Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid When Building an App for Your Business

The rapid growth in the adoption of mobile apps in recent times has been phenomenal. The total number of apps on the Google Play Store is estimated at 2.8 million as at March 2017, almost thrice what was recorded in 2013, according to Statistica. While this trend has been of immense benefit for users who now have a large assortment of apps to choose from, it presents a huge challenge for developers who have to design top tier apps that can compete effectively in the international market. 

Do you want your product to stand out from the pack amidst the myriad of apps churned out yearly by over 12 million developers across the globe? Avoid the common mistakes committed by a lot of business owners. Here are the top 10 mistakes to avoid when building an app for your business.

1. Failing to make sufficient product management considerations

Lean startup and design thinking are the two most common approaches to product development today. However, a major challenge faced by product managers and developers alike is not knowing the approach to apply at different stages of the product development cycle. This is probably the most important pitfall to avoid because other processes depend on it. As such, it’s important to understand the differences and similarities of these two approaches to app development. Design sprints, a recently developed approach provides a perfect merger between lean startup and design thinking.

2. Failing to develop a cross-platform strategy

It’s no longer fashionable to develop an app for a single operating system. Developers can now launch their applications simultaneously on different platforms in order to reach a larger audience. However, the challenge that confronts most developers is the decision on which platform to publish their apps. iOS, Android, Windows are the 3 major platforms available to app developers today.

Without having a second thought, developers are usually quick to publish their apps on iOS platforms because they believe it’s easier to make money through the App Store. They however fail to consider the fact that Android has a greater international presence than iOS, which can set a limit on the adoption of their apps across the globe. Therefore, it’s important to put every consideration in place before making a decision on the platform to publish your app.

With available tools today, developers can easily write apps using a single source of code that can be deployed onto multiple platforms. There are some drawbacks with this, however it is a great start if you’re looking to test the market.

3. Failing to develop an appropriate pricing strategy

It’s important that you develop a pricing strategy most suitable for the app you are developing as early as possible. This would, among other things, save you from irrationally opting for any pricing strategy when you’re ready to launch your app. Usually you’ll have to choose between adopting either a subscription model (where only subscribers can access the app) or a "freemium" model (whereby certain features of the app are freely accessible to all). Taking time to study the pricing strategies adopted by app developers producing similar apps as yours will be helpful in this regard.

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Hashi Kaar is the CEO of Plycode - a Melbourne-based custom software and mobile/web app development company. Have an idea for an app? Learn more about our services here.