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Mobile App Development Process – Steps to Create Successful Mobile Application
In 2022, nearly 258.2 billion smart-phone applications will be downloaded and the worldwide revenue generated by the mobile app industry is also expected to witness huge jump – from an already impressive $45 billion in 2016 to a staggering $80.6 billion by 2020.
Mobile app ecosystem is crowded with the apps for all needs; each day, thousands of apps are getting developed and published on app store and play store, but only few app gets to the top position. Although, developing a useful mobile app is easier but developing an app by considering each step of the development cycle is something that can give you success. When it comes to mobile app development, every step is important; cutting the corners may affect the sustainability of the final product.
Below-mentioned steps will help you to focus on each task, while not missing the key aspects of mobile app development process.
Step 1: Market Research
When you think of developing an app, it is important to do the basic groundwork for the app. You should research about the target market, target audience, competitor analysis before beginning the development process. You may think that your idea is great, but sometimes it just doesn’t fit in the current market trends. If your idea already exists, research on what unique things you can add to attract user’s attention. Behind every thought in developing an app, keep the end user in mind and do extensive research on the following question…
- What problem your app will solve?
- Will this feature benefit the user?
- What you want your app to do
Define your budget and do the detailed survey in the early stages for the smoother development process.
Step 2: Wire Framing
Once you are done with the thorough market research, the next phase of developing a mobile app is preparing the detailed scope of the work. Develop a wireframe of your app and draw detailed sketches of the envisioned product that can help you to check usability issues. Wire framing includes details on the platform, features, feasibility and specifications and ensures that mobile app development process is in sync with your requirements. Take the feedback from the industry experts and figure out the loopholes because at this stage changes can be easily incorporated. Now, you will have a clear understanding of how your ideas will combine together into a functional app.
Step 3: Technical Feasibility Assessment
Having a visual understanding of the app is just not enough, you need to check out whether the backend systems will support the app functionality or not. To know it, you need to get access to the public data by sourcing public APIs. Moreover, an app will have different requirements depending on the platform like iOS, Android etc and the device like smart phone, tablet, wearables etc. You may need to alter the wireframe if there are any technical limitations during technical feasibility assessment.
Step 4: Design
To make your app look great, you need to know the features and outcomes to deliver great user experience. You can create multiple variations of a screen by playing around with the layout, navigation buttons, graphics, colors, styling, fonts and other visual elements. Your goal must be to develop aesthetically pleasing app enough to attract the target audience. The team must consider all the parameters necessary including functionality, design concepts, budget, timeline etc. to create engaging user interface. Developing static mockups will provide you a clear idea of how your app will look like and how the user will navigate through the app.
Step 5: App Development
As the development progresses, the app passes through couple of phases:
- Alpha phase: In this phase, only the core functionality of the app is presented which is error-prone and not tested
- Beta phase: In this phase, the app is lightly tested and bugs are solved and most of the proposed functionality is integrated
Agile and Scrum development approach is preferable as it provides collaboration, transparency and rapid iteration benefits which can adapt to the changes easily. During this stage, it is vital to consider multiple factors like multitasking, form factor, device and OS fragmentation. It’s of no use to incorporate the features that are not compatible with the majority of the smart phones.
Step 6: Testing
After developing the app, it is crucial to test the app to find out the bugs in the application. This is all about putting the plan into action and coming up with the first iteration of your developed app. The app is tested for usability, compatibility, security, interface checks, stress and performance to ensure it is bug-free and that users are comfortable with the interface. In User Acceptance Testing (UAT), you would get a clear idea whether your mobile app worked for the intended users or not. If the feedback calls for the major changes, you need to repeat the process right from the wire framing till the app becomes bug free.
Step 7: Deployment & Maintenance
Finally, your app is developed, tested and ready to launch! Understand the norms of publishing the app on App stores. App stores have specific quality standards and security requirements for publishing an app. For different categories the policies of submitting an app are different.
The release of the app on the App stores is not the end. The app required regular updates and there’s always room for improvements and enhancements. Working regularly with your development team, you’ll be able to keep your app up-to-date and maintain its relevancy with the changing times.
Conclusion
Every app is different from another in one or the other way. But the step involved in mobile app development process remains consistent as mentioned above. To make your app successful, you need to follow each step carefully. The process of mobile app development is never ending process; you need to update your app and launch a newer version as and when the trend changes. When users start using your app, you will get reviews about how much satisfied/unsatisfied your customers are. Seeing their feedback, you need to incorporate features in the next versions of the app.
Looking for an experienced mobile app development company who can create your app from scratch or help you in one or more of these steps? We’re just a click away.
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