Where to add email/help button main screen of mobile app?

Question

I'm working on a mobile app, for iphone and android, where the user can search for an item, and a list will be displayed with the stores where this item is sold. The "Map" button displays the list in a map and the dropdowns are to sort.

I'm satisfied with the simplicity of the design, but my only concern is the "email" button in the main screen. I've included a mockup of the app.

This "email" button doesn't really do that much: it simply opens up another screen (with a textbox and a button) that will let the user email us, but it's important because that's how users may contact us for development projects and any other comments on the app.

Question: Is it correct to add the "Help" button to the main page? Or is it going to affect the app usability?

Answer 1

I think it's a conceptual problem, according to the explanation the button is actually the typical Contact or Get in touch.

The e-mail is one more medium, not the essence of the action; and "help" is one possible topic among many others such as "suggestions", "modifications", "bugs", etc.

As you say, the Contact button next to the main action fields of the application doesn't make much sense. In some apps, the contact (WhatsApp, Life-chat, mail, phone, etc) is usually a floating button at the lower right corner.

Answer 2

As a developer myself, I understand your motivation for adding a 'Contact Us' button but you're overestimating an end user's urge to contact the developers.

Instead of an email button, you should have a settings button instead. This settings button would be next to your search bar taskbar which should be sticky as you scroll through the search results. With the new settings button you can open up a sidebar menu with the space to put everything that isn't immediately relevant to the main user flow, i.e. 'Contact Us'.