To create a mobile app that gets the results you are looking for and stands out from the crowd, it will need to be unique, engaging and what your target market is looking for. But coming up with that unique idea may not be the only thing that makes your mobile app successful. Developing a mobile app can be a costly exercise and requires some intense pre-creation consideration. Will your mobile app bring in revenue for you? Let’s get started on looking at various things to consider before developing a mobile app to ensure that your app delivers the right results.
1. Target
People need to be able to find your app, right? The best way to start off is by including a location keyword in the content with the launch of the mobile app, helping you to target locally initially. For example, “Adelaide Garden App” would give you a great start in your local area.
Do you know who your target market is and why they would want to use your mobile app? A strong focus and clarity on the app’s functionality is what you need early in the process of development in order not to waste time and money. Understand what your target audience’s pain points are and answering questions like who is going to use the app and what difference will it make to their lives, will help to determine your target audience.
2. Research
This can’t be stressed enough. There is one very important thing to consider before developing a mobile app and that is to do loads of research. Finding out what your competition is offering and finding a gap to fill with a new, fresh mobile app is essential.
Do you know who your competitors are and what their unique selling points of their apps are? Have you checked on your competitors’ customer reviews and comments regarding their apps? Answers to these questions are an essential part of research prior to developing your mobile app.
By checking on what your competitors have already created will help to prevent you from duplicating an app. Have a clear purpose, direction and goal in mind when starting out.
3. App type
An important consideration is within which mobile app type to develop, whether to use Native, Hybrid or web based technology like HTML. One of the deciding factors for this consideration will be the financial budget that you are able to work within. You will also need to consider what you are trying to accomplish with the mobile app and which features will be necessary to achieve the required outcome. If your app frequently needs to be updated and your audience counts on it, hybrid and web apps will be the better choice over native apps.
But on the other hand, if you know your audience will need the practicality of downloading an app and accessing it offline, native or hybrid is the way to go.
Native apps – distributed through app stores and are limited to the platform they are created for. Have the capability to make full use of the device’s features including the camera, contact list and GPS. Fast, responsive, reliable and can work without an internet connection. Can only be designed for one platform and is very costly and time consuming to change to another platform.
Web based apps – these are websites that look and feel like a mobile app but can’t be downloaded onto a mobile device, instead they run through a browser. Easier and quicker to develop than Native apps and hence are less expensive. Distribution is through the web and can’t make use of the devices features. Need an internet connection to work. They have multi platform compatibility.
Hybrid apps – downloadable from an app store, but rely on a browser that is embedded in the app store. Distributed through app stores and are multi-platform compatible. The same app can be available through Apple or Google play stores. Have the capability to make full use of the device’s features including the camera, contact list and GPS. Quick to develop and can work without an internet connection.
4. Apple or Android
By understanding who your target market is will help you decide whether the app is designed for Android or Apple mobiles. The mass markets of the world operate on Android mobiles and are ideal for apps that are to be used (eg. maps or messaging) but not for apps that are designed for making sales. Therefore, apps created for sales are often developed firstly on Apple and then on Android.
5. Timing
Deciding on when to launch your new mobile app can also have an affect on the success. For instance, if launching a game for children it would probably take off better if launched at the beginning of school holidays. Once again it comes down to understanding the audience’s needs and buying habits.
6. Design
When developing a mobile app, consider building a mobile-first design. The reasoning behind this choice is that certain devices, for example tablets, have larger screens and therefore the design of the app needs to be adaptable for different size screens. This is a great segway helping to smooth out responsiveness issues across a spectrum of device screen sizes. Think about it, the more people that can access the app, the higher the chance will be that the app is used and hopefully more income is derived from the mobile app.
7. Colour
Colours have a psychological effect on people, evoking various emotions with the use of various colours. Remember that first impressions are everything and the mobile app you create should make a huge impression up front. Research into which colours should be used to evoke the right effect for your app is important to its success. Keeping your colour scheme in line with your brand will help to strengthen brand recognition, if that is what you are looking for.
8. Dollars
With mobile apps generating billions of dollars in revenue, planning how you are going to make money and increase revenue from your mobile app is an important part in the development. A couple of considerations would be :
- Free or paid for app?
- Should we offer in-app purchases?
- Charge a fee to download the app or a monthly subscription?
- What price would be suitable for your market?
- If Apple takes part of your sales revenue, can you afford it?
- The flip side of the coin is knowing how much you are willing to invest in developing the mobile app. Allow for budgeting on maintenance, updates and marketing, these are all important aspects to keeping the app going once it is developed and in use.
Conclusion
Engagement focus versus increasing app monetization is the main trend of mobile apps. If you are sure that your business can use a mobile app to increase revenue, the process should not be rushed. Allow extra time for debugging and testing before launching and remember the correct design and flow may take longer than anticipated to be created. Efficiency and excellent user experience is crucial to the success of the mobile app.
Working with the right developers who ‘get you’ and can interpret and visualise your ideas will guarantee the best return on your investment. Digital Noir will listen properly to what you want, we care. Our innovative team has the know-how to make your mobile app stand out from the crowd.