Mistakes to avoid while developing a mobile app

App development has recently undergone a lot of changes, and it still keeps changing. Nowadays, more and more innovations are introduced to the app development – new coding languages, technologies, etc.

Mobile app developers are always looking for some new ways and means to develop outstanding mobile software meeting the needs of the modern society. Everyone is piquing the interest in how to develop an app bringing huge profits.

Of course, there are a lot of tutorials, coverages, how-to guides, books available both in paper and online, but there is still one thing to consider – you can’t achieve success in the field without outlining the main pitfalls to evade while developing a mobile app.

We’ve analyzed a great many of surveys and shoveled up hundreds of book on app development.

And here are four top mistakes you should circumvent when developing a successful mobile app.

Building an app for all screens

A common issue developer run into is deciding which OS to run first – Android or iOS. When considering the platform, take into account your target audience. This should help you make an informed decision.

For statistic data, you can use the following platforms:

• Statista
• Developer Economics
• Stack OverFlow

Launching an app for both platforms at once will double(or triple) your expenses since you should develop two different apps making any alterations to design or/and functionality. Note, developing an app for iOS takes less time than for Android because of a limited number of screens.

And this means, it’s somehow cheaper and allows getting an MVP (minimum viable product) as soon as possible to iTunes and see how the market reacts.

Try developing an app for one platform, then fix the bugs and make some iterations before launching for other platforms.

Did you know that Instagram was firstly built for iOS? After its spectacular success – Instagram has got nearly 30 million of active users, it was launched to Google Play.

Packing too many features

Nearly every beginner developer wants to use all built-in features of a cell phone in one app. Most modern smartphones are loaded with a great variety of features such as camera, accelerometer, pedometer, gyroscope, GPS, and so on.

Using them all in your app won’t add more value to the software. You, as a developer, should outline the main do’s of an app. Pack it with unique features designated to serve the customers well.

You’d better load an MVP with the core features focusing on the immediate needs of your target audience. You can add more useful features later in the future app versions.

Adding new features, later on, look like you’re constantly updating the app and think over the users. Hence, the app will gain more and more popularity.

Complicated UIs

Your MVP should have an extremely easy-to-use and highly intuitive user interface. The UI should be such allowing the user to learn quickly how to use it without reading the user manual.

Note, your average user is not a tech geek. Allow the user to experience the basic features of a cell phone to ease the daily routine. Try to create a well-defined User Interface where each screen, button, and function are well-thought-out.

Of course, if you want to develop an app for a real geek with the elaborate UIs, multi-gestures, and virtual reality features, it’ll be great to include a how-to section in an app.

In a nutshell, make your UI consistent and homogeneous in all your upcoming versions, so that the users won’t have to learn how to navigate the updated app.

Marketing after launching app

It’s vital to start your marketing campaign as soon as possible to achieve first visible results within a short period. Waiting until submitting an app to Google Play or App Store to start a press outreach campaign may throw you a wobbly.

It’s better to start contacting media around a month before a planned launch. Before sending outreach emails, look through the Web to find bloggers, journalists or platforms writing about similar apps.

While writing emails, try to keep them short and precise for the bloggers to grasp the main idea of what you want and what your app is capable of. Try to end your email with a call-to-action:

• Do you want to know more?
• Find it interesting?

Conclusions

Developing an app is the very first (and the most important) step in your app development career. Due to the fact, the app market is really overloaded with mobile software and without a proper marketing strategy, it may be hard to succeed.

Try to avoid the common mistakes while developing an own app and your chances to develop a fruitful app is going up and up.

Are there any mistakes that I didn’t manage to cover? Leave a comment below.

 

About the author:

Tasha Bronitska

She runs a blog at IDAP Group. Tasha stays tuned for more news regarding app development and other geek stuff. Want to be the first to read her must-use guides and ultimate coverages, follow IDAP on Facebook or Twitter.