What Are Businesses Using Mobile Apps For?

Have you ever wondered how other companies are using mobile apps to run their business processes?

We have, too. And we have some great information on this that we’re excited to share with you, based on a recent survey we did.

Rather than just hit you with a ton of data, we wanted to do something a little more visual. See below for how some key industries are using mobile apps to run their businesses.

It is amazing seeing companies revolutionize their business processes and data collection efforts with mobile apps and devices. See below if you’re interested in more details from our survey.

63 percent of businesses see value integrating core business applications – such as Dropbox, Square, Salesforce, Evernote and Quickbooks – with mobile devices and tools. Interested in integrating the data you’re collecting with GoCanvas with other office systems and software? Get in touch with us and we’d be happy to help!

Our survey was completed by more than 1,100 decision makers from a broad range of company sizes and industries that have historically relied heavily on paper forms and manual processes, most prominently construction and contracting (24.4%), retail and distribution (11.7%), healthcare (9.4%), manufacturing (8.7%), transportation & logistics (2.9%), and government (2.3%).

The survey points to an increasingly mobile workforce that is looking to extend more day-to-day business processes to their mobile devices, and the fact that structured and unstructured data collection and collaboration apps are rising to the top of the business decision maker wish list. When it comes to specific tasks businesses are using mobile apps for, respondents cited:

• Inspections (46%)
• Work Orders (31%)
• Checklists (28%)
• Surveys (19%)
• Invoices (15%)
• Inventories (8%)
• Other (34%)

Additional key survey findings:

• File storage: Well more than half (57%) of businesses are using file storage applications, and of those businesses using file storage applications Dropbox is the dominant choice (51%), followed by Google Drive (16%), Box (8%) and SkyDrive (6%).
• Note taking software: 32% of businesses surveyed use note taking software or applications for their business. Of those businesses using this type of software/application, 45% use Evernote, 29% use Notepad, and 5% use Google Keep.
• Credit card processing: 13% are using mobile credit card processing applications in their business, with 44% using Square; 13% using Intuit GoPayment; 12% using PayPal mobile; and 31% using other services.
• CRM: 30% use a CRM system in their business, and of respondents using CRM tools, Salesforce commands nearly half (45%) of users.
• Accounting: 48% of businesses surveyed use an accounting application, with nearly half (48%) of those businesses using Quickbooks, followed by 8% using Sage.

James Quigley, our CEO, is not surprised by the fact that businesses are going mobile. “What this survey demonstrates is that organizations of all shapes and sizes are looking to a broadening array of mobile services to improve their business processes. Everyone from educational institutions and hospitals to large construction companies and service organizations are shifting core business processes to mobile; drawn to the ability of mobile apps to solve challenges associated with inefficient paper-based processes.”

This survey of GoCanvas customers, conducted February 2014, included companies from a broad range of industries and sizes. Of the respondents, 29% were from businesses with 500+ employees; 21% were from businesses with 101-500 employees; 17% worked at organizations with 26-100 employees; and 33% hailed from small businesses with 25 employees or less.

We’d love to help your organization go mobile and save time and money while eliminating slow and inefficient paperwork. Try us free today!

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