Covid-19 has unsettled human civilization. Despite them being in their homes, lockdowns have taken a toll on humans, especially emotional toll. Industries all across the world are facing the brunt of the lockdown and they are fighting it hard to retain their identity. But amidst the lockdown mayhem, mobile application development services has gained momentum like never before as consumers have more time in hand.
Social distancing norms are getting stricter and businesses of today are changing their strategy to occupy the current situation. These plans are rock-solid because they are meant to utilize the online platform and access digital tools so that they do not defy any regulations. Many industries have suffered but they have also been very quick to adopt the online mobile application market, dominant in the time schedules of locked down people. We will be taking a look at how these 5 industries given below are coping with the heat with their mobile apps.
- Education Industry
- Healthcare Industry
- Crowdfunding
- Ecommerce/marketplace
- Logistics and supply chain industry
Students run the risk of contracting the virus maximum because educational institutions are crowded. The education industry has a mixed reaction to the lockdown because those players which were technologically ready have managed to leverage their LMS platforms to conduct E-learning and ensure that learning doesn’t stop. Several other unprepared players have realized their folly on not going the online long way back. Several AI integration tools in the mobile app development services suite have managed to fulfill the increasing appetite of learners. Online educational apps are in much demand and smart learning technology has literally converted every classroom into smart classrooms.
Now students are spending a great deal of time on social media apps, but with the education sector seriously offering provisions for online education via apps, now the equal time is being consumed on these platforms as well.
A few encouraging trends are given below:
- 67% of US companies are already offering mobile learning through mobile applications.
- Between 2000 - 2017 the E-learning culture has increased by a huge 900%.
- By 2025 the overall E-learning market can be anywhere close to $325 Billion
E-learning offers several advantages including flexible scheduling and savings in costs. A total of $200 million was saved by IBM when it turned to online learning.
The Healthcare industry has always been stable and posts the occurrence of covid-19, there has been a rush of patients that are fearful of every little symptom. While the lockdown has affected the economics of several countries, the global healthcare market is seeing a huge surge. The healthcare segment with its linkages to technology has helped people to not get infected because they do not have to visit hospitals. With the help of several telehealth applications and mobile applications, they are able to provide remote care, remote monitoring, virtual consulting, online medicine delivery and much more.
The crisis also has paved the way for companies employing the Internet Of things (IoT) giving the additional boost. The global IoT healthcare market will witness an annual growth of about 20% for a 5 year period from 2020 to 2025. At present the three most important apps that are offering such services are:
- DocClocker mobile application is a mobile application that lets the patient know about the waiting time to consult the doctor and also provides temporary relief in terms of what they are suffering now.
- Another mobile application called the Medici Healthcare mobile application which gives the patients the chance to connect with top doctors who are also a part of this network. The online consultation results in massive savings as the patient does not have to visit the premises.
- Orion also had brought in its own monitoring platform that helps in engaging the patients in their homes and will also help in easy communication between the quarantined population and their relevant healthcare service.
In order to raise collective and community capital, efforts of collaborating with family and friends along with individual investors help the case of crowdfunding. The current crisis has brought in immense uncertainties because the industries across have stopped their operations and a large portion of blue-collar workers are rendered jobless without any jobs. In many nations, people are struggling to find safe places to stay and their daily need for food. Digital crowdfunding platforms have massively contributed to this as it has given rise to newer ways of collaborating and mobilizing support in times of crisis.
Advertising budget has shrunk but crowdfunding has provided campaigns especially on social platforms like FB and Insta which are hugely popular. For instance, in the US’s Prompt had launched a funding goal on 25th February. This funding goal was achieved in 19 days. Amidst the turmoil in the US, the company continues to go upward in terms of funding. Oros which is a popular apparel brand also came forward with its campaign on March 10th. It got fully funded in 2 hours and still continues to raise money and have exceeded $210,000 in their collection.
With respect to E-commerce platforms those products which are of no use to them in this crisis, are suffering, but those which are considered a necessity, are seeing huge jumps in their sale on the online marketplaces. These facts will prove the same.
Among the products that were selling the most, the maximum sale was registered for products like toilet papers, antibacterial sprays, sanitizers. It has understandably seen an increase of 817% compared to what they usually experience.
The sale of medicine also has been registered on these apps. The demand for medicines related to cold, flu and fever has seen a major increase to the tune of 198%.
Grocery purchases including perishable and non-perishable items have been a major push.
The essential supply delivery is considered the most important because if this does not cater to the needs, people will surely come out in the crowd and make purchases. The automated software available to strengthen the supply chain and distribution networks has led to easy order processing, inventory forecast, on-time delivery and much more.
The pandemic will still take time to wipe off and economies will take some time before it resorts to the usual routine again. In such a situation, mobile applications are getting a fresh lease of life thanks to some proactive measures taken by companies in advance. Chapter247 have the experience of building mobile applications from the last 8 years and have helped several organizations to adopt digital tools to experience a transformation in their businesses.
