Many times when starting a project it seems very complicated to fit all the pieces of the puzzle together so that the structure and organisation make sense. However, it is important that when starting an app project you take into account each of the questions that will arise throughout the process.
If you are still not sure where to start, here are some tips that will help you to have a clearer idea of what you should do, and thus achieve an optimal and quality app.
why develop an app for your business?
This answer is very simple, and the fact is that, in this day and age, technology is already a key point in the development of our daily lives. We surf the internet daily and we look for easy and simple solutions to solve our problems online.
More and more users are downloading different apps on their mobile devices to have direct access to everything they like, and apps can offer a myriad of unique features, many of them incredibly useful for most users.
Some of the benefits of creating an app to improve the performance of your business are:
- Increases the visibility of your brand.
- Constant contact with users.
- A promotional channel.
- Achieve greater loyalty.
- It offers novelties and new functionalities to the user.
- An app is the channel of the future.
As you can see, there are many benefits that you can enjoy when deciding to develop an app to grow your business. Bear in mind that app development is probably at its peak and all forecasts indicate that after the pandemic, the app market will become the driving force and lifeline of many businesses and entrepreneurs.
That is why we encourage you to create a mobile application plan for your company and start benefiting from the new digital era. But before you start, we give you some tips that will be of great help, especially to know where to start and what steps you should follow to have a good app development.
Tips for developing an app for your business
- Do a market analysis
This is undoubtedly the most important step before you start developing your new business. You will need to identify your competitors, how they offer their services and what gaps they have so that you can offer a more complete and to some extent unique service.
By analysing the market you will also be able to detect new opportunities, know what your audience is like and what their needs are .
You should also have a good stakeholder map. It is just as vital for your business to acquire customers as it is to acquire people or companies that interact with your company. Defining a stakeholder map can help you to contact suppliers, investors and other actors that help to promote your business.
- Know your target audience
To continue, you need to be clear about your target audience, not only for your business, but also for the app, as not all users of your business may be users of your app, unless your business is based solely on your app.
By knowing the apps that exist on the market you can offer something new and different to users. To do this you must perfectly define the type of user, their preferences and their needs. By discovering and defining this user profile in detail you can focus on the functionality and usefulness they expect from your app.
- Learn how you can monetise your app
There are many ways to monetise your app: subscriptions, in-app purchases or pay-per-download, among many others. Choose the model that best suits the preferences of your users so that it does not become an obstacle to the growth of your app.
Sometimes it may seem that developing an app is a complicated and expensive project. There are different options and types of apps: hybrid, native, web apps. Each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages, but what they do share is that everything you invest in your app will have a return on investment, either financially or in the form of loyalty.
- Don't forget your app marketing plan
There is no point in launching the best app in the world if there is no marketing and visibility plan to make it known. Your business model based on an app will be sustained by the downloads and purchases made by users.
Thousands of apps are released every day, and with the advent of the coronavirus this trend has increased, so you need to differentiate yourself and get a good positioning from the start. Knowing your target audience and their needs can help you do this.
If you are clear about what your buyer persona's needs are and how your app can meet them, you will be halfway there. From here, you just need to find the best marketing actions to make them aware of you.
From a good PR strategy to email marketing, the options are endless to convince consumers to download and use your app.
- Find an app development company
Having a professional team specialised in app development can be a great advantage for your business. During the app development process, situations arise where you will need expert hands to advise you on the best decision to make.
One of the great advantages is the possibility of having several people in charge of the project. A company specialised in app development will not have a single programmer, but a team that will take care of your needs. In addition, you can count on several experts in different technologies.
Another important point is that expert app development companies can help you with consultancy work that will help you create the most suitable app for your goals and needs.
what can Occam do for your technology company? Tell us about your project and we will help you develop your mobile app from scratch .
- Think about technological trends
If you are going to develop an app you must take into account that you have to differentiate yourself from the rest of the apps on the market. Knowing your competitors you will know how to do it, but it is also interesting to innovate in technologies taking into account current trends.
Users are looking for personalisation and unique treatment. Your users want you to meet their needs and do it in a simple and fast way. That is why artificial intelligence and machine learning can be very useful. Implementing this technology during the development of your app will help it to analyse the behaviour of the consumers who use it to offer the most accurate results.
In addition, it can also automate complex tasks for businesses and increase your productivity, a very appropriate option now that you are adding a new channel for selling, attracting and communicating with your business.
The process of developing an app does not end with the launch of the application. You must be aware of improvements, possible bugs, unforeseen events that always occur and implement a testing system, also known as QA (Quality Assurance), to check that the development will work properly and that the criteria that were defined from the beginning are met.
Build your app and put it on the market to validate it. Based on this process you will be able to refine and improve the app so that you can reach a larger market.
If you don't start, you won't know if it is useful and well received. For this reason, we encourage you to start as soon as possible once you have defined the main necessary points that we have discussed in this article.
