Mobile apps are extremely popular at the moment, and they’re paving the way for all kinds of new and exciting business ideas. The problem, especially for many of the smaller-sized bussiness, an individual or the freelancers is to figure out the right approach.
1. Building for Multiple Platforms at Once
Let’s face it, with over one million apps on both the Google Play and Apple App Store, you are playing in a very competitive space.
Avoid doubling your engineering costs and focus on building on one platform first. This also helps get your minimum viable product (MVP) out in the app store as soon as possible.
In addition, if you do launch on both platforms at once and need to make any changes to design and/or functionality, then you will need to do it on both places which adds more development time and cost.
It’s better to finalize an app on iOS and have a couple of iterations before porting it to Android (or vice versa).
Remember that Instagram had 30 million users already on iOS before they even launched their Android version.
2. Having Bloated Features
Now that you have picked your app store of choice for the initial launch, it’s important to have a core set of features as your MVP. With your first version, you want to prove the core hypothesis of your app to see if the market is willing to adopt it.
Good user experience is about doing more with less.
If you have an existing web service, don’t try to condense the online experience into the mobile screen. It’s important to rethink your entire user flow and interactions on mobile and not replicate the online experience.
In addition, while it’s important to launch with just a core set of features, remember not to rush development and release a buggy app. Mobile users are unforgiving and will leave 1-star reviews if your app is buggy. This rocky start is very difficult to recover from.
3. Skimming on User Experience
Apple has set the bar with its elegant product design and user experience. You can hand over your iPhone or iPad to a toddler and they will immediately know how to use it.
The mobile user has different expectations than the one on the web. The mobile experience needs to be self-describing and intuitive. While the online user may put up with poor user experience and design, a mobile user will quickly give up on your app if it’s too difficult to use.
In fact, 26% of the apps are only opened once and never use it again, and another 48% are opened 10 times or less. Therefore, you need to have an immediate “wow” factor upon the user launching the app.
4. Trying to be the beta tester for your own app.
“Why have someone else beta test your app when you can do it yourself?”
If you’ve ever asked this question while developing an app, you’ve probably been burned by the outcome. There’s a reason why beta testers are important: They offer valuable outside perspective that will help to catch issues with your app.
It’s not just the bugs that matter, either -- some of these ideas can be crucial for making your app user-friendly. For instance, maybe your in-app purchases aren’t communicated clearly enough, or maybe your use of advertisements is making the entire experience feel a bit jarring. Because you built the app this way, it’s harder for you to be able to pinpoint these high-level flaws.
Use app-analytics tools to see how your testers are using the app. The more people you can have beta test your app outside your own office, the more prepared you’ll be to send your app out into the real world.
5. Marketing After Submitting App
It’s important to start marketing your app as early as possible. Don’t wait until submitting the app to the App Store to start your press outreach. According to the Experts of this domain, You should contact the media around 2-4 weeks before you plan to launch.
Before sending emails, research your favorite technology blogs and look for journalists who have written about a similar app. When sending your emails, make sure to keep them short, personal, and include a few details about what makes your app different.
Include a link to a screenshot or video so the blogger can quickly get a sense of what your app does. At the end of the email ask if they’d like to know more or perhaps try out the app before it goes live.
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