With the best equipment in the world, important apps still sometimes fail. Perhaps there’s a bug in the code that needs to be fixed; perhaps one of the settings is configured badly; perhaps your device needs to be upgraded. Whatever the problem is, it’s important to have strategies in place to make sure that you don’t lose important data or damage your device, both of which could lose you valuable work hours and risk your clients’ trust.
Make sure your data is backed up
It’s a good idea to use an app that has Cloud storage, because that way your data is backed up automatically to an online server and you can access it from anywhere. However, even if you do have Cloud backup, regular backups to a desktop or hard drive are also a good idea. Regardless of which backup solution you choose, it is always a bad idea to keep all of your data in once place: having copies on multiple devices makes it much less likely that a device or app failure will cause you to lose all of your important information. If you have an app that runs on multiple devices, having backups of your data will enable you to keep working with a spare device while you get the primary one fixed.
Call customer service with your problem
It’s actually very rare for an app to fail in a way that customer service hasn’t seen before. If it’s the result of a software bug, chances are that the programming team is already working on a patch and has advised customer support of strategies to deal with the bug until an update is released. Even if that isn’t the case, customer support is usually much more familiar with the app than you are, because they deal with sometimes hundreds of queries per day. Unless something is wrong with your device, they usually have a quick fix that will get your app up and running again.
Get your device inspected or repaired
If following customer service’s advice doesn’t fix your problem, it may be that your smartphone or tablet has a software or hardware error. If that is the case, take it in to a professional for diagnostics to see whether it can be fixed with a replacement part or software patch. The advantage to seeking professional help is that a professional will have tools to back up your data before tinkering with the device, so that once your device is fixed you can continue as though nothing went wrong.
Upgrade to the latest version of your app and operating system
Often problems are caused by the app and the operating system not playing well together. App developers work constantly to make sure that their apps are compatible with the latest mobile operating systems, so it is always a good idea to make sure that both your app and your operating system are up to date. If you update your operating system before an app upgrade is available and the app no longer works, don’t panic: contact the developers to find out when an update will be released. In the meantime, switch temporarily to a different device or to the web version (if available) so that you can continue working until an update is released.
