At AppIt Ventures, we understand that mobile app development can be overwhelming, particularly without the right partner by your side. To simplify the journey, we’ve outlined the essential steps involved in developing and launching your app—from initial conception to a successful deployment. If you're unsure whether you’re ready to start building your app, we’ve got the resources to help you figure that out too!
1. How to Make an App: Starting the Process
Embarking on mobile app development begins with defining your brand and value proposition, establishing the requirements of your app, and creating a development plan. This will help to distinguish your app in a crowded market and will ensure the development process runs smoothly.
Decide on Brand and Value Proposition
Branding and a strong value proposition are often overlooked in mobile app development, yet they are key to making your app stand out in a competitive market.
Effective branding begins with choosing a memorable name that clearly reflects the app’s function. For instance, if you're developing an ambient noise app, a name that evokes peace, relaxation, or sleep can help potential users instantly connect with what your app offers.
Equally important is your app’s value proposition—the unique benefit or solution your app provides to users. A clear and compelling value proposition not only defines what makes your app different from others but also directly addresses the needs and desires of your target audience. When users can easily understand the value your app brings, they are more likely to engage and stay loyal.
Finally, a well-designed icon that encapsulates your app’s essence in a simple, unique shape will draw attention and reinforce both your brand and value proposition at first glance.
Together, these elements create a cohesive identity that resonates with users and sets your app apart from the competition.
Establish Requirements
After solidifying your concept and branding, the next crucial step is to gather the business and technical requirements for your mobile app. These details are compiled into what’s known as a mobile app requirements’ document—a foundational blueprint that outlines the business logic, lists the technical specifications, and serves as a guide for your team, from initial concept to the final product.
The mobile app requirements’ document is essential for project managers, designers, and developers to fully understand what’s needed to build your app.
To create a comprehensive document, you’ll need to conduct thorough research on your competitors, similar apps, potential users, necessary technologies, and the capabilities your design and development teams will require. Although there are various ways to structure this document, AppIt recommends including both business and technical requirements, along with other considerations that will help your engineering team bring your product to market efficiently and effectively.
Below are some key questions to address when preparing your mobile app requirements’ document.
Business Requirements
Business requirements define the criteria necessary to meet your organization’s objectives for the mobile app. They typically outline how the app will meet the needs of your company and its users.
- Why are you building this app, and what is its purpose?
- What business goals do you aim to achieve with this app?
- What problems will it solve for your customers or users?
- How will your app improve or streamline existing processes? Will it introduce new processes to enhance efficiency? If so, how?
- Will the app be developed from scratch, or can you leverage existing assets?
- What should the app do overall?
- What features will differentiate your app from the competition?
- What is your revenue model?
- Are there any branding guidelines or marketing constraints that need to be followed?
Technical Requirements
Technical requirements specify the systemic and technical needs for your app to achieve the desired features and functionality. Consider the following questions within your technical specifications:
- What mobile platforms will the app be developed for (Android, iOS, or both)?
- Do you have an existing database, server, and web services? If so, what technology is being used? Is there current API/web services documentation?
- What is your budget for ongoing maintenance?
- Do you have a plan and budget for continuous updates to keep the app fresh and relevant?
Once you've gathered your business and technical requirements, you're ready to start assembling your mobile app requirements document. This document will guide your team throughout the development process, ensuring a clear path from concept to completion.
Plan the Development Project
The next step in the process is to create a detailed plan for the development project. This plan serves as a roadmap, outlining the timeline, milestones, and key deliverables that will guide your team through the app development process. It should include a clear breakdown of tasks, roles, and responsibilities, ensuring that every aspect of the project is accounted for—from design and coding to testing and deployment.
By establishing a solid development plan, you can manage resources effectively, anticipate potential challenges, and keep the project on track to meet your goals and deadlines.
2. How to Build an App
Now that you have completed the preparation phase, it is time to move on to the technical aspects of building an app.
Create Wireframes
The next crucial step in the mobile app development process is creating wireframes. Wireframes are low-fidelity blueprints that provide a basic visual representation of your app’s layout, showing where each element will be positioned without delving into specific details like colors or shapes.
They include all the buttons, tabs, and placeholders, giving you a clear picture of the app’s overall structure and making it easier to envision the final product. These wireframes are then linked together to form a clickable prototype, allowing you to experience the flow of the app firsthand.
To develop wireframes, designers collaborate closely with architects and developers, mapping out user stories and assessing the app's functionality. This is where theory meets reality, and where form and function begin to converge. The resulting clickable prototype is a critical tool for you and your development team to evaluate what works well and what may need adjusting in your app.
While wireframes are a vital part of the development process; some clients are tempted to skip this step to cut costs. We strongly advise against this, as wireframing offers several key benefits. These benefits include the following.
- Visualizing app architecture: a clear picture of the app’s structure from the outset prevents costly revisions later.
- Prioritizing usability: wireframes allow you and your team to focus on functionality and structure without getting distracted by design details like colors and fonts.
- Ensuring mutual understanding: wireframes help align everyone’s vision of the app, reducing the risk of significant changes once development is underway.
- Managing the development process: with a fully discussed and agreed-upon wireframe, it’s easier to break the development process into manageable design sprints.
- Saving time and money: investing in thorough wireframing can save you substantial time and money by preventing avoidable mistakes and ensuring a shared vision between you and your development team.
Create User Stories
User stories describe what users can do within the app, written from the user’s perspective. They often include brief explanations of why a user would engage with a particular feature, especially if it’s not immediately obvious.
This is where your team’s creativity and expertise play a significant role. As your team breaks down high-level features (epics) into detailed user stories, it’s important to consider every possible scenario to avoid changes or additions later in development.
Spending time in these early stages to empathize with users, creatively brainstorm, and carefully document the process can lead to significant time and cost savings down the road. Empathy, creativity, and patience are crucial for a smooth, successful development process.
User stories have become one of the most popular and effective ways to detail requirements due to their simplicity and flexibility.
Full Mobile App Design
After investing significant effort into your app’s functional design, it's crucial to ensure that the aesthetics enhance its functionality. During the full mobile app design stage, your developers will integrate creative assets like logos, icons, colors, and fonts into the wireframes, transforming them into a more complete and visually appealing version of your app.
You can present your developers and designers with these elements or leave it to your chosen team to complete.
Integrating these components seamlessly into the wireframes can be challenging, and it’s essential that your team doesn’t rely on rough estimates for dimensions, color codes, or positioning. A skilled design team will use the right tools and applications to ensure that every detail is precise, resulting in a pixel-perfect prototype that aligns with your app’s functionality and brand identity.
Mobile App Development
When building a mobile app, there are many critical decisions to make regarding the approach, technology, and programming language. These choices can significantly impact both the cost and timeline of your project, each offering distinct advantages and challenges. It’s essential to base your decisions on a robust technology stack to avoid the risk of costly rebuilds in the future. Collaborating with a reliable development partner is crucial to navigating these choices effectively.
Front-End | What Users See
You have three primary approaches for front-end development: platform-specific native, cross-platform native, and hybrid. Here’s a brief overview of each.
- Platform-specific native code: this approach involves writing separate code for each mobile platform, such as Android and iOS. While it is the most time-consuming and expensive option, it also delivers the most optimized and effective apps for each platform.
- Cross-platform native: this method allows some or all the code to be shared across platforms while still running natively. Technologies like React Native, Xamarin, and Native Script enable this approach, offering a balance between cost-effectiveness and platform optimization.
- Hybrid: hybrid apps are built using web technologies like HTML or JavaScript and are wrapped in a native container. Technologies such as Cordova or Ionic are commonly used for this approach. Although it is the most cost-effective option, it can present performance and compatibility challenges.
Back-End | Web API and Server
The server you select will influence your app’s scalability, performance, and several other factors. Key decisions that need to be made before you start coding include the following.
- Language: when building your API, you have various programming languages to choose from, such as Java, Go, C#, and Python. Each language offers different frameworks, which will impact how you structure and develop your back end.
- Database: SQL and noSQL are the two main types of databases, with SQL being the more commonly preferred option. Examples of SQL databases include MSSQL, MySQL, and PostgreSQL. Selecting the right database schema is crucial for ensuring your data is well-organized and reliable.
- Infrastructure/hosting environment: deciding where and how to host your API and database is a critical step. Your choice will affect hosting costs, scalability, performance, and the overall reliability of your app. Popular hosting providers include Amazon AWS and Rackspace. A cloud-based solution is often recommended, as it allows you to scale resources as needed and ensures essential services like database backups, server uptime, and OS updates are managed efficiently.
Making informed choices at this stage is vital for the long-term success and sustainability of your app.
Quality Assurance and Testing
Most of the testing should be conducted by non-developers to better replicate the experience of an average user. Here are the various types of testing that need to be performed during each sprint to ensure the app's quality and functionality.
- Functional testing: verifies that each feature of the app works as specified in the requirements.
- Usability testing: assesses whether the app is user-friendly and intuitive. Ideally, this testing should be done by individuals using the app for the first time.
- Performance testing: evaluates the app’s responsiveness. If features take too long to load, the app risks losing users. Although performance testing should occur throughout development, it becomes especially critical in the later stages.
- Fit and finish testing: ensures that the app's design vision has been fully realized. Each feature should be reviewed by the designer(s) during each sprint, which is why it's beneficial to have the same agency handle both design and development.
- Regression testing: confirms that features tested in previous sprints continue to function correctly in subsequent sprints. The testing list should expand with each sprint to cover both newly implemented features and previously tested ones.
- Device-specific testing: verifies that the app functions correctly across various devices and operating systems. While tools like Google’s Firebase are useful, testing on a range of physical devices with different screen sizes and operating systems is also essential.
- User acceptance testing: the app owner or intended users conduct this final test. Regular feedback from the target users is vital for developing a successful app.
Any issues identified during testing must be resolved by the developers before the project can progress. Once this is done, the app can move on to the review phase.
Beta Testing
In addition to internal testing, conducting beta testing is a crucial step before your app’s full launch. Beta testing involves releasing your app to a select group of real-world users, allowing them to interact with it as though it were live, but on a smaller, contained scale. This group often includes power users, early adopters, and some of your most loyal customers.
Ensure these beta testers have ample opportunities to provide feedback and keep them informed about any changes you make to the app based on their input. Beta testing is an excellent opportunity to observe how your app performs across various devices, locations, operating systems, and network conditions.
Having robust crash reporting in place is essential during this phase. If issues arise, it is vital to identify and address them promptly to ensure a smooth launch.
App Deployment
With your app now designed and developed, it's time to deploy your web server into a production environment, setting the stage for launch. The web server acts as a two-way conduit, transferring data between your app and its users. Think of it as a highway that needs to handle traffic smoothly, even during peak times.
If your server isn’t built with scalability in mind (like having more lanes for rush hour), there’s a risk of overloading, which could lead to crashes just as your app starts gaining traction. To avoid this, ensure that your server setup is both scalable and cost-effective. Cloud-based environments like Amazon Web Services and Rackspace offer the flexibility to handle traffic spikes efficiently.
While scaling a mobile app is generally straightforward, it’s crucial that your development team is clear on your scalability needs and goals to prevent issues as your app grows.
Submitting to the App Stores
Submitting your app to the iOS and Google Play stores involves a series of steps. First, you need to ensure that your app is properly configured for release. This includes filling out various forms for each store, providing screenshots and marketing materials, and writing a compelling description. Both Apple and Google Play require registration fees: Apple charges an annual fee of $100, while Google charges a one-time fee of $25.
- Submitting an iPhone app: Apple's approval process is more stringent compared to Android. Your app will undergo a detailed review by a team of developers who will inspect every aspect for errors. Any issues found will be communicated back to you, which can extend the approval timeline. Although the process used to take over two weeks, Apple’s current average approval time has shrunk to about two days.
- Submitting an Android app: in contrast, the Android approval process is more lenient and faster, typically taking just a few hours. Apps are first reviewed by automated tools for violations such as malware, copyright infringement, or inappropriate content. After this initial review, a secondary team performs a manual review. Google’s less restrictive guidelines generally offer developers greater freedom in their app content. Once your app is approved and the necessary fees are paid, it will be available on the market.
3. How to Create an App and Make Money
To ensure you successfully monetize your app, it is crucial to invest in marketing and choose the correct revenue model.
Marketing the App
Once your app is live in the stores, effective marketing is crucial to ensure its success. Even if you’ve created a top-notch app that addresses a specific need, it’s essential to drive user engagement to make it valuable. To boost your app’s visibility and improve its rankings, focus on the following key strategies:
- Create a website: if you don’t already have one, consider setting up a website. It doesn’t need to be complex—just a few essential pages such as the homepage, About Us, Contact, and an Apps page. A website not only enhances your brand’s credibility but also improves your visibility through Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
- App store optimization (ASO): optimizing your app’s listing on app stores is crucial for improving visibility and downloads. Start with a compelling app name and subtitle that include relevant keywords. Use high-quality screenshots and an engaging app icon to attract users. Write a clear and concise app description with a strong call-to-action, and regularly update it to reflect new features or improvements. Additionally, monitor your app’s performance metrics to make data-driven adjustments to your ASO strategy. Engaging in ASO can significantly enhance your app’s chances of ranking higher in search results, leading to increased downloads and user engagement
- Encourage reviews and feedback: positive reviews play a significant role in user acquisition and app credibility. Encourage satisfied users to leave glowing reviews while directing less favorable feedback to your support team. Implement in-app notifications to gather feedback after users have engaged with your app. For example, ask a simple question like, “Do you love our app?” with options like “Love it” or “Needs improvement”. Direct users who select “Love it” to the app store to leave a review, while those who choose “Needs improvement” can provide feedback through a support form.
Revenue Model
Choosing the right revenue model for your app can be a daunting task for many developers. There are several basic revenue models and various combinations of them to consider. It’s important to weigh the benefits of one-time fees versus ongoing revenue and conduct market research to see what works best in your app category and industry.
- One-time up-front fee: the simplest model, where users pay once to access the app. However, it can be less desirable as it requires attracting a large number of users to sustain future development costs.
- Up-front fee + in-app purchases: involves charging users an initial fee and then offering additional features or content through in-app purchases. It can be challenging because it requires users to pay twice, which may only work well in specific niches. This model is widely used by highly profitable games and is worth considering if you’re aiming for high user engagement.
- Free (‘lite version’) + paid version: allows users to try a limited version of your app for free, with the option to upgrade to a full version. It’s effective if you have a compelling value proposition that can be demonstrated in the free version.
- Free + advertising: while often viewed unfavorably, advertising can be a viable revenue model if other options are limited. Consider offering an in-app purchase to remove ads for users who prefer an ad-free experience.
- Subscription: gaining popularity for its ability to provide a steady stream of recurring revenue. Subscriptions help cover ongoing development costs and offer continuous updates and support to users.
- Cross promotion: by creating a free app to attract users, you can promote your paid app within it. This strategy leverages a large user base to drive downloads and generate revenue for your paid app.
Evaluate these options based on your app’s value proposition, target audience, and market trends to choose the most effective revenue model for your app’s success.
Final Thoughts on How to Make an App for Your Business
The mobile app development process can feel overwhelming with its numerous steps and complex decisions. At AppIt, we believe that with the right guidance, what seems like a daunting task can become a rewarding and profitable journey. Our mobile app development guide reflects the extensive experience and hard-earned knowledge of our team, helping you avoid costly mistakes and navigate the process smoothly.
Not sure whether or not you're ready to build an app? Take our short quiz and find out today. Would you rather talk to someone? Book a complimentary project call with one of our experts today and get a quote.
