App Development: How to Begin Your Journey

by Mathew Politansky | Jan 28, 2021 | Blogs, Mobile App Development | 5 comments

Starting your own app development journey for your business can seem daunting. There is a lot that goes into creating an innovative app for your business. This guide will walk you through how to get started with your businesses’ app development. You will get to know what steps you should undertake before contacting a developer, and the things you need to keep in mind once you get started!

How can an App Help your Business?

You might be asking yourself, what value does an application add to my business?

Both external and internal apps will make a major difference in your business. To keep the answer short, an app for your business will increase productivity, and make your life easier.  Apps can also help your business with customer interaction and engagement. Apps have the ability to get the attention of both potential and current customers, through features that aren’t available within web browsers. A good app allows you to:

• Increase productivity and decrease your business’s paper trail
• Build brand awareness.
• Encourage brand loyalty.
• Increase customer engagement.
• Provide direct and personal offers.
• Provide quicker customer service and support.
• Remain competitive in your industry.

Solve a Problem

The best business apps solve problems, whether it is for the customer or for the business itself. If your app idea already solves a notable problem within your business, you’re on the way to starting your app development.

If you have yet to come up with an app idea but know that an app will help your business it is good to find a problem first. Through discovering a problem or issue within your business you can create an app that addresses it. This means the app you create for your business will add value, and be a worthwhile investment. Some common problems which an app can help you solve in your business include:

• Information distribution and Customer Support.
• Internal corporate tool
• Employee work supervision.
• Operational monitoring of your business processes.
• Launching new products and services to the market.
• Data on demand.
• Valuable data collection and processing.
• Customer engagement.

Once you have an app idea that solves problems you are ready to move on to your next step! Hiring the right app developer for your project.

Hire App Developers

Making sure you hire the right app developer is one of the most important steps to take when starting your app development. Your developer is going to be responsible for turning your app idea into a tangible product.

When choosing an app developer, it is important to consider their portfolio and testimonials from their previous clients. This will give you a feel for the developer’s strengths, and if their app development processes will work for your idea. Typically, there are two ways in which you can hire an app developer. These are in-house or through an app development company. In-house app developers work for larger businesses, who can afford to have a permanently employed developer in the company. However, this is not the most cost-effective, or recommended, way to hire a developer. Generally speaking, hiring an app development company works best, they have years of experience and a team that will work towards your specific needs. This also eliminated the fixed cost associated with an in-house developer.

Your choice of developer can have a huge impact on your final result. Do not rush into the decision and take time to think about your options! This will ensure you end up with the best developer for your project.

Budgeting and Planning

A good app for your business will not be the cheapest, however, it is an investment that will ultimately pay off in the long run.

Staying on top of your budget and understanding your costs will make sure you don’t break your budget, but also get the best possible product from your developer. Due to apps being extremely unique depending on your business needs it is important you discuss costs with your developer. There is no one standardised price for an application, so letting your developer know what features you need will allow them to give you an accurate quote.

App Development

Generally speaking, there are 4 phases to developing your app. Each is an important part of the development process.

• Pre-Design: Pre-design is where your developer creates a workable strategy for your app idea. They work out what platforms to use, who it is aimed at, and what the app at its core is about.
• Design: The design stage is where UI and UX for your app are created, and altered until there is a final plan for your developer to create your application for you.
• Development: This is where your app will actually be built by your developer. If you have chosen the right developer you will be able to work cohesively with them in order to make sure the best product is delivered for your investment. From here you will have a working app, which you can work in hand with your developer to fine-tune.
• Support: After your app is initially launched bugs and any other issues found when using the application will be fixed through a series of updates. It is a good idea to initially trial the app between a team of people, who know to report issues. Once these updates roll out your application will run flawlessly and meet your needs!

Marketing

If your app is for public use as opposed to internal business use, it is important to market it correctly to your target audience. Obviously, different marketing will be required for each target audience you are trying to reach. A younger target audience will engage more with digital and social media marketing. However, if your target audience is older this may not be the best approach to market your app. Marketing comes down to your choice of the target audience and requires a fair bit of research if you want to reach them in the most effective way possible.

Good marketing means your app will be downloaded by much more people. Increasing your profit, and your customer engagement.

Feed Back

Although many issues will be resolved in the later stages of app development with routine updates and maintenance, feedback is still important. Once more people start using your app it is good to have them give you feedback. Any complaints about buys or can be fixed easily through your app developer with more updates. Receiving good feedback will also help you in knowing what your app’s strongest features are.

Updates and Maintenance

Updates and maintenance will be routine throughout your app development journey. It is good to have regular updates in order to keep your app competitive and the best choice in the market. Moreover, in regards to an internal business app, updates and maintenance will ensure productivity and make your professional life easier. Feedback is essential to this, with the constant feedback you are able to clean your app up even more. This pleases your customer and makes employees’ lives easier when using your application.

Regular updates can set your apps apart from competitors, meaning you will always be at the forefront of your market, and the standard they hold other applications to.

Conclusions

Starting your app development journey can seem scary. However, by planning out your idea, and being in contact with the right developer, you will produce an innovative app that meets your needs.

If you’re looking for the right developer to begin your app development journey check out our portfolio and make sure you contact The Mobile Apps Man!