latest studies indicate that girls install 40 per cent more applications than boys and buy 17 per cent more paid ones. Karan Bhardwaj finds what they want most on their smartphones
One thing that most girls grow up dreaming of is the magic wand. They don’t really need it to land up in the right job or to buy a palatial house. They need it for those bad hair days, for the days when they feel there’s nothing in their wardrobes worth wearing, for those ‘special days’ of the month and for helping them shop for a perfect dress that only compliments the curves, without highlighting the bulges. The magical wand is still awaited, but what has come to the rescue is the mobile app. There are apps to help you shop for grocery, select hairstyle or blouse design, to share beauty tips and many more. In short, you have it in mind, search it on your smartphone, download it and you have the solution. In the last one year there has been a flood women-friendly apps — apart from the security ones — to help the ladies deal with problems they face on day-to-day lives. Various studies and surveys reveal that women spend more money on apps than men.
In the last two-three years, there has been a revolution on Internet and mobile. Experts believe the new-age communication system has become women-friendly like never before.
Take Hammer, the first Indian opinion-based social networking application. It assists women in getting and sharing instant opinions, exchanging ideas and news on one common platform, at a moment’s notice. “One can post confusions or curiosities in the form of image and get opinions from real people quickly. Moreover, you can target specific audience when asking a question — all, male, female, my friends,” shared Amit Khanna, joint managing director, Hammer. Riya Khanna, a young varsity student, finds ‘Period Tracker’ app her best companion. “Whether you want to get pregnant, be prepared for your next period or understand your mood swings, this app predicts it all and reminds you,” she said. Since security is a major concern today, there is plethora of applications designed for women safety. There is Fightback, a recommended app that sends SOS alerts from your phone. It uses GPS, SMS, location maps, GPRS, email and your Facebook account to inform your loved ones in case you need help. The app is available on iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and Windows.
Fair share
The upward trend in apps for women is the result of the fact that there are more women interested in using apps than men. According to a latest survey, women install 40 per cent more apps than men, buy 17 per cent more paid apps and pay an astonishing 87 per cent more for those apps. So, if you want to mint money selling apps, you better sound appealing to women. They use social media apps a staggering 600 per cent more than men, news apps 90 per cent more and productivity apps 89 per cent more.
A better buyerIJ
It is definitely women. Chaitanya Aggarwal, founder of online shopping portal Juvalia & You, who has recently launched a special app for women, said, “The structural reason why there is increase in apps for women is that the online business model is female-oriented. The jewellery, garments, dresses, home-appliances and other products are sought-after by women only. In fact, a lot of websites have become world leaders because they have made shopping more easy and convenient for women.” The portal has a network of over 50,000 stylists who are selling jewellery in 14 states. “We want to facilitate the mobile women shoppers. The number is quite big,” he added.
Urge to connect
Women want to be connected. They want to be informed. They want apps that help them through the day, whether it is comparison shopping, turn-by-turn directions, or a way to be more organised. In another survey, social networking apps and weather apps were the most popular among all age groups of women which demonstrates women’s needs to stay connected and informed.
Who’s interested in what
Women aged between 25-34 look for apps related to music, calendar, email, camera filters, google maps, dictionary, health and wellness, directions, photography and cooking. Slightly older folks look for maps, navigation, science, stopwatch, famous quotes and entertainment for kids.
Out of 198 million Internet users, there are 176 million people who access Internet via mobile. But that’s also an understandable fact that women who are less occupied or not working professional are more interested in apps. Also, these apps consume quite a space on the mobile which hampers the device in its own way. “There is a big alarm over the security of mobile apps. How the providers utilise the data is another question being raised. While one may use the appropriate apps, there are instructions and conditions one need to read before downloading them,” said a tech expert.