Apps are everywhere. And they are made to do nearly everything. You can use an app to turn your AC on at home while you are at work. You can use an app to have your groceries delivered, for your food orders, or even booking a home massage. Some apps track your bodily functions, your moods, your circadian rhythm. It’s a world full of apps designed to make our lives easier.
It’s no surprise that businesses that want to expand or see growth are looking into creating their apps. After all, with the billions of mobile users worldwide, companies will barely have a shortage of willing and interested customers. With the value of mobile apps projected to be over $400 billion by 2026, businesses are jumping into the fray even more.
The Statistics
- There will be about 3 million apps for Android users on the Google Play Store in 2021. 2.09 million is the number for the Apple App store, on the other hand.
- There are over 5 million apps available in app stores like Google Play, Apple, Windows, and Amazon.
- This increasing demand for apps in the past years has led to a 31% year-on-year rise in revenue in 2021 globally
- The First-quarter of 2021 reports shows that the App Store and Google Play have made $31.8 billion and $36.7 billion, respectively.
- In terms of user behaviour, 2020 statistics show that the average consumer spends 3 hours and 45 minutes on their mobile device every day, spending over 2 minutes more on smartphones than a laptop or desktop when browsing. The average user checks their mobile device over 60 times a day.
- Of the time spent by consumers on their mobile devices, 89% is spent on apps. On average, consumers use over 35 apps monthly.
To be successful in app development, it takes more than just learning the basics of coding. However, that is a good place to start. It takes careful planning, extensive research, and dedication to break into the app market today.
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Tips on how to successfully create an app
Have a solid concept
When you look at the more successful apps today, like the various social media apps and gaming apps, you will find that though these apps are vying for space in their respective areas, they adhere to their unique concepts.
Take, for example, messaging apps. You can find dozens of them, but the ones at the top of the heap offer something different from the rest while maintaining their usefulness and ease of use.
So take heed of their example and develop a solid concept that is unique and useful to your target audience or customers. This means that, as you are creating your idea, you also need to develop a deeper understanding of your target demographic.
What appeals to them? What repels them? What will keep their attention in the long run? How do you gain their brand loyalty? Once you have that understanding of your customer, you need to build that into your concept.
Find the balance between third-party ads and chasing high revenue
Your app needs to make money. That is one of the purposes of building an app in the first place for revenue. Revenue can come from different avenues:
- You can have your app set as pay-to-download. This means that for the user to download the app and use it, they will need to buy it first.
- Or you can have in-app purchases. Gaming apps are big on in-app purchases and upgrades. Gamers are willing to pay to make their gameplay even more rewarding.
- Or you can have third-party ads.
The tricky part is finding that balance between earning from ads and ensuring that your customers won’t delete your app from their devices because you’ve put too many ads in your app. Far too many “free” games in the various app platforms are riddled with ads that take away the enjoyment of the game play. These are the apps that usually have low ratings.
Well-designed user interface
The user interface is an integral part of the success of your app. This is the part with which the customers interact.
You will need an interface whose colour scheme won’t put users off. It should be easy on the eyes. The buttons should be spaced out in a way that allows for organic movement and ease of navigation. Design an interface that you, as a user, would like to see and use. Too much data on one screen could be off-putting. Your user interface should not be cluttered.
Implementing strenuous test standards
No sane app development team would push an app to production without going through a testing environment first. Everything is built in the testing environment before everything gets made to show.
While the app is still in the testing environment, test everything. Have a group of users try your app and analyze how they interact with it, their feedback, lags and what causes them. Have them push every button and give feedback on the interface and what they think the app could improve. Fix anything broken while in the testing phase so that when the app goes live, it will be as seamless as possible.
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Continuous improvement
Your app can’t be stagnant. Nearly all active apps will have upgrades to fix bugs or provide better functionality. These upgrades are integral to the continued success of your app. Operating systems of devices get regular promotions, and your app needs to be compatible with them for maximum customer satisfaction. Apps that are not compatible with newer or upgraded operating systems will be buggy and will lag often.
Takeaway
By now, it is no secret that mobile apps are a key to the success of businesses today. While the competition has become exponentially tight over the last few years, it is not too late to dabble on app development and create your mobile app. Just make sure that you consider the current patterns trends in consumer behaviour to create something that would deliver more value.
App development could be a daunting task, especially if you’ve not had too much experience with it, but it is feasible. Here, it is better to follow the step-by-step guide to hiring mobile app developers who carries deep understanding of your customer base to create a right application. Don’t saturate your app with ads. Make sure that you test everything, that your user interface is optimally designed, and keep improving.
