There are successful
Arab apps but their devel-
opers register them under
foreign names
Lack of professionalism
and target audience
kept our apps away
from the light spot
Maher Al Mulla
Abdullah Al Kindi
marketing tools. For in-
stance, Engadget usu-
ally launches a wide-
scale campaign upon
developing a certain
app, a campaign that
continues well after the
app is released. In the
Arab world, on the other
hand, we lack reliable
site. Additionally, Arab
developers do not provide
adequate marketing and pro-
motion, even the simplest mar-
keting tools found on social media sites
that were the launch point of a number of
global apps.
Al Mulla believes that there are successful
Arab apps developed by Arab developers
but many do not know that. He indicated
being on the most downloaded apps list
depends on the method used by develop-
ers to register their names. Most Arab de-
velopers give their companies (the devel-
opers of their apps) non-Arab names such
as Guided Ways which developed the I
Eat Halal app, an app for halal food. The
app was so successful that it was covered
on BBC. The company also developed
an app called 2Do, which is an organizer
for daily chores. Though these apps were
successful, it is a little known fact that the
developers are Arab, due to the non-Arab
names of companies and apps.
Abdullah Al Kindi, Director of IT Depart-
ment, Emirates Identity Authority outlined
several reasons for the lack of success
of Arab apps in comparison to foreign
apps. Foremost among such reasons
is the target audience of the app,
which is limited to Arabic speakers
only. These apps are usually not
supported with multiple languag-
es. Expanding the target audi-
ence should increase download
rates.
Another reason cited by Al
Kindi is that many Arab apps
lack professionalism either in
design or theme. They do not
provide a clear image of what
the app is about and how to
use it. Hence, complying with
global standards of design
and development is essential.
Al Kindi considered that the lack of con-
cern of Arab developers to upgrade their
apps is a key reason for low downloading
rates.
Many Arab apps also lack innovation with
regard to feel or content. They also lack
new ideas the might serve or attract users.
Al Kindi pointed out that many claim that
prices of Arab apps downloads are higher
than global apps. In addition, Arab devel-
opers pay little heed to marketing and ad-
vertising.
With regard to the standards that deter-
mine app success, Al Kindi points out
standards in relation to programming and
others pertaining to design and data se-
curity. Developers vary in their adherence
to these standards, that is why we come
across successful versus unsuccessful
apps.
According to Al Kindi, success criteria are
determined by popular global platforms
such as Apple and Android. The two com-
panies set their own criteria to host apps
on their platforms. However, there is not
an agency that is solely in charge of set-
ting criteria for Arab apps to ensure their
success either on the Arab or global lev-
els.
Al Kindi considered that trust in the app
is a key factor of popularity. Unfortunately,
a large number of smartphone users do
not trust Arab apps, even successful ones.
There is no doubt that the accuracy and
truth of data used on the app largely con-
tribute to user trust. Indeed, the trust issue
is far more important if the app is used for
financial transactions.
Al Kindi advises Arab app developers to
Developers’ compliance
with programming and data
security standards leads
apps to the popular list
15
October
2014
