How to Keep Residents Engaged and Informed

More and more municipalities and local governments consider their municipal mobile app an essential tool to keep residents informed, engaged, and connected. Whether it’s getting information about local events, reporting a pothole, or paying taxes, mobile apps provide a convenient and efficient way for residents to interact and engage with their local community.

However, having your mobile app developed is just the beginning of the journey. Promoting the app and encouraging residents to use it is an ongoing process that requires a strategic approach.

Here are some strategies that can help you continue promoting your municipal mobile app, ensuring that your current residents continue to use it and new residents know to download it:

Consistent Communication

Consistent communication is key to promoting any product or service, and your municipal mobile app is no exception. You must consistently communicate with your residents to ensure they are aware of the app’s features, benefits, and how to download it. This can be done through various channels such as social media, email newsletters, town hall meetings, flyers, and posters in high-traffic areas. You can also collaborate with local media outlets to publish stories about the app and its usefulness.

Regular Updates

Keeping your app up-to-date with the latest features and bug fixes is crucial to ensuring residents continue to use it. Regular updates also demonstrate your commitment to improving the app’s user experience. You should seek feedback from residents to understand their needs and preferences, which can help shape future updates.

Choose to work with a mobile app developer who uses a content management system that will make updating or changing content on your app simple. Ensure your mobile app development company also provides you with training so you know how to update and change your mobile app without the help of a developer.

Promoting local businesses

Incentives and rewards for shopping with local businesses can be a great way to encourage residents to use the app. Events involving local businesses can also be a practical way to encourage downloads and engagement with your municipal mobile app. For example, you can organize a scavenger hunt or a similar event that requires participants to use the app to access clues or information. You can collaborate with local businesses to offer prizes or discounts to participants who complete the scavenger hunt using the app. This not only incentivizes the use of the app but also helps promote local businesses and fosters a sense of community involvement.

Partnerships

Partnering with other organizations can help expand the reach of the app and promote its use to a wider audience. For example, you can partner with local schools to promote the app to parents and students, or with community organizations to promote it to their members.

While some municipalities may take a “set it and forget it” approach to their mobile app, promoting your municipal mobile app is an ongoing process that requires a strategic approach.

Municipalities that develop an ongoing strategy for continual updates, evaluation, and expansion of their mobile app’s features and content have higher download rates and the best engagement.

Work with a mobile app development company who can offer some type of marketing guide to help successfully launch your app and generate ideas for building an ongoing promotional strategy.

By prioritizing the ongoing promotion of your mobile app, you can foster greater engagement, transparency, and interaction with your residents, ultimately improving the quality of life for those living in your municipality.

If your municipality is considering having a mobile app developed, book a demo to see Info Grove’s Municipalities platform–designed to meet the specific needs of municipalities–in action.

Karim Mansour is an Inside Sales Representative at 14 Oranges, the creators of the Info Grove platform.