Top Must Features in News & Media App Your Developer Should Know

Gone are the days when people waited outside their homes to get a copy of the newspaper from the delivery boy. It was because those were the days when newspapers were the only sources to know what is going on in the world. But things have changed today. Initially, it was the TV news that changed things. People have no time to read the news elaborately from newspapers. They want everything to be short.

In this article, we have discussed some of the top features that a popular news or media app must possess.

Introduction

The news apps are very popular and are sure to gain more popularity in the coming days. Data shows that more than 70% of Americans read the daily news from apps. Moreover, yet another data shows that there is a sharp decline in newspaper sales in countries like India, France, and Britain, etc. Hence, if you are considering the option to develop a news app, it is certainly a good idea.

Before starting, you should know the top features your news and media app should have.

What are the Key Features That a News and Media App Must Have?

Here are some must-have features in a Media and News app:

1. Easy Login

Users will look for easy access. So, if your app asks for details and passwords every time they log in, then they will get annoyed. So, the best option is to have a login to the facility through social media accounts.

Moreover, initially, every first user has to register in the app. Make sure the registration is not very lengthy and does not ask for too many details. Time is very precious in this fast and competitive world. No one will have the patience and time to fill out long forms.

2. Profile

The user has to create a user profile by filling in all essential details. The customers will be impressed only if the feature allows them to choose the genres they prefer and their interests besides the basic details. Moreover, the profile feature should also have the facility to manage accounts.

3. Unique UX/UI Design

UX/UI design of an app is as important as the cover of a book. Therefore, it should be attractive, interactive, and enticing. All apps should be user-friendly and easy to navigate. This applies to news and media apps too. If you want to attract more users, then your app should provide a great reading experience and should be easy to navigate.

The menu must not be complex. It should also be in the right place. The perfect position for the navigation menu is just above the content and below the header. Moreover, the design should be responsive, making the home page look attractive and user-friendly on all devices like laptops, mobile phones, and tablets. Additionally, it would be good if it enables both vertical and horizontal reading.

4. Breaking News

A newspaper has the headlines on the first page. A news TV has the important news scrolling at the bottom as breaking news. People expect to see the important current news immediately. So, this feature is important. Breaking news can be in the form of push notifications too. This will capture the attention of the users instantly.

5. Different Sections

In a newspaper, some love to read the sports page first and some prefer to read the finance page first. Similarly, news apps should also have different sections. Your app should have as many categories as possible. The categories include sports, politics, lifestyle, entertainment, finance, technology, and others.

This feature will also help in personalizing the interests of the users and let them read the news they like. News is updated almost every second and the news should appear in the right category. It would be a big blunder if the news appears in the wrong category. So, the feature should be developed perfectly by the developers. Make this clear to your developers.

6. Engagement

This feature allows the readers to discuss news. This is essential because news apps need a commenting system to make them more interesting. However, you should remember that the comments can turn out to be abusive and rude. So, don’t forget to add algorithms that will allow you to remove or block abusive comments.

The most common engagement tool is the option of sharing the news on social media. Automatic login through social media accounts improves engagement. Today, people love to share images, stories, reels, and many more on social media. Likewise, they will enjoy sharing the news that they liked. So, you should make sure your app has a sharing option.

7. Live News Streaming

This feature is important because it increases the visibility of the app and will also keep the users aware of the latest news. Breaking News is a very important and must-have feature of a news app. The feature should update the news every passing minute. This will give an edge over the other news apps. If your app is the one that breaks the news first, more users are likely to use your app.

8. Introducing Audio and Video

Sometimes, users may not find time to read the news in detail when they are busy or driving. So, adding audio and video can be very beneficial. When they are driving, they can listen to the news or they can watch videos while relaxing. This will attract more users.

9. Customized Setting

The users love this feature because it allows them to schedule notifications, adjust fonts, read mode, and many more. As it improves the overall reading experience, this feature is a must. It should allow the users to customize their homepage to suit their requirements. It should give them the power to select contents, topics, and sections according to their preferences.

10. Offline Viewing

Most of the apps need internet access and can be viewed only online but adding offline access can be a big plus to your app. This is also referred to as smart viewing. This will increase your user base as well as your revenue. This is also called intelligent filtering. All you have to do is to enable saving in the cache. Then the viewers can view the news even if they are offline. This feature also helps in data saving.

11. Search Feature

All good news apps have the search and filter feature. The search feature should be easy to use. It should allow the users to find their favorites quickly and easily. The search and filter feature allows the users to search for information of interest according to specific parameters and criteria.

12. Personalized Feed

The categorization of news and the search options do help in quick access to the favorite news but a personalized feed is still better. When your news app has this feature, the user doesn’t have to search separately every time he logs in.

Improved technology like Machine Learning enables the developers to develop personalized settings. With the help of a personalized feed, the app can analyze the preferences of the users and customize news feeds. This feature makes it convenient for the user to get easy access to news of their choice.

13. Feedback

You should provide a feedback feature in your app. Feedback is important for all types of mobile apps because it helps to improve the user-friendliness of the app. You can add more interesting features and delete the unnecessary ones based on the users’ feedback.

14. Monetary Feature

The monetary features are significant for all apps and a news app is no exception to this. There should be a provision for advertisement. The advertisement should be placed in the right spot. This is crucial because if it distracts the user, he is sure to get annoyed. So, they should be placed correctly and should never be obtrusive. The sidebars at the right and left are generally the best spaces.

15. Premium Subscription

Yes, ads popping up can be annoying. Many people may not like the idea of ads when they are reading the news. To solve this issue, you should provide an option of premium subscription that is ad-free. However, it is not necessary that your app should have this feature in the initial stages. You can add this after developing a strong customer base.

16. Language Availability

Contents today are going local these days. So, if you want to increase the readability of your app, you should make sure your app is multilingual. However, using translator tools to translate news is not advised.

The translation should be done by a team of writers and journalists of various languages. Research points out that multilingual apps have three to four times more reach than a single-language app.

17. Display of Reading Time

If the news articles have the estimated reading time, it will be an added advantage because the users can decide if they want to read the full article or not. This is a good option for boosting the user experience. Better user experience is always important for the success of any app.

18. Push Notification

Push notifications are useful and effective to keep the users interested and intrigued. Yes, it is true. However, irrelevant notifications can cause adverse effects. So, the push notifications should be adaptive. It means the users should get notifications in their preferred genre. This improves user engagement.

The above-mentioned features will make your app interesting. However, if you incorporate lots of features, the cost of your mobile app development. If budget is not an issue, you can go ahead and include as many features as you want. On the other hand, if you have a limited budget, then you should include the most important apps.

Important! From the admin point of view:

The app should have a powerful CMS or Content Management System. This helps the admin to manage the app systematically. The app should allow the admin to conduct opinion polls and make changes based on the feedback received from users.

Also Read:-How To Publish An App On Google Play Store?

What are the Key Factors Determining the Success of a News App?

It is not only the features that determine the success of a news app. There are also other factors. They are:

• Fast loading and tough to crash

The app should load in just a second. Otherwise, the users will lose their patience. Moreover, the app should not crash. Furthermore, it should not consume a lot of battery power. It should be battery-friendly.

• Innovative and unique

You should capture the attention of the users. There are many news apps in the market. It will not be successful unless it is innovative and unique.

• Regular updating

If you want to succeed you should update the features of the app regularly. If you don’t update your app, it may cause negative effects. Release app updates regularly to keep the users interested and fix the bugs.

• SEO

Search Engine Optimization is not only important for a website but an app too. You don’t need SEO experts to improve the SEO ranking of your news app. All you need is high-quality content. If your content is of high quality, your app will automatically have a good SEO ranking.

• Multi-language availability 

All contents including the news content are going local these days. So, if you want to increase the readability of your app, you should make sure your app is multilingual. However, using translator tools to translate news is not advised. The translation should be done by a team of writers and journalists of various languages. Research points out that multilingual apps have three to four times more reach than a single-language app.

• Analytic tools

Technology has made analysis easier. Use the tools to find what the users like the most and make sure you give the users what they want.

What are the Types of News Apps?

Moreover, before starting to develop your news app, you should know that there are two types of news apps. One is the news aggregator app and the other is the news-based mobile app.

• News Aggregator App

This is the most common app for news. In this app, all news from regional to international news is covered. These apps even cover local festivals and shows. All you have to do is to make a few clicks and you will get access to all the news you want to know. This app can be either free or paid. Anyone can develop this type of app.

• News Based Mobile App

People already in the media and news industry develop this type of app. For example, newspapers like Indian Express and Times of India, etc. have an app of their own. Having a mobile app helps them to increase their readership. Moreover, as they are familiar and trustworthy names in the news industry, they get more users.

Also Read:-A Complete Guide To iPhone Apps Development Costs

Conclusion

Your news app should be innovative and informative if you want it to get many users and get revenue. Hence, you should take utmost care in building it. Hire a mobile app development company. Make sure they make your app appealing. First, decide what you want and ensure you get them all. The secret of the success of your news app depends upon the features of your app.