Over the past decades, mobile apps have proven to be a valuable tool for businesses of all sizes. Mobile apps help streamline business operations, improve employee productivity and efficiency, and most importantly, can attract new customers and increase revenue. For many businesses today, a mobile app is not considered a luxury, but one of the important conditions for success and staying ahead of the competition.
In this article we will talk about the basic steps that are needed to turn an idea into an app that helps a business grow.
Creating a business strategy
Creating a mobile product without a strategy is like building a house without a blueprint. It’s possible, but you’re unlikely to be happy with the result. A strategy should describe your needs, goals, and methodology for creating the app.
Every successful application has a certain goal, for example Google Drive allows you to create and store files quickly and efficiently, to access them, Habitica helps you become more organized and work on your habits and daily routines in a game form. The first step is to determine the business needs: what problem the finished product will solve, what unique value it has for consumers.
The next step is to analyze the competitors and the market. The idea of an app by itself does not make it special and successful. You may find similar apps during your research, their competitive analysis will help determine the strengths and weaknesses of the future product. Do other people’s apps solve your problem? Can the solution be improved? How successful are your competitors’ products? Is there room in the market for another app with a similar idea?
The answers to these questions can help you figure out what kind of app you need, what features you should add, and what features you could easily do without.
Finding app developers
Once your business strategy is ready, you can start looking for a team to build the app. You have several options for hiring employees.
Hiring your own developers will be a great solution in certain situations. Your developments won’t leave the company, the team will always be around, and you’ll be able to discuss any ideas for changing the product without any problems. However, the team building process can take quite a long time, especially if you are in a region with a small pool of specialists. Also, having your own team requires additional expenses in the form of salaries and workplace equipment.
You can hire freelancers, you have specialists from different countries and with any development experience. Seemingly ideal, but most application development projects require the skills of multiple freelancers. This can create certain problems, as creating a successful app is impossible without close interaction between developers. The more opportunities for communication, the better the results will be. Most companies only hire freelancers for short-term assignments.
It is best to contact an agency that specializes in app development. Most agencies provide a range of services, accompanying the project from idea to launch, helping to promote the finished product and its adaptation to market changes. To ensure that the result of working with the agency justified expectations, you need to make the right choice. It is important not to rush here, because hiring a developer is the most important decision when creating a mobile application.
Do not go to the first company that comes along, but choose from several. Examine the portfolio, look for reviews of the companies on the Internet, compare the cost.
In our blog you can read how to choose a mobile app developer.
Budget
According to research companies, less than 1% of apps in the world are successful. One of the main reasons apps fail is lack of funding.
If you have your own developers or hire freelancers, you should ask them for an estimate. If you plan to use an agency, we recommend getting an evaluation from at least three companies. On our website you can use the cost calculator to understand what the cost of mobile application development is made up of and how you can influence it.
During the evaluation and budgeting process, you will have to make various decisions: choose a platform, the number of screens, functionality and much more. Your choice will directly affect pricing and timing. Also be prepared for the fact that in the course of the work the development cost may increase, for example, if you want to add new features.
Application development
Every application development process consists of five steps: scoping, design, project development, testing and deployment.
Defining the scope
Applications with a limited feature set and low complexity can be created in iteration without having to prepare a lot of details beforehand. More complex applications require an appropriate approach, you will need to study examples of similar features, user experience to make each feature as relevant as possible to the task at hand. All of the stakeholders in your business should contribute to defining the scope of the project. That way, both you and the team will know what the work will be and how much time it may take.
Design
In 2021, app design should by no means be overlooked. Users meet products by their “clothes”, prefer an intuitive interface, thoughtful design and good performance. At the design stage, attention is paid to visual design and design solutions. To create the visual design, design tools are used to create wireframes based on the application requirements, which are refined in later stages. For design solutions, the development team defines the application architecture, database structure, and API design.
Project development
Once the design is prepared, it is time to fully work on the application. Most app development projects include front-end development, API development, and back-end development. Often companies break down the entire process into several stages and report on the work done after each stage is completed. This way you can make sure everything is going according to plan and make timely suggestions and changes if necessary.
Testing
Quality assurance testing (QA) ensures that you get a stable, secure and functional application. It is ideal if several tests are performed. User experience testing will verify the application through application design; functional testing is aimed at checking all the functions of the application; performance testing will help assess the loading speed, check if there are memory leaks and unreasonable battery consumption. Security testing looks for vulnerabilities that could put user data at risk. Device testing ensures that the application functions on different devices.
Many modern applications test in an automated mode that allows you to simulate multiplayer and load testing scenarios. We recommend leveraging all options to minimize the likelihood of errors.
Deployment
Deploying an app is a series of actions that make the product ready to use. The application needs to be downloaded from the App Store / Google Play. Immediately after downloading, the review process will begin. It will take Google a few hours to review and approve the app, in Apple because of the strict vetting process, the procedure takes about a week.
If app development involves working with the database and server part, they will have to be deployed separately. You can try to do the deployment yourself or use the services of a development team.
The time it takes to create an application depends on its complexity: the more complex it is, the longer it will take to develop. On average, it takes 16 to 20 weeks to develop.
Marketing the app
The App Store and Google Play have millions of apps for every taste, but not all of them are easy to find. If an app has a low rating and hasn’t become an editorial choice, it will be extremely difficult to find through organic search. A thoughtful marketing strategy will help your audience discover the app through other channels.
You can do the marketing yourself or turn to professionals (when choosing a marketing agency, make sure that the marketers have a clear understanding of app promotion). Perhaps there is a team of experts at an agency that specializes in mobile development. In that case, it’s the best option, because they know the world of mobile products from within.
Support and maintenance
Developing a mobile app is an ongoing process. No matter how good an app turns out, there is always room for improvement. User feedback, market requirements, new competitors, and technology developments must be taken into account.
Post-launch product maintenance includes any updates related to the performance of the app. Google’s Firebase platform helps app owners track performance metrics. Firebase offers performance monitoring, crash reports, user analytics and more.
In addition to maintenance updates, you can consider expanding the app with new features. This will help attract new users and retain existing users.
As you can see, building a mobile app involves many tasks, but with the right strategy and team, you can easily turn your idea into a successful business.