Since the world is becoming more digital and most of us spend most of our time looking at a screen, every successful small business is taking part in a startup app development solution.
We netizens know that the Playstore and App Store are full of many different mobile apps, like business, lifestyle, educational, on-demand, and so on. But it’s also important to know immediately that only a few apps have become popular.
Only a minority of new businesses succeed, and those who do tend to repeatedly make the same fundamental errors. As a new business owner, you need first do some research.
Investigate the market closely
Yes, market research is the first step if you want to know what to do next. You should know what’s already on the market and use that knowledge to find a hole that your app will fill and a new way to solve the problem you’re trying to solve.
In-depth market research should help you figure out the following:
- Who are you up against?
- What is their plan?
- What are their good points and bad points?
- What do their reviews and social media say about them?
When you know the facts about these problems, you can avoid your competitors’ mistakes, double down on winning strategies, and clearly explain how you see and solve the problem from your unique point of view. There are many mobile device apps, and this is your chance to make yours stand out.
Identify your elevator pitch and your target market.
Can you say what your app is supposed to do? Can you explain how it works and how it’s different from your website? This is likely the scariest part for business owners and marketers. It isn’t easy to condense your thoughts into a single or double-line description, but doing so is crucial to the success of your app.
Now is the time to:
- What will be the main thing the app will do?
- Why would anyone want to do that?
- Who will get something out of it?
- What do those people want and need?
If you answer these questions honestly, you won’t waste money on useless app features or marketing to the wrong people.
You should feel good about your elevator pitch by now. How would you describe your idea to a possible investor in 60 seconds or less, using no more than a few well-chosen words?
Again, being clear about the goal of your app from the beginning can help you succeed in many ways, so don’t miss this chance to be innovative.
Select from native, hybrid, or web apps
You’ll have to make a few technical decisions early on, and one of them will be very important. The choice between a native, hybrid, or online app dramatically affects how the app will be built and maintained in the future. So, to make the best decision, combining your market research with the primary purpose and features you just figured out is essential.
The languages used to write the code that makes them possible:
APIs for native devices are available: This will depend on the features of the device on which you want your app to run.
Distribution method: This will significantly affect how you market and promote your app and how you build your marketing campaigns.
Compatibility with multiple platforms: depends on your target audience and the market you’re trying to break into. In most cases, you’ll need to be on both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store.
Native apps are best for tasks that need much processing power, like gaming or storing pictures and movies. Web apps are also suitable for solutions that need to be updated frequently but don’t need to use the device’s native features.
These two types of apps are at opposite ends of the spectrum. Native apps are the most expensive to make and can be downloaded from app stores. On the other hand, web apps can be made quickly and cheaply but can’t be sold in app stores or downloaded by users.
Hybrid apps share a joint code base between the two platforms, allowing them to take full advantage of their installed hardware. They’re flexible to convenience and business apps.
Once you’ve settled on your app model, you’ll find it much easier to devote resources and execute your complete development project.
Identify your monetization choices.
Yes, an app can help your business, including its bottom line. The most obvious is making money directly through the app. Still, others could be as simple as acting as a reference for your audience or indirectly helping other parts of your marketing funnel and spreading the word about your brand.
What part do you want your app to play in your business plan? If you want to make money directly from your app, now is the time to look into the different ways you can do that:
Premium apps: Before a user can download a premium app, they must buy it from the app store. You’ll need a digital marketing strategy to differentiate your software from similar paid apps and justify the high price tag.
In-app purchases: In this idea, the app is used as a way to sell digital or physical things through eCommerce.
Subscriptions are like freemium apps, but they have the added benefit of bringing in money.
In-app ads: This might be the most accessible model since the user doesn’t have to pay anything. Yes, just like with any other ad space, it’s essential not to hurt the user experience to get more ad space.
Sponsorships: Once you have many users, you can work with certain businesses to advertise. It’s a win-win situation since brands pay for how people use their apps, and your app gets people to use it more.
Each path has pros and cons, just like every other choice. Even though you can change your mind later, it’s essential to first learn about all the models and then build your mobile app around the one that works best for your business.
Strategy for App-store optimization
After all, many of the steps you’ve taken so far, like researching the market, figuring out what makes your app unique, and making a marketing plan, have a significant effect on your app store optimization plan. Over 60% of all apps are found through organic search, which is the most important way to find apps in the app store.
Follow both app stores’ rules and best practices to make your app stand out with its graphics, functionality, and purpose.
Even though you won’t be able to (or shouldn’t) finish all of your ASO tasks at this point, it’s a good time to start sketching out your app store’s final user interface and ensuring that the development is going according to plan.
The most important parts of optimizing an app store:
App name: Make it easier to spell and speak, as well as unique and expressive, while staying within the size limits (50 characters for iOS, 30 for Android.)
Keywords: This only works for iOS, and it’s an extra field where you can put search words that are relevant to your app.
When making an icon, use a simple, solid idea and a clear color palette. Get rid of small details and go for bold colors and a simple, straightforward theme.
Screenshots: Make sure to use screenshots and captions to tell a story and highlight the benefits.
Add bulleted lists and a call-to-action to the first three lines (before the “More…” link) to bring attention to the most essential ideas.
It should be short and easy to understand, with a clear message that can be communicated in any language.
Know your resources
In a perfect world, you’d be able to spread the word about your launch date ahead of time to get people excited and make a buzz.
For this to happen, you must know the time it takes to grow. Some estimates say it could take anywhere from 7 months to more than a year to make and release a mobile app.
So, it would help if you started talking to your developers and other technical experts as soon as possible. This can help you better steer the whole project and give the correct deadlines to the different planning and development stages, such as:
- Put case definition to use.
- Wireframing.
- Design.
- Coding.
- Mapping of the functions that are needed.
- I am choosing a programming language and platform.
- Testing.
Depending on the app’s complexity, features, infrastructure, and many other factors, the total cost of making it can range from less than $10,000 for simple iOS apps to six figures for more complex, full-featured software. Remember that this will depend on the size of the service, its experience, the time needed and availability, and other things.
The app also costs a lot because it has constant support. Constant tracking, analysis of crash data, optimization of the user interface based on comments, and maintenance with operating system upgrades will be needed.
If you know upfront what resources you’ll be working with, you can avoid problems and delays down the road.
Final Thought
In the end, you can write a privacy policy if your app collects private information from users. This policy should say what information is collected and how it will be used.
Start this process early to acquire legal guidance, establish app safety strategies, and implement them.
Security is one of the most essential parts of your app, and you need to ensure it’s built-in from the beginning. Your users’ information is the most valuable thing you have, so make sure you have systems in place to collect, handle, and store it and deal with any security threats.
Once you’ve finished these steps, you’ll be ready to build your app without any problems, and you’ll be able to see it through to a successful launch and delivery.
