6 cool ideas for location-based apps and how to test one

The world of technology is changing rapidly. New trends and solutions appear on the market, as well as millions of new apps see the world each day. Currently, location-based applications continue to be on the rise, while the number of users of these services is constantly growing. In case you are looking for fresh ideas for geolocation applications or want to test your existing solution in the most effective way, this post is right for you. Get the answers to the most popular questions about location-based app development and testing right here below. 

Top Industries That Use Location Based Service Apps

There is nothing new that there are tons of apps that use location services. However, geo and location features are becoming increasingly popular even in those fields that have never used them before. Want to explore more popular location-based services with examples? Here you go!

Location trackers

Location trackers are among the most popular types of apps that are widely used by customers all over the world. For example, you can hardly find a person who has never used Google maps. Moreover, Waze, maps.me, and an option of sharing location in WhatsApp are also incredibly demanding for millions of users.

Travel

Traveling is another area where you can often use location tracking. Looking for accommodation in a new city? Booking.com is here to help. Searching for the best places of interest and restaurants in the area? TripAdvisor will provide you with all the needed info according to your location. 

Gaming

The world of games is booming. The new geolocation apps designed to entertain users appear on the most popular application market. Wondering how games can use your location? That’s easy. Pokemon Go is a bright example of how to use the get function in the most amazing way. 

Retail 

The leading retailers widely use a geolocation option for a wide range of services. Walmart, IKEA, Target, and many others assist their customers in finding the nearest retail points using location tracking. 

IoT

Being one of the most promising niches, IoT is also putting geo function into practice. Wearable devices for sports and kids’ safety, pet care solutions (like Paw Scout), and luggage tracker (for example, LugLoc) are already using GPS and other geo technologies. 

Dating

Online dating has been the easiest way of finding a true match for years. Not only users can meet new people in their city, but they can now find possible matches according to their location. For example, if you are moving to a new city, you can effortlessly find friends in your area using a location-based messaging app, like OkCupid, Tinder, or Happn. Or, if you are traveling to a new city – you can use these apps to meet new friends. By the way, some social media (Snapchat and Instagram) are already using this option, too. 

Sports 

Dozens of sports apps allow choosing routes, connecting with other sportsmen in your area, as well as tracking speed. These features are common for cycling, running, and other types of sports apps, including Nike+ and Strava. Thousands of sportsmen are already using these functions to track their performance and analyze physical activity and parameters. Moreover, you can find gyms and fitness studios in a particular area, too. 

Fresh Ideas For Geolocation Applications 

The demand for the services using location is growing at railway speed. But what are areas with the biggest potential? Discover a few cool app ideas you can easily benefit from in the nearest future.

Weather Notification Apps 

There are plenty of apps that offer weather forecasts according to your current location. Still, there are few services that can send alerts for natural disasters. The app can even save people’s lives sending alerts about tornadoes, wildfires, and various types of hurricanes. 

Tourism 

The idea of using geo features in tourism-related apps is not new. However, a combination of a tourism app and AR can offer customers an absolutely amazing experience. Now, people can get an opportunity to virtually visit new places that are miles away without leaving their homes. 

Hotel management and hospitality 

Finding a hotel in a specific area is not the only thing geo function can be used for. You can explore restaurant menus, check-in and check-out to the hotel by yourself, and even manage your electronic keys. 

Indoor Search

When it comes to searching for various places outdoors, Google Maps and other similar solutions are here to help. But what about indoor navigation? What if you need to find some goods or products of a particular brand in a huge shopping mall? The indoor searching system might be a great option there. 

Task Management

Smart homes are changing our lives. Not only users can make their lives more convenient with the help of smart devices, but they can also enjoy using geo apps at homes. For example, it might be great to automatically turn on the lights at home when you are coming from your workplace and hitting a special geo zone.

Shipping and delivery apps

The global pandemic of the Coronavirus in 2020 proved the importance of on-demand delivery apps based on geo-location. Apps such as UberEats, DoorDash, Postmates, Deliveroo, etc proved to be “lifesavers” during the pandemic period, providing users with all they need. However, these types of apps are not available in all global regions, thus, in such regions, it can be an opportunity for smart entrepreneurs to create such a geolocation delivery based app.  By the way, you can check whether this option is available in your area. If not, you can build your own successful delivery business.

How To Test Location-Based Application

The process of development of a location-based solution requires detailed testing. Although there are some common myths about quality assurance (QA), testing is a must for any modern solution. Not only do you need to test how your app performs as a whole, but it is also necessary to check all its functions and features on various types of devices. In Geo-locations apps, one must test the device GPS and IP geolocation.  One of the most critical things is the ability to test in many global locations, using real devices, making sure the app is performing as it should in all these remote locations. Generally, the QA process of such an app can be divided into several categories. 

• Usability testing. Is your application user-friendly? Is it understandable for most users? Make sure most customers will find it easy-to-use and completely comprehensive. Usability testing is performed exactly for these purposes and will give you detailed answers to all these questions. 
• Localization testing. Checking location-specific features and parameters is an inevitable part of testing a location-based app. By the way, do all the numbers, date and time, currencies, and other important parameters are displayed properly? It is better to pay attention to these features, too. Crowd testers can easily handle testing these functions in the most effective way and in any global location. 
• Geo-location blocking. Some apps restrict their users to use the app in certain locations. The blocks can have different reasons such as political reasons, services can be used in specific countries only, distribution channels are not available in specific countries, etc. This is called “Geoblocking”. Part of the testing should be performed in these blocked locations to ensure the app does not function in these locations and that user access is restricted there.   
• Functional testing. Quality Assurance professionals should also test all the basic parameters of a geo-location app. This includes responsiveness, user interface, screen size and orientation, and other parameters. Only qualified vetted professionals can perform this type of testing and ensure providing the most detailed results.
• Signal strengths. This is an extra feature that might not be tested in various types of apps. However, it is vital for developing a successful location-based solution. 
• Networks and airplane mode. In geo-locations apps, it is extremely important to test how the app is performing against different networks (Wi-Fi, 3G, LTE, etc.). Further, check the app’s operation in the airplane mode. It is truly important to create specific test cases for real users in the designated geo-locations to test the performance with these settings. 
• Interrupt testing. This testing is performed in order to test how the app is reacting to interruption such as incoming calls, incoming messages, etc. The testing verifies that the app resumes to its previous state after the interruption occurs. The location-based app testing must verify that the location-related features work properly during incoming calls, loss of signal, and other interruptions.   

Crowd testing is proven to be the most effective in location-based applications testing. How else would you make sure that your application is really performing well in many geographies and numerous locations?
Crowd testing provides you access to real users, using real devices, anywhere in the world to make sure your location-based app is doing what is supposed to do.
Ubertesters has more than 40,000 professional testers in more than 120 countries around the world, giving you access to testers in any location you wish to launch your application.
Crowd testing is by far the most flexible, fast, and cost-effective way to scale your QA resources anywhere in the world. 

Want to know about the testing opportunities offered by Ubertesters? We are always ready to give you a helping hand and offer professional services of the top quality. Contact us at sales@ubertesters.com for more details.