Transforming your Mobile App Idea into Reality

Every Successful Application was once an Idea!

There are so many ideas that are ready to change the world!

People forget that ideas are not enough to grow into a monetary business. Of course, not by themselves. They need to be executed.

If you have no idea from where to begin & You don’t know about Programming then you are at the right page!

Rather than directly searching for “How to Turn your Idea into a Mobile Application” go through this blog, I am very sure that you will get enough knowledge and flow of How to start!

Here we are presenting the action plan that will set the wheels of your thoughts in motion!

I Have an App Idea! What should I do now?

Cheers! You have an amazing idea for the upcoming best App, What now?

The first and foremost thing you need to contemplate before investing time, money & energy is what “it takes” to create and launch an App!

You should be aware of the risk involved in Mobile App Development! This is not just about trying your creative side but more of a step towards your business, that has two possibilities. Risks & Rewards that can change your life!

Let us begin!

We’ve put together our best tips for those looking to create an app from scratch with no previous programming experience.

To Transform your App into Reality you have two options!

•  Hire a mobile App developer – Outsource it! (Do not underestimate your caliber)
• Learn & Do it yourself! Google has all the stuff! (Try & Try until you win)

Let us take the challenge of trying until we succeed!  Let us keep the other option in the backend.

Good advice from my side - ‘know what you are doing.’!!

However, knowing would not be enough. As Albert Einstein said, “Any fool can know. The point is to understand.”

Start with the following points, I am sure you will be gaining a lot of knowledge at the end of this blog!

Research

First question that should strike your head – “Is there any similar App already in the Market?”

Before you move forward, check the market for existing development by mobile app development agencies.

Do not get down if somebody has already done something similar like you! There are many apps, doing the same type of things. As long as your App is unique & has great qualities, your users will definitely love it!

Research is not for finding uniqueness in your idea, but to get a lesson on what works best & what does not work!

If apps are similar & successful, ask yourself the following questions: -

1.      How can you do better with your app?

2.      Where do your competitors lack?

3.      What can you provide to the market?

The second question is “Who is your target audience?”

There are different methods to identify your target audience. The four most popular methods are:

• Audience group
• Surveys
• Focus groups
• Market research data

Audience groups are simply building different profiles of the variety of people who might be interested in your app:

• Are they male or female?
• What are their interests?
• Are they working professionals?
• What is their age?

Make your own groups of audience so you can be clear with the target audience from the first day itself, which further can help you in marketing & promotions!

What Is Your Budget

Your budget depends on the following points: -

• Which mobile platform are you going to use (Native or Hybrid (Don’t know what Hybrid Mobile Development is? It’s a cross platform mobile development.

• Self-Development or hiring Mobile app development company
• Functionality stages (levels) in the App
• Marketing/promotion strategy

Considering each of the above points will be beneficial before deciding the budget.

Read More: How to Reduce Mobile App Development Cost

Compatible Mobile App Platform

Which type of App will you build?  iOS app or Android app ?

What will your App be? Hybrid App Development or Native App Development? Once you answer these questions, you will be ready a base!

Deciding the platform of App in the initial stage is very important, as it decides the budget, time to make the app & the type of functionalities your app will consist.

Commonly for creating Apps, Android & iOS are preferred over windows by application companies, as they cover the highest market of mobile apps. Point to keep in mind is no overlapping is possible between mobile App Platforms!

Every Operating System or platform works on a different group of languages compatible with a specific device & platform.

If you are targeting the iPhone users, know the languages which are used to develop an application for that crowd.

There are so many technologies for mobile App development, presenting some very latest words for each platform.

Most popular Android App Development Programming Languages & Platforms:--

• C/C++ -supported with Android Studio along with Java NDK.
• Java -Java is the official language for Android development.
• Kotlin- Kotlin designed to run on JVM & easy way to create cross-platform software.
• PhoneGap -used for building a native mobile app and is just as creating a website.

Latest iPhone App Development Programming Languages

• Swift- Swift is the primary programming language of the iOS operating system.
• Objective C – It is a superset of the C programming language and supports with object-oriented capabilities and a dynamic runtime Swift.
• C++ -It is one of the oldest and most popular programming languages. Many renowned in-built C++ libraries are available for iOS
• HTML5–It combines with CSS and other technologies & is used to build iOS hybrid apps.

Latest Hybrid / Cross-Platform Mobile App Development Languages

Cross Platforms are used to develop high-performing mobile apps usable on multiple platforms using a single code base.

One codebase, any platform, this gives developers the advantage of re-using the code.

“Learn once, write everywhere”, this saves a lot of time and cost as there is no necessity to develop a discrete app for different platforms.

Read More: 10 Awesome Cross Platform App Development Tools to Build Impressive Mobile Apps

• React Native
  • It is a mobile app development tool sponsored by Facebook, used to develop cross-platform apps on iOS, Android, and UWP (Universal Windows platforms).
  • React Native uses React library and JavaScript to provide a native experience on iOS and Android.
  • Native UI components like Hot Reloading makes it one of the best cross-platform app development tools also improves its performance.
  • React we use React Native in the production domain of brands like Uber, Vogue, Skype, Salesforce, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, Tesla, Walmart, etc.
  •  
• Ionic
  • It helps to develop cross-platform hybrid apps for web, native iOS, and Android platforms.
  • Ionic makes the maximum use of web technologies like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to create hybrid cross-platform apps and needs a Cordova plugin too.
  • We can also use ionic with React, JavaScript, Angular, or Vue.
  • Sworkit, MarketWatch, Nationwide, etc have been using Ionic.
• Flutter
  • Flutter is the most powerful compared to other (Ionic & React Native) when we talk about splendid delivery of native experiences on Android.
  • It uses “Dart” which is a modern object-oriented programming language by Google. Dart used for building apps for web, mobile, and desktop apps, which boosts up the performing ability of Flutter App, thus making it ahead of other App because of no native transition.
  •  Google Ad, Alibaba, Musically, Greentea,  etc have been using Flutter.

• C# with Xamarin (cross-platform / hybrid)
  • Xamarin is an open-source, c# .NET based development platform that allows you to write cross-platform also native applications for iOS, Android, and Windows Phone in C# and .NET.
  • Xamarin is a tool as a part of Visual Studio.
  • It has access to platform-specific native APIs for each platform like iOS, Android or Windows.

There are tons of cross platform mobile application development services who are booming their business due to the ongoing trend of cross platforms Apps.

Specify Your App Development Requirements

The vital step before the app starts getting developed is writing down your requirements.

A requirement document can be prepared which consists of in-depth knowledge of all the problems which will be solved by your App in the easiest manner.

In case you want to hand your development/ coding part to some mobile app development company, it will be very easy for the person to understand your App through Requirement Documentation.

Flow Chart Design of your App

Once you have an idea of how your App looks like and what functionality is performed by each element & how users can interact with your App.

Let us now design the flowchart of how a user should use your App from start to end!

Draw every step they take, every scenario they might face! Consider every user-case!

All right. You have a good idea of what your app will look like, what every element should do, and how users can interact with your app. Now it’s time to figure out your app’s UI flow. Meaning, how a user should use your app from start to end.

Chart out every step they have to take, and every scenario they might encounter. Try to consider every use-case.

Create a Road Map!

The purpose of this step is to understand what your app could become one day and what it needs to be successful on day one.

This version of day one is also called “Minimum Viable Product (MVP)”.

Let us take a supportive step by noting on a whiteboard all the things you want your application to perform.

Rank the items according to priority.

Idealize the core functionality of your App, Requirement to gain users & things to be added later. In case you feel there are certain features your users might require; they can be your powerful projections for later versions.

The best example to explain you MVP with an App is Instagram. It started with image uploading with a few filters – Its MVP.

Later it developed so many functionalities in updated versions through MVP.

Wireframe your App

While Developing a mobile app from scratch, creating a ‘wireframe’ (a mockup or prototype) is a must.

The process in which “rough sketch” ideas come all together in a more clear and detailed manner as a picture of your app.

Think of all the variety of features that your mobile app will consist so you can create a detailed wireframe!

Wireframing is possible through many prototype & Wireframing Tools. Few examples of the tools are: -

• Adobe XD
• Sketch
• Invision Studio
• HotGloo
• Balsamiq
• Axure
• Pidoco
• iPlotz
• Gliffy
• MockFlow
• Frame box
•  POP

After having a wireframe, you can leave the ground & opt going to mobile app development technologies in case you want to hand it over to a third party for development!

Design UI

The most attractive part of a website is UI which increases its importance. People get fascinated by how things appear in App and how flexible they are to navigate!

There are two ways to do it:

Graphics Templates

If you want to do It Yourself, use design templates which saves time!

Use the template building blocks to create your own design & customize them according to your way later! Few examples are: -

• NOW, TETHR and DO by InVision
• Adobe XD UI Kit
• Sketch UI Kit
• Stark UI kit by Baianat
• Stitch by Lina Seleznyova
• Phoenix by Adrian Chiran

Graphics Tools

Tools like Photoshop, Sketch, Adobe Experience Design CC, UXPin, InVision, and Affinity Designer can be used for the graphic designing of your app. A design cannot be imported directly, you have to re-establish it in an Interface Builder.

Build & Test your App

From here, there are two paths - Develop on your Own or Outsource to Mobile App Development experts. You can do the same for Designing as well but Coding / App Development is more complex.

Assuming you have learnt any of the mobile development platforms, you can go ahead with your own mobile development.

However, if you have not learned it yet or finding it difficult or if that’s something not cup of your tea, hire mobile app development company for building the App you have envisioned. You must review the App every week and ask them for the changes wherever you feel.

While application companies are building your app, keep a check on Quality Assurance. It will be a great help to you in managing the costs & time.

Taking the favor of your friends for testing is the best Idea, as you get to know what the users are having issues with and you can solve the same! If you feel to inculcate new features, discuss with the Mobile app developer and carry out cost & time estimation.

Launch the App and Start Marketing

After you are content with your website, launch it to iTunes App Store and Google Play Store. There are no powerful platforms than Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, start promoting them. Contacting Reporters & Bloggers is also an easy to grow your brand.

Monitor any upcoming events around you, networking is also a great way to boost promotion. Also, without forgetting to implement marketing practices such as app store optimization (ASO) for publicizing your app specifically to the audience targeted for it! In case you are not a “Pro” in marketing, you can hire Digital Marketing Agency that works for you.

Keep a note on Reviews for further Improvement

After the completion of the Promotion of your App, consider the User Data, Market Requirement & Responses on a serious note! After receiving positive response work for the next improvements of your App, if not go in-depth with the points where your App lacks. We can In-App Feedback through pop-ups or Emails. Authentic reviews will support you in climbing the ladders of success and eventually helping you achieve your target of turning an idea into an app.

Seeing off:

Did you like our approach of turning an idea into an App? Do you feel we missed out any points? Write us your suggestions or feedback at [email protected] . We will add your suggestions with grace! Thank you for reading.