New research from business data website Company Check suggests that technology businesses are failing to capture the imagination of Dragons’ Den investors – despite a boom in the tech industry.

Over 14 series, only 18 investments have been technology related, with just one investment in a mobile app.

In a study by Accenture of 1,925 senior decision makers in digital marketing and technology, it was found that 87% believed apps were integral to their business’ future success.

Furthermore, global statistics provider Statista found that global app revenue in 2015 equated to $41 billion, with a projection for consumers to spend more than $101 billion through apps by 2020.

Technology, and apps in particular, are clearly an area of outstanding growth. So what is stopping the Dragons investing? Company Check has gathered the opinions of a number of technology businesses to explore this question:

Neil Westwood, Managing Director, Magic Whiteboard (Dragon invested business)

“We recently were interviewed for next series of Dragons’ Den with our ifindyou app and locator – it alerts your mobile when you lose keys, children and your phone. www.ifindyou.co.uk. The Dragons’ often invest in products; i.e. things they can buy and sell to make a profit. This is a familiar model that they understand and works well for them.

Apps are different. You need a huge marketing and PR budget to let customers know about your app. Also, most customers want to use for free. You will convert about 10% to pay for in app purchases. The market is very crowded for apps – your app with get lost in the App Store unless you spend a lot of money advertising or have other channels to promote.

Apps also costs a lot in software development costs and after you have invested say £100,000 customers might not find the app useful or fun and they won’t download it. You might be lucky and get a Dragon that has a technology business.”

Alastair Campbell, founder of Carsnip and Company Check

“As a tech entrepreneur, I can’t say I’m too surprised to see that tech businesses aren’t really taking off in the Den.

It’s not easy to make a mobile app successful, just as you can’t put up a website and expect it to gain traffic overnight. The investment required, in terms of time and money, is large and means you need to be fully bought in and sure of your product.

For us, seeking investment was a process that took time and consideration. We wanted to find the right investors who understood the technology behind what we were doing, which is how we came to welcome investors from Microsoft and Google.

The Dragons are great at what they do, but they tend to be specialists in their own areas and none are app experts. Piers Linney was the closest we came with his business Outsourcery, a cloud-based service, but even he shied away from the potential tech investments. None of the Dragons for the new series specialise in apps themselves, so it will be interesting to see whether the trend is reversed.”

Matt Hunt, CEO of Apadmi Enterprise

“I would say that the investors from Dragons’ Den are most interested in funding individuals, businesses and the ideas behind products, new technologies and services, as opposed to simply just investing in the apps. Apps have come to form a crucial part of what businesses can offer. However, without everything else behind it an app doesn’t give much to actually to invest in.

However, developing an app that integrates with an existing business presents more of a chance for growth – offering opportunities to reach new audiences or to evolve with the times. Companies often launch new apps to enhance the service they already offer to their customers.

If I was a Dragon, I would be on the lookout for a strong business idea and potential opportunities where innovative uses of technology – including mobile apps – can offer something unique and will give the business an edge.”

Jon Pellington, founder, TextDater

“Funding in the early stages of mobile app startups is crucial for their future success. It’s not enough to have a great idea; entrepreneurs need the financial support to be able to take their business to the next level.

I secured investment from Virgin Startups and that helped me hugely – hopefully this new series will see more tech startups leaving the Den with a deal.”

Mike Foreman, European managing director of Nuro Secure Messaging

“When you look at how many apps are created and how many fail to take off it’s easy to see why the Dragons might be wary of investing in such a high-risk space.  The success of Pokemon-Go is very much an exception to the rule. The reality is that 99.99 percent of apps don’t succeed while 90 percent of startups also fail. Even the BBC, which launched a new  content consolidation app in the last couple of days, cites research that shows growing ‘app-athy’ amongst consumers who can’t cope with the sheer number of apps they end up with on their phones.

The truth is mobile usage overtook desktop usage a couple of years ago. But brands, businesses and yes, the Dragons need to update their thinking. All the evidence points to mobile as the future.”