdrive. According to predictions by data.ai, shopping apps are expected to see huge growth numbers in Q4. Global “digital foot traffic” — measured as mobile sessions during Q4 2022 — is set to surpass 450 billion mobile shopping app visits this holiday season, up nearly 22% year-over-year.. That does not even include China yet which, when included, will see that number jump to nearly 850 billion sessions or 15% year-over-year. Additionally, they expect digital traffic in shopping apps to approach 28 billion sessions in the U.S. alone on Android phones, a 10% increase year-over-year. 

These increased numbers are due in large part to consumers’ growing expectations on what a shopping app can do for them. They are not just looking for convenience and ease of use — they also are looking for the best deals. Consumers are more motivated to find the best deals due to inflation and economic slowdowns. Shopping apps, whether they are strictly online or brick and mortar, need to ensure they are updating their apps with ways to engage mobile users throughout the season. Loyalty programs, timely pushed notifications, and strategic partnerships are all great ways to keep consumers interested in the apps. Offering mobile-only discounts can keep consumers engaged while generating revenue. The most lucrative time of the year for retailers presents a lot of opportunities especially if mobile apps are utilized.