Roadmap to Build Successful Mobile Apps for Startups
February 9, 2022
Whether you are an owner of a startup or an established firm, the success of your business is what you are looking for. However, there are many differences between startups and esteemed brands. Not just work and culture-wise, the differences are also there in terms of business model & expectations for deliveries.
It is comparatively easier for established firms to focus their time on improving the app quality without worrying about the fund’s shortage & lower go-to-market time. On the other hand, startups always look for options that offer faster time to market and quality apps at a low development cost.
Talking about the app development process, it is important to build an app that acts as an extension of your brand and helps you yield positive outcomes. In this blog, we will find out some of the different challenges that startup app development poses and how you can overcome them to make it a success.
Top Startup’s Mobile App Development Challenges
Before we go through the steps associated with the in-depth process of mobile app development for your startup, let’s check some of the main challenges that most startup business owners’ faces-
1. Lower Budget
Limited budget is one challenge that startup owners faces and with a lower budget in hand, they have to divide the funds between research, development, app launch on the stores as well as app promotion after making it live. The lack of budget is one of the top reasons that startups don’t invest in Mobile App Development Company.
2. Faster Time to Market
With a poor budget, most of the startups are usually not in competition to beat the market. This means they end up using white-label solutions which hold back from developing a dedicated and high-quality app.
3. Lack of Proper Research
Startups usually have very less resources or just a team of 2 to 6 people, which is why they have very few team members that can focus on market research. The absence of research, a very important phase in development can lead to app failure as they won’t be able to figure out customers’ needs properly.
4. Improper App Promotion
App development not just ends after making it live. Another problem that startups face is a limitation in-app marketing or promotion after the apps are live in stores. Make use of effective app marketing strategies to make it a success.
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10 Steps Startups Guide for Effective Mobile App Development
As we are aware that budget is the main issue for startups, investing in app development can be a tough choice and may lead to app failure if not done properly. To help you in this, we have shortlisted the best steps that one must follow to develop a successful app for startup. They are as follows-
1. Identify Customers’ Pain Point
The first thing that must be kept in mind for successful app development is to understand the underlying problem and the customers’ pain points. Your app should offer an appropriate solution to the customers and this is possible only when you discover what your audience is struggling with. This step is very essential as it helps in deciding the survival ability of the app you are building.
2. Analyze the Market
The next step is to validate your idea ensuring that it is worth the time and investment. If you don’t plan to hire a company at this step, you must do preliminary research from your end. This helps in analyzing the competition to find out if the app will be profitable or not. This can be done through Google Trends for search volumes, surveys with questionnaires, market analysis, competitors’ research, etc. helping you assess your weakness and strengths.
3. Build MVP to Validate
One secret behind the success of several apps that are available in the market is that they have gone through several improvisations and have evolved with time through continuous customer feedback. Building a minimum viable product (MVP) helps in focusing on the core features that can solve the main problems. MVP acts as a rough prototype with must-have features only, which is only built to get honest feedback so that any updates can be implemented on time before the final product development.
4. Finalize the App Idea
This step marks the app idea finalization after the thorough market research and insights associated with audience needs. The team of developers, designers, business analysts, and QA can finally work on the elements of the mobile app. To help in validating the app idea better, you can ask yourselves some questions- why will people use your app, do they need it, how frequently your app will be used, what are the key features that make your app different.
5. Wireframe Your App
The next advice after the app is well-accepted by customers is to wireframe the app, which is a structural blueprint that shows the objects on screen through diagrams and their possible functions. Some of the main advantages of wireframing your mobile app are- getting a clear idea of how the app will look like & work, giving a visual illustration of how different elements will look like on each screen, figuring out any bugs that may cause a major problem in a later phase.
6. Wireframe Testing
Just like testing for a final product, testing your wireframe is equally important as it can save you from any troubles that may come up in the long run. Some benefits associated with wireframe testing are that it helps in determining the app usability in the pre-development phase, identifying any extra requirements that are lacking, detecting any functionality loopholes, etc.
7. Design Your App
A successful mobile app depends on great design, which is why one must ensure that all the tested wireframes are translated into appealing designs keeping in mind all the users’ feedback. One example of a successful brand that relies on design excellence is Apple. The first thing that grabs the attention of the users towards your mobile app is a great design that keeps focusing on user experience as well.
8. App Monetization
Having a proper monetization strategy is important to help you earn great profit from your mobile app. Choose the strategy that is best suited for your app among the options available in the market i.e. in-app advertisement, premium services, freemium app model, etc. Established brands can earn by providing user engagement but startups don’t have that benefit, which is why making the best target to make money off of your mobile app is important.
9. Deploy App
Your app is almost live and this is when you must focus on a perfect marketing strategy that is realistic and specific to your target audience. Ensure that you make use of an effective promotion medium to promote your app effectively. Some ways are social media marketing, PR, email/SMS campaigns, app store optimization & more.
10. Maintenance
The final step is to update your mobile app from time to time according to the evolving trends and customers’ needs. Keeping a close focus on customer acquisition, engagement, app performance, and customers satisfaction is essential to help you figure out the roadblocks to growth at a regular interval. Such continuous improvements help in improving the overall app performance by solving any challenges on time.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, you must have got some valuable tips that can transform your mere mobile app idea into a revenue-generating machine! All thanks to the planned strategies and development steps that help in not just app development but also in improving the app performance in long run. For any queries, get in touch with our team of app designers & developers for startups to build the app custom-made to your business specifications & achieve goals faster.