Mobile applications are one of the fastest-growing industries in the world today – projected to be worth more than five billion dollars by 2022!
This is an excellent time to take advantage of this trend and get started developing that great app idea you’ve been thinking about. But where do you start?
The Three Questions
Before you do anything else, you need to answer these three questions:
What problem is your app going to solve?
To achieve long-term success with your app, it must solve a problem shared by many people. Write or type an overview of your app and what service it provides to users. Be specific!
Who is your target audience?
Who is going to use your app? Is there a specific age range or type of user that this app will be tailored to? This a very important step and one you should consider carefully.
What is your budget?
It is important that you identify what your budget is for mobile application development and think about any resources at your disposal.
While the cost of having a mobile app developed will vary depending on the app itself, it can cost $100,000 to $200,000 to fully develop, release, and promote a functioning mobile app.
The last thing you want to do is get halfway into the project and realize you can’t afford to finish. Think about any potential resources you might be able to tap into if costs are higher than planned.
It is strongly recommended that you write or type the answers to these questions, as it will help solidify the details and help you identify any potential holes.
Once you have completed this, the next step is to do your research.
Research, Research, Research
The research phase is one of the most crucial – this is where you are going to study similar apps that are already in the marketplace.
Try them out, read customer reviews, find out what is working and what isn’t – and especially, look for any areas of opportunity that the other apps have missed.
Look into trends in the App marketplace, and check out relevant Google Trends. This is going to help you define the features of your app by showing you what your target audience is looking for.
While doing your research, be sure to study the designs and layouts of successful apps and start to think about how yours will look.
Done! Now, What’s Next?
Now that you have clearly defined what your app will do, who will use it, and how it will look, you are ready to start building the app. Unless you are an experienced developer, you are probably going to need some help.
There are a ton of options out there for mobile applications development; make sure you take the time to select the right option for you.
For the first-time app creator, you will most likely want to start with a mobile app development firm that will assign a team to your app development.
This means they will not only provide experts to actually build your app, but the team will also be able to provide you with creative input and feedback along the way, and they will stay with you through the full lifecycle of your app including testing, launch, updating, and more.
This will hopefully be a long-term relationship, so be sure to choose someone you can work with!
Start Down the Path
Now you know the basic steps to start down the path toward developing your mobile app idea. Identify your app’s function, audience, and layout, and set a budget. Do your research.
Then you are ready to decide on your development team who will help you build and launch your app.
So what are you waiting for?
Promoted
