On average, people spend about 4.2 hours a day using apps on their smartphone, and this number is constantly growing every year (for example, in 2019 it was reported that everyone spend about 3 hours a day using the app). That’s why app development is an effective marketing tool that can help your business by allowing you to increase customer loyalty and create an extra channel of communication with both existing and existing customers. existing and potential customers.
It is natural for you, as a startup, to want to cut your application development costs. Users don’t care how you create your app and how much you spend on it: they just want a quality product. Otherwise, they won’t be willing to pay for it. Some founders tend to cut costs by rejecting the project discovery phase, downsizing the development team, etc. But all of these can affect the quality of the project and lead to to complete failure. In this article, we will demonstrate that a limited budget doesn’t necessarily mean a low-quality app.
How to calculate application development costs
Calculating the cost required for application development begins with consulting. Next, the development team collects and analyzes the requirements and defines the specifications.
If you want to calculate the approximate budget required to create your app yourself, the best way to do so is to use the following formula:
Project complexity x Hourly rate = Application development cost.
Recommendations on how to cut custom app development costs
Determine your budget limit
If you want to hire an app development company, start negotiating by determining your maximum budget. If you start by stating what you want to see in your app, the final price could turn out to be a nasty surprise for you. Knowing the budget, experts from the development company will be able to provide you with the best application model/prototype without going overboard.
Starting from MVP
If you decide to develop an MVP, it will allow you to launch your product at minimal cost. First, you should define the purpose of your app and define who your potential users are. Then prioritize the features you want in your app, dividing them by:
- features that the application cannot function without
- application features can run without
- features will not add too much value to the app
Creating an MVP will allow you to focus on the functions your target audience requires the most. Furthermore, by analyzing the market, you can rule out features that are not useful for your application.
Clarifying technical requirements for developers
Before development begins, try to create as detailed a requirement list as possible. This way you will avoid the risks. If some element of the application is vaguely described, developers can implement it according to their vision, which often may not coincide with your vision. In this case, you will need additional resources to rebuild certain parts of the application.
Don’t skip the testing phase
The testing phase is very important for all applications, without any exceptions. It’s much cheaper to fix errors as soon as they appear than to do this once the app is up and running. That’s why you should make sure everything works perfectly before your app is available to users. To do this, hire a skilled QA professional.
Carry out standard design
If your app doesn’t necessarily need a fancy design, create the first version of your app with a simple and intuitive design. Luckily, both iOS and Android have their own design guidelines that you can use to save both time and money when creating app designs. By following them, your UX/UI designers can create great designs while using fewer resources. If you want your application to have a non-standard design with many elements created specifically for you, the design part of your project can be even more expensive than the functional part.
Don’t limit yourself to time
Be realistic about your project’s deadlines. Don’t push your team to complete the application faster. Working under pressure, developers can make mistakes that will be costly to fix.
Hire a team with experience developing a similar app
Such a team can help you avoid pitfalls and difficulties that may arise during development. It can also tell you how to simplify the development process, which will allow you to reduce your budget. You will not have to add risk to the cost. Moreover, with an established team, the development process will be faster.
Factors affecting the cost of custom app development
There are 6 main aspects that affect the cost of application development:
Develop team
When it comes to the application development team’s choice, there are 3 main options to choose from:
Internal team. This is one of the most expensive options suitable for those with unlimited resources. Having an internal team working on your project means that you will have to pay each team member a fixed salary on a regular basis even if for certain periods of time they will not be available. many works to do. You will also have to provide your in-house engineering team with the workplace, equipment, and software needed for development.
Outsourcing. This is the most effective option to get good value for money. You can choose a development team from anywhere in the world where development wages are significantly lower than those in your home country.
Freelance work. Hiring freelancers is the cheapest option. However, it has both advantages and disadvantages. While a cost-effective variation, hiring freelance professionals is not reliable. Furthermore, you will always have to be involved in the process. You will have to recruit and manage the team, track your progress, etc.
Remember that you will need at least one highly skilled app developer working on your app. Entrusting the entire project to new people for a low salary is tempting, but a bad idea: they may not be able to handle a variety of problems.
Communication
Ideally, you need to launch your app on all available platforms. However, this will require more resources than most startups have. This way you will have to choose a platform. According to data provided by Statista, the Android operating system accounts for 87% of the global market share. The iOS operating system accounts for only 13% of the market share. Another study found that iOS holds the majority of the US market. Also, iOS users tend to spend money on apps more often than Android users. However, as you might have guessed, by launching the first version of your app for the Android operating system, you can make it available to a wider audience.
If you still want to create an app for both Android and iOS, you can use the hybrid app development approach. It provides the ability to launch an application on both platforms with minimal investments. However, keep in mind that native apps will always be technically superior to hybrid apps. Furthermore, it doesn’t take much for you to wait a while and launch your app on a second platform when it starts to bring in income.
Function
The number of functions that you want to implement and their complexity directly affects development costs. The more features the application has, the higher the development cost.
Auxiliary
The back end is another factor that determines the cost of an application. In fact, it is what lies behind the design and user interface, the internals of the application run by the webmaster. Applications that contain large amounts of information must be able to support a complex backend server that is built on multiple programming languages.
The more complex the application, the more important it is to have the backend. Simple applications may not ask at all.
Post-release costs
Launching a high-quality app is just the beginning of your journey. Now, your main task is to keep it running. This means that you will have to spend money on effective advertising and marketing strategies. Regular updates, bug fixes, server maintenance, and user support are also included in the post-release cost. These costs are usually charged separately, but they are still part of the application development process.
Security level of the application
A high level of protection is one of the main requirements of any application. Access to the user’s personal data, funds and location must be reliably protected against hacks, viruses, etc. Therefore, the development of a detectable secure mobile application Suspicious activities, weaknesses, etc. require large financial investments.
Conclusion
Mobile app development is a complex process with many factors affecting the end result. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce the price: create an MVP, use a standard and simple design, etc. Remember that additional functions and upgrades, as well as integration with other platforms, can be add when you’re sure your app gets what the market needs.
Categories: How to
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
