Reports suggest that smartphone users constitute about 6 billion, which is more than 80% of the total population in the world. These statistics also show that around 6 billion people in the world are using a chat app daily. Thus, user expectations for a chat app are high in terms of its functionality, delight, and usability.
Chatting apps play a crucial role in improving connections between people. Without applications like WhatsApp, Snapchat, Telegram, Discord, WeChat, Slack, etc, connections between person to person will be very low. Chatting helps people to share information Therefore, people rely more on chat apps these days to connect with others. Therefore, developers and designers have to put in more effort to offer their user experiences from these apps. Below are some of the must-have features every chatting app should possess to attract users.
- Easy login
To utilize a chat app, a login is required. There are numerous ways for a company to offer login or sign-in options. Some of the possibilities are social media, mobile numbers, and email addresses. Businesses may rely on their target audience to choose the login option. When registered, they can access their accounts from anywhere through any device.
- Data and cloud synchronization
It is a new function in chat apps to store all the files of the users in different locations along with updating them through cloud services. When the document in a device is updated, the rest of the devices get updated automatically. Thus, the conversation history and data of users can be accessed anytime from anywhere.
- Privacy
Online privacy and end-to-end encryption are needed to protect the information and data shared by users through the chatting app. The app should offer this feature to make sure no third party other than the sender and receiver can read the messages.
- Chatbots
Chatting apps have started using chatbots based on AI. However, to incorporate this feature, chatting apps must learn more about chatbots. They are software agents that communicate and interact with users through text messages along with speaking normally to make duties easier. Telegram was the first messaging app to introduce its chatbot. Chatbots handle finances, report the latest updates, etc in Telegram. This function of talking apps makes Telegram different from other chatting apps.
- Geolocation
Geolocation is not a new term in the mobile app market. Many chat applications and instant messaging apps are allowing users to share their status update and their current location. Chatting apps can use geolocation in many ways. Several transportation and social network apps can use this feature to improve their efficiency.
- Push notifications
Every chatting app must have push notifications for users to find new messages. It develops a direct link between the messenger providers and app users. This feature updates itself to provide fresh messages. Users get notified when their favorite contacts or friends are online, when the receiver of their message responds or reads their messages, etc. It attracts more users to use the app.