Deep linking is used by app developers to allow customers to look at particular content or even products they had initially clicked the link with without opening the application. Deep link is essentially a URL that directs the customer or user towards a particular area in a mobile app.
Imagine that your company has an ongoing sale for winter clothes. Your users have been notified by including numerous links of the items in various posts on social media platforms and even via emails. Including a deep link along with the email or in the text of the post can directly guide the user to the winter clothing portion of the mobile application rather than just the standard welcome page and will save them the time of having to open the app and then foraging for the said winter clothes.
App developers who incorporate deep links within mobile apps increase the application’s conversion rates and optimize the overall usability and experience.
Categories of Deep Linking
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Default
Default deep links will point the users towards a particular page, item, or portion of the mobile application or any pertinent content. However, the default deep link will guide the user, given that the said app is preinstalled on their phones. If that’s not the case, it will load a failed page. Hence, most app developers steer away from default deep linking.
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Deferred
Deferred deep links function exactly like the default deep links. However, if the app is not installed on the user’s phone, they are first taken to the app store and are asked to install the application. Upon installing and opening it, the applicable content or page is viewed.
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Contextual
These deep links are quite similar to the default and deferred ones in terms of how they work. The only dissimilarity is rather than solely displaying the content or prompting the user to install the app from the app store and then exhibiting the page or content, these deep contextual links set aside and record user data such as their names and locations and the kind of connections that they tend to click on the most. These records of data, in turn, help the app developers as well as the marketing department to personalize the experience of that particular user in the mobile application.
Benefits of Implementing Deep Linking
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Optimize App Usability
With the help of deep links, one-click will transfer the customer from a single link in a post, an advertisement, or an email to the app developer’s desired location inside the application. They do not have to deal with any sign-in posting, nor do they have to locate the item on the application themselves. All they have to do is click on the link, and consequently, the item page will open instantly.
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Better User Retention
The retention percentage for users who had access to deep links was reportedly higher than those who were not. The users visited more frequently and were more active on the application. This is due to a simple factor known as personalization that app developers often work into their apps. The app records the links that the customer selects, the kind of items they are more eager to look at, and then personalizes their application with similar products. Much like when you open Amazon, and you see all your recently viewed products and even the products that are quite similar.
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Bring Back Inactive Users
Connect with your inactive users with the help of ads, emails, and social media and put forward coupons, discounted items, features like free delivery, and other such tactics to lure them into your app. However, users can get pretty disappointed if the link opens to the same old homepage. Using deep links, users can be directed right towards the appropriate item page and win back their interest in your application.
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Improve Your Marketing
With the help of deep contextual linking, which records user data, you can quickly get to know the promotional offers and campaigns working and make similar ad campaigns for the future. Moreover, you can get better turnover from your ad campaigns with the help of deep links. When the customer clicks on the ad, they are directly taken to the converting page while avoiding distraction.
In the End
Deep linking has innumerable benefits for your mobile application. It helps app development companies send app users deep into the app, and not linking them just to the homepage to avoid an irrelevant experience. Offering integrated and personalized user experience has become the norm with the ever-increasing competition among iOS and Android app developers. Deep linking streamlines the process and ensures a smoother experience for your customers and users.
With deep linking app developers can increase conversion rates. It highlights the app pages that work the best in context to what a user is looking for. Thus, deep links are pathways that help app developers connect users to apps with help of campaigns, streamline the overall UX and expose them to relevant kinds of marketing.
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