By James Harvey, CTO Advisor EMEA, Cisco Observability
Over recent years, there has been a seemingly insatiable appetite amongst consumers in the UAE, and across the globe for that matter, for applications and digital services. People all over the world have been desperate to try out new digital services and download more and more applications onto their devices.
This trend accelerated dramatically during the pandemic when many people across the Emirates had no other option but to rely on digital services; the various local restrictions meant they couldn’t go to work, meet friends or go to the shops. But even now, with the pandemic thankfully behind us, consumers of all ages are continuing to use digital services in almost every aspect of their lives.
However, what has changed over the last year or two is people’s expectations of how these digital services should perform. Whereas during the pandemic, consumers simply felt grateful that brands were providing them with applications to manage their lives during that difficult period, now there is only a sense of expectation, and deep frustration, when brands don’t deliver the types of digital experiences that they’re looking for.
Across the world, people are becoming more discerning about the applications they use and developing a strong conviction that they only want to use the very best, most seamless and secure digital services. Focus has switched from quantity to quality, with consumers increasingly turning their back on poorly performing applications. And this marked shift in consumer behavior has profound implications for brands and application owners.
Expectations for digital experience reach new heights, but tolerance for poorly performing applications has disappeared
Whether it’s fitness classes, collaboration and productivity tools, entertainment streaming or access to public services, people continue to value the speed, convenience, and enjoyment that applications and digital services can bring. According to the latest research from Cisco, The App Attention Index 2023: Beware the Application Generation, the average consumer now uses 34 different applications and digital services each month.
However, as people have become more knowledgeable and sophisticated in their use of applications, they’re also becoming more mindful and selective about the digital services they use. They’re weighing up the value and relevance of each application and thinking longer and harder before they download and install new applications on their devices. 77% of UAE consumers report that they are keen to get rid of ‘application clutter’, and 80% (a whopping 18 percentage points higher than the global average) state they’re looking to limit the number of apps they are using or that they have on their device.
The overriding sentiment amongst regional consumers is that they only want to use the most innovative and intuitive digital services and that they don’t ever want to feel that they are wasting their time. They want every moment when they’re using an application to enhance their lives.
The unfortunate reality, however, is that globally, consumers are encountering bad digital experiences with increasing frequency. 88% report that they have experienced performance issues when using applications over the past 12 months, compared to 83% in 2021. And understandably, people are getting increasingly angry about this. They feel disrespected by brands whose applications let them down.
Consumers today have zero tolerance for bad digital experiences; indeed, 71% of consumers across the Emirates admit that they are less forgiving of poor digital services than they were 12 months ago.
Alarmingly for application owners, the research reveals how people are now actively looking to punish brands who fail to deliver a seamless and secure digital experience, and they’re feeling empowered to take action. A staggering 80% of UAE consumers have stopped using digital services or deleted applications from their devices as a result of performance issues over the last 12 months and, on average, global consumers have deleted more than five applications on the back of a poor digital experience.
No longer restrained as they were during the pandemic, the application user is back in control. They’re ditching brands whose applications don’t hit the mark and sharing their negative stories as widely as possible.
IT teams need the right tools to manage application performance and security
For application owners, the research provides a stark warning — any slip up in digital experience will result in huge numbers of customers deleting their applications and walking away from their brands forever.
Applications are now the front door for every organization and therefore it’s vital that IT teams have the tools and visibility they need to optimize application availability, performance and security at all times. In order to do this, they need full and unified visibility across highly complex, dynamic and dispersed hybrid environments, something which very few organizations currently have.
Application observability provides the solution to this challenge, enabling technologists to rapidly detect issues and understand root causes. It also correlates application performance and security data with key business metrics, so that IT teams can identify and prioritize those issues which could do the most damage to digital experience.
Organizations need to recognize that consumers are no longer willing to tolerate anything less than the very best digital experiences and they’re ready to take down any brand whose application falls below this standard. The message is clear — quality over quantity must be the mantra for applications and digital services going forward.
