You have what you believe to be a unique idea for app development. Or you are an e-commerce company that understands the need to develop an app to be competitive in your market. Chances are you are not a techie ready to do this yourself. You will be employing the services of an app developer. Luckily, there are plenty of mobile app development agencies in Chicago that are both professional but also affordable
You may think that you can just turn everything over to that developer, but think again. You have to stay on top of the development process and final product because there are some challenges ahead.
1. Before You Contact a Developer, You Have Decisions to Make
You have to identify and put into writing several things:
- Who is your target audience for this app? You must analyze your target, as it will determine the language, style, visuals, media, etc. that you will want to use.
- What is the purpose of your app, and how will it solve a problem or make life easier or simpler for your audience?
- Who is your competition, and how do you offer something better or unique?
- How will you make money from this app? If you have an e-commerce site, it will be via increased sales. If you have a standalone app, will there be a price for a premium version? Will you include paid advertising?
- Where will your app be published? If it is only a website app, no problem. But independent standalone apps will most likely go into the Google Play and the Apple stores, one or both.
- Is there a market for your standalone app? You will need to do some market analysis to ensure your app will be marketable.
All of this information will need to be provided to your developer, and they are part of the commonly accepted 6 steps to developing a successful app.
2. Understanding the Need for Screens
Mobile devices surpassed the use of PCs several years ago. And that includes the use of apps. Mobile devices have different size screens but also unique operating systems requirements, pixel intensities, etc.
If you only develop for the very latest platform, your app will not work well for lots of users. The answer is a responsive design that has liquidity of presentation on all devices, but this will be a complex process for whatever developer you choose.
3. Decide on the Types of Interactions You Want
Apps must be interactive to give users the best experiences and allow them to share, give feedback, and more. Determine the types of interactive features you want and make certain that any developer you choose can get these right.
And remember that interactions include such things as swipes, taps, buttons, and other options for “clicking,” as well as flipping for positions, etc.
4. Localization Decisions
You need to be certain that your developer applies localization to his coding so that you can install other language bases, even if you don’t do it right now. You will need text and other features translated. View the best translation site options and choose one with experience translating apps.
5. Choosing the Right Developer
This may be perhaps the biggest challenge of all. You know what you want your app to do; you have identified your audience and the value you can provide. If you want to increase your reach and offer your app to global users, consider translation service companies to localize it.
Then, it is crucial to get a developer who can bring it all to the table. There are lots of app developers out there, and you will have to spend some time researching your options. You will need to see their portfolios; you will need to check references.
What you are looking for are developers who have been successful at least in niches related to your app purpose, audience, and content. Develop a checklist of all that you need from a developer and address each one of those items.
Not the Only Challenges For App Development
These five challenges should be paramount in your mind right now, but there are plenty more to come – updates, marketing, future expansion into global markets – to name just a few. If you provide for these five things well in the beginning, though, you will be well on your way.
