What to Keep in Mind while Planning Mobile App Strategy

The recent report on the number of smartphone users has predicted that by 2021, over 3.8 billion people will use smartphones for accomplishing various daily activities. Obviously, a huge demand will be generated for the mobile apps over a period. But then, as the app stores are already flooded with a plethora of apps across different genres, making your app popular will remain an uphill task.

Today, as the app market becomes highly competitive and the new players have to deal with challenges, you just cannot approach the app store without any preparation or app strategy. The mobile app development cost keeps on increasing with an evolving mobile platform. Therefore, if you want a cost-effective and efficient mobile app for your business, you must have a proper app strategy in place.

For example, if your target audience is in Asia, it is better to opt for Android app development, whereas if you want to address the US-based audience, it is better to opt for iOS app development services. But, this is just one aspect. You need to consider many other aspects while making a strategy.

Here is your handy list of important steps to consider while planning a business mobile app strategy.

• It starts with right framework

Depending on the audience, necessary features, budget, and other factors, you need to select the right framework for developing your app. If you have budget constraints and want to reach a huge audience consists of iPhone and Android phone users, then cross-platform app development should be your choice. In such a situation, you can select an Ionic or AngularJS framework.

If you want to target either Android or iOS users, and have no budgetary limitations then native app development is the best option.

With this, while selecting the framework, you should also consider the expectations and needs of the end users.

• Keep the business model in mind

Your company’s overall strategy and business model should be considered while planning a strategy. A mobile app is representative of your company on the mobile platform. Therefore, it should be in line with the vision and objectives of your company. A mobile app is developed with a major long-term goal to expand the business and increase revenue. Therefore, your app strategy should include all the parameters that can help you simplify business processes and boost branding.

Also, your business app can act as an online marketing tool. Therefore, you should consider its promotional aspect while making a list of necessary features and functionality.

• Define your audience

You need extensive research on your target audience. It is of utmost importance to have a good insight into the geography and culture of the audience. You should also define the gender and age group of the users. Mobile app development services are capable of addressing the diverse and ever-changing needs of users, but you need to make a proper roadmap for integrating necessary features.

Guesswork and hypothesis will not work for attracting users toward your app. You need to plan everything on the basis of the end user’s demands and expectations. The end users remain at the center of every app and if your app gets succeeded in fulfilling their needs, it becomes successful.

• Estimate budget

This is one of the most critical parameters while planning a mobile app strategy. SMBs with budget constraints can also make their app strategy in a way that they can make the most from available resources without wasting money.

Tip- Even if you have a limited budget, just do not compromise on the app’s performance. You can skip a feature or two at the initial level. If your app performs well in the user’s devices, you can come up with its updated version later. You can integrate skipped features in such updated app versions.

Also Read- Why You should Treat Your Business App as Product, Not Project

• Select development platform

In an ongoing battle between Android and iOS, SMEs should remain very careful in selecting the development platform. The selection of development platform is a herculean task because it involves aspects like budget, target audience, feature requirements, and business objectives. For example, Android app development is a bit costly as compared to iOS because it needs many devices for testing your app.

Different industry sectors can target different devices for promoting business and address a particular audience. For example, retailers prefer smartphones to promote their eCommerce business whereas the publishing industry likes iPads or Android tablets because of a bigger screen.

Your mobile app strategy should cover all these aspects to ensure a proper reach to the target audience and better user experience.

• Think of user requirements

An enterprise mobile app is designed to find solutions to the user’s questions and requirements. For example, the cab-hailing apps are convenient for daily or occasional commuters in booking cabs as and when they want. The restaurant apps can remove the hurdles of standing in a long queue in fast-food takeaways or book the table during weekends.

Many enterprise mobile apps have gained success by addressing the user’s needs smartly. If you want to implement the enterprise mobility concept in the workplace, you need to address the needs and pain points of your employees and prospective customers.

Altogether, we can say that a user-centric app can thrive in the app stores in today’s competitive age.

• Emphasis on data security

As people tend to rely more on mobile apps, concerns for securing their personal data loom large, and why not? In recent years, we have witnessed a number of incidences of data breach and cyber attacks. Being highly vulnerable to cyber attacks, your business mobile app needs special attention to data safety. A reputed mobile app development company can cast light on this topic.

Even a slight lapse in securing the confidential information of your customers and employees can cost your company a lot. The data breach or any attack on your app can ruin your company’s reputation and leads your app toward a complete failure.

What’s more, you should keep some amount aside for regular maintenance and update of the app. Regular updates are necessary to ensure a seamless performance, new feature integration, and enhanced security of data.

• Don’t forget app marketing

When Google Play and Apple’s App Store have over 2.1 billion and 1.8 billion apps respectively, chances are high that your app faces stiff competition. Therefore, you should reserve some amount to promote your app during the development phase and after launch. App promotion will help you get valuable feedback from early users. You can improve the app’s functionality and fix bugs by taking the help of a mobile application development company.

App marketing also enables you to create a buzz or hype of your app. It can draw your potential customers’ attention and strengthen your app’s position in the app stores.

• Avail the data

Advancing technology has made it possible to fetch necessary data through a business app. You can get the data regarding the user’s behavior, their activities on your app, their search patterns, and the like by integrating AI-based features and analytics tools in it. You can hire experienced mobile app developers to meet this objective.

The user’s data can help you make informed decisions. When you make a strategy for your mobile app, make it sure to keep a provision for data processing. You can take your business to the next level while improving the customer services with the help of the user’s data.

Finally, it is wise to consult a reputed mobile app development company for making an effective app strategy. It is fair to mention that the mobile app strategy can make the app development process seamless and you can get a competitive edge over peers. Summing up, time and efforts spend on planning is worth for your business.

Concluding Lines
Do you have an app idea in mind or planning to come up with a business app? Solution Analysts, with over eight years of domain experience in mobile app development, can assist you to bring a feature-rich, enterprise-grade app with a clear roadmap. Feel free to connect with us at sales@solutionanalysts.com