In this rapidly transforming digital world, the face of branding and marketing has totally changed. Businesses have moved a long way from distributing pamphlets about their services, trying to reach their target audience.
With the advent of newer updates and versions of the present technology, branding has become more efficient. Now, businesses have incorporated ways to improve their customer relations. This is done by making a direct connection with them, discussing with them about their brand and building a medium of trust.
In such times, mobile apps have taken the market by storm. Almost every brand has or is working towards building an app of its own. With data such as this,
mobile apps not only offer a medium to provide their services but also to create brand awareness and a reputed name among the target audience. This also makes the competition fierce.
In a scenario like this, investing in an app that is appealing to the target consumer base that masterfully showcases the benefits of the business at the same time is a must. But maintaining your finances while having a well-functioning app can be one huge task.
If you are someone new to this field working with or as a developer, then you must keep a lookout for certain additional factors adding up to reduce cost of the mobile app development.
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It is important to note that mobile app development takes a lot of effort and one should never compromise with the quality while trying to reduce the cost. Want to soar high with your business but tight on budget?
Here’s taking a look at a few tips and tricks to reduce your mobile app development cost.
1) Know What You Need
Sit down with your team and discuss. Take note of what exactly you need out of the app, what your motive is, what is the target audience. Prepare an outline of the structure of the app and the features that will benefit your business.
Do not add or remove features in order to follow the trends. Know the features that are necessary and prioritize them. It is crucial to pay attention to even the smallest details. Let the developers know about the company and the vision.
Figure out a rough idea about the application and things that will set it apart from the competitors. The application should be user-friendly, and a proper sequence must be maintained.
Adding more features definitely shoots the price up. Thus, evaluating the ones that are well suited for the business keeping in mind the budget can be useful.
One can also carry out extensive market research and seek advice from experts to find out the kinds of applications before starting the actual work.
2) Keep A Check on the UI/UX Designs Costs
A better UI will undoubtedly enhance and provide a better user experience. But customization of designs might increase your expenses to a decent extent.
To save up on some money you can adhere to the standard designs. Remember, you can always keep on updating the application with new features even after the launch of the app. Heavy capital should also not be invested in the application at the testing stage.
You can add features and make the app user-friendly as and when you receive feedback from your customers.
3) Try Outsourcing
If you do not have a fancy budget to get a team of developers in your office, then this option can be the best for you. However, never try to compromise with the quality in order to save money.
Basically, outsourcing is a method by which you can hire developers from across the globe through various mobile app development outsourcing companies or mediums. This gives you the flexibility to work with a diversely talented group of developers on rates suitable to your business.
Depending on the developer you can either choose to pay them on the basis of the number of hours they work or a lump-sum project-based payment.
Outsourcing will help you save some capital that would have otherwise used to pay the monthly fixed salaries of your full- time employees.
4) Consider the Default Templates
Developing an application right from scratch can turn out to be costly and time taking. To reduce some of the load from your capital, you can proceed with the ready made templates already available.
You can also find this range of pre-built features at a very low rate. You can begin with the templates that work the best for you.
Read Also: How to Choose the Best Mobile App Development Technology
5) Keep in Mind the Costs after the Product Launch
Launching your final product doesn’t necessarily mean that all your work is done. Bugs may arise afterwards which require alteration in the design of the application.
You might also need some of the developers back on board to fix some of these problems. Hiring a freelancer at an initial stage of development can create a problem with their availability. This might add up to your costs.
Updating and adding features in an application is a common thing in the applications market. Many apps have at least two to three updates in a month. This is done so as to enhance the experience of the user by working from the feedback received.
Each of these updates will definitely notch up your business to the next level but will also add up on your costs.
6) Minimum Viable Product
Minimum Viable Product or MVP is basically the pre-mature stage of your application. A basic structure of the application is developed and launched.
Rather than waiting and investing in advanced features at an initial development stage, MVP can help a business focus on the ultimate necessities.
They can add features and updates as and when the initial rounds of feedbacks are received from the target audience. This feedback and reaction of the people can help you focus on user-friendly features other than investing in the ones you thought would work.
7) Compatibility of The Application
Based on the compatibility of the application on various platforms, mobile applications are divided into two categories- Native and Hybrid. A native app is confined to a specific platform or device whereas a hybrid app is a more compatible option and works on all operating systems.
Depending on this classification the cost of development differs in both the types. A native app is said to provide smooth user experience, but the cost of its development is usually high.
This type of application is built from scratch and is focused on a particular platform. This means that if you wish to develop both iOS and Android friendly native apps, you will be charged twice.
A hybrid app, on the other hand, is built for multiple platforms. The quality might be different from that of the native app since this is built for different platforms at the same time.
However, the cost involved in development is a one-time investment. It is important to choose between the two types based on the business needs and the target audience.
8) Build A Team, Divide the Tasks
Working smartly and efficiently is always better than spending hours at work with little productivity. As a business which is looking at growth opportunities, your team should be diverse, flexible and responsible for the work they do.
Divide the tasks accordingly among the team but most importantly, look for a supervisor. A person to keep a check on the progress of the work is a must. This check is necessary at each step of the work.
The supervisor can keep up the deadlines and maintain the workflow, keeping the quality in check. Errors in work can cause loss of time.
Sometimes the entire project needs to be redone to fix a mistake. This process will ensure the quality of the work done at each step leaving little room for confusion and errors.
9) Maintain A Good Relationship with The Developers
Last but not least, maintain a good relationship with your co-workers. Developers usually work under immense pressure. This leads them to make more mistakes. To get great and effective results you need to have some patience.
Keep deadlines that are flexible to your plan. Regularly contact the developers even after the work is done. Bugs and technical glitches might arise at any time, even after the work has been done. Having a good contact might save you accruing an additional expense like hiring a new developer.
Read Also: App Development Market in UK 2019
Final Thoughts
Mobile application development can be the most crucial part of your branding strategy. However, if you follow a clear approach and adhere to it, you can build a brand without withdrawing a lot of your capital.
Management of the data and the information and utilising them to bring out the necessary outputs is a skill you need to hone. If the application is appealing and serves its purpose to your audience, then you might get a head start with the initial profits.
Keep a note of the places that did not perform according to your expectations and the ones that exceeded them. Enhance the features that worked and try eliminating the ones that didn’t. Reduce the cost of mobile app development wouldn’t be a difficult task if you keep your eyes on the details.