Step-by-Step Guide to Mobile App Development Process

Do you know having a functional mobile app can actually bring significant changes in your business? These days, people spend more than 4.8 hours per day on mobile applications and 65 minutes per week only on retail and ecommerce applications. This can give a clear picture of your organisation’s expected revenue generation from a responsive mobile app.

[Source: simform]

So, the next question that might cross your mind is, what is the process of making a high-quality mobile app for your business? Where to start, and what are the steps involved?
This article will address all your queries and will provide detailed insights into the mobile app development process. We will delve into a detailed step-by-step process for mobile app design and development.

Let’s begin!

Steps to the Mobile App Development Process

Possessing a user-friendly, active, and interactive mobile app can give you a significant advantage in the competitive landscape. This detailed beginner’s guide will give you step-by-step knowledge on how to proceed with stunning mobile app development for your business. So let’s see the steps below:

Step 1: Framing the Strategy

The first step in the mobile app development process is framing an idea and conceptualisation. You must identify the purpose of creating the app and figure out your targeted audience. For this purpose, you need to conduct a research analysis that will give you a clear picture of the market and your competitors.
Hence, to frame your strategy, you must focus on the following points:

• App Objectives – Recognise your app goals and objectives
• App Purpose – Identify your mobile app purpose
• Identify Customers – Figure out your targeted customers
• Market Research – Research the market to understand user needs and competitors
• Define App Features – Define the core features and functionalities of your app
• Develop Prototype – Create a rough concept or prototype

With these points in mind, you will get a clearer picture of where you must head towards and how to begin with the development process.

Step 2: Market Research and Planning

From here, you can expect to imagine the outlook of your app. Validate your app idea by backing it up with detailed market research. The market research will provide you with information about the interests of the people and the demand or expectations of your audience. This vital information shall help you develop a structure and prioritise your work accordingly.
So, you must delve into the following points to develop strategic planning:

• Market Research – Conduct a detailed market research to validate your idea
• Create Business Plan – Create a business plan and define your app’s monetisation strategy
• Complex Analysis – Access your service or product carefully
• Make a Strategy – Set a plan to reach your audiences
• Set Expectation – Identify user’s expectations and set your business opportunities

At this stage, start thinking about a catchy name for your app. Make sure the name correlates with the product or services you offer your customers.

Step 3: Wireframe and UI/UX Design

It’s time to develop the mockups or wireframes of your app. For this, you have to plan your user journey on your app and conduct research to validate your plan. This exercise aims to deliver a smooth user experience. Your focus must be to develop a polished look for your app where the users can benefit from the inclusive features and functions.
Develop UI/UX design to offer an intuitive user experience. Follow the below steps:

• Wireframe – Create wireframes or mockups of your app’s user interface (UI)
• Intuitive Design – Develop a user experience (UX) design that is user-friendly and offers a seamless experience
• Focus on Visual Elements – Choose a colour scheme, typography and visual elements for your mobile app
• Design Branding Visuals – Design app icons, logos, and other branding assets
• Prototyping – Build a clickable prototype to visualise the app’s flow and interaction

While designing your app, think about the information architecture of your mobile application and how you want the data and content to flow when the user navigates your app. Live test the prototype with potential users to gather feedback and make improvements accordingly.

Step 4: App Development Planning

Now that you have reached so far, it’s time to start with the development process phase of your app. However, before coming to the actual development, you must ensure some critical points related to the selection of programming language, technology stack, etc. Let’s look into these vital points below:

• Tech-Architecture – Construe the technical architecture
• Technology Stack – Choose a technology stack. It can create a considerable difference in the cost, speed, performance, and maintenance of your application.
• Programming Language – Select a programming language for your app. For example, Swift programming language is for iOS, and Kotlin is for Android.
• Milestones – Identify the development milestones for your mobile app

If you intend to include AI or AR in your app, then in such a case, you will have to deploy competent human resources with expert technical skills and knowledge.

Step 5: Start Coding

Your app development planning is ready, so it’s time to begin with the actual coding and framing process. Structure your app based on the usability test and incorporate activities like establishing the environment for development, coding, testing at the preliminary stage and creating a functional mobile app.

Also read: What’s the difference between native app and hybrid app
There are three integral parts of the development process of a mobile app. These are as follows:

• Back-End/Server Technology – This refers to a part of the application responsible for handling data storage, processing and managing communication between the mobile app and various external services and databases. These are critical in ensuring the mobile app functions correctly and securely.
• API – Application Programming Interface (API) refers to a set of protocols, tools and rules that allow one software application to interact with or communicate with the other. These are the crucial components in the development process because they enable your mobile app to access data, services and functionality from external sources such as web services, databases, and other applications.
• Mobile App Front-End – It is the user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) part of the application that users interact with directly on their mobile devices. It encompasses all visual designs, elements and user interface components of the mobile app. The front end presents information, receives user input, and delivers a seamless and intuitive experience.

During the app development process, developers can consider using a GitHub Version Control Solution (VCS) that will help them manage source code and seamless code sharing with the other team members and app developers.

Step 6: App Testing

It’s time to test your app for quality assurance and validation. The QA (Quality Assurance) testers will ensure the app on the parameters like stability, consistency, usability and security protocols. You will be required to prepare the test to address all the aspects of your app testing.
These tests will ensure the elimination of bugs and malware with the help of a final usability test. The following points are needed to be considered while putting your app for testing:

• Perform Various Types of Tests – Include functional, usability, security tests, and user testing for mobile apps.
• Fix Bugs – Identify and fix bugs and issues.
• Screen Test – Test the app on different screen sizes and devices like smartphones and tablets.
• Usability Testing – Test your app on usability to judge efficiency, effectiveness and customer satisfaction
• Design Testing – Understand if any improvements are required in the app’s graphical interface.
• Compatibility and Performance Testing – Identify the optimal performance of your app, load tests, stress tests, concurrency, volume and stability tests.

These tests will ensure your app meets all the industry criteria and standards. Also, analyse the need for certifications such as licences, usability terms and conditions, and App Store, Android and Google Play requirements.

Step 7: Launch and Distribution

Once you have developed the structure, developed, and tested the app, it’s ready to be launched. Launch your app on the platform you have decided, i.e. Android or iOS, or you can launch it simultaneously on multiple platforms if you built a high-end cross-platform mobile application for your business.
Follow the below steps to launch your app successfully:

• App Submission – Submit the app to the respective app stores and follow their guidelines.
• App Promotion – Promote the app through marketing and advertising campaigns.
• Reviews and Feedback – Monitor users’ reviews and feedback and make necessary updates and improvements.

Once your app is launched, it’s time to conduct the distribution process. Invest in rapid and colossal marketing and promotion strategies to publicise your app and create brand awareness.

How to Ensure Your App Success?

Ensuring the success of a mobile app and competing for growth involves a combination of strategic planning, effective development, and ongoing efforts to meet user needs and market demands.
Promote your app in the market using various means such as social media in-app ads, encouraging users’ feedback and suggestions, providing prompt customer support and most importantly, staying up-to-date with technological advancements.

Here are essential steps and strategies to help ensure the success of your mobile app:

• User-Centred Design – Invest in user-centred design to create a visually appealing and intuitive user interface (UI). Also, focus equally on delivering a seamless and enjoyable user experience (UX).
• Performance and Speed – Optimise your app’s performance to ensure it runs smoothly and responds quickly to user interactions. Minimise load times and reduce unnecessary animations or delays.
• Security and Privacy – Implement sturdy security measures to protect user data and ensure user privacy. Comply with The Privacy Act/APPs Regulations for protecting Australian users’ data and information and inform users about your data handling practices.
• Feedback Loop – Establish a feedback loop with users to gather ideas and inputs on identifying areas for improvement. Continuously update and iterate the app based on user feedback and changing market trends.
• Marketing and Promotion – Develop a detailed marketing strategy to promote your app, including social media marketing, email campaigns, influencer partnerships, and paid advertising. Create a website or landing page to demonstrate your app’s features and benefits.
• Monetisation Strategy – Choose an appropriate monetisation strategy for your app, such as in-app ads, subscriptions, freemium models, or one-time purchases. Ensure that your monetisation strategy aligns with your target audience and app niche.
• Customer Support – Provide excellent customer support through various channels (email, chat, FAQs) to assist users with questions or issues and respond promptly to user feedback and inquiries.
• Analytics and Metrics – Use analytic tools to track user behaviour, app usage, and key performance indicators (KPIs) and analyse data to make informed decisions and prioritise improvements.

Conclusion

The mobile app design and development process is iterative. It may need to revisit the previous steps to improvise as you gather feedback and adapt to changing user needs and market conditions. Collaboration among the designers, developers and testing team is crucial to creating a successful mobile app for your business.

The steps discussed above will assist you throughout your app development journey and guide you while you create a remarkable app for your company. However, if you want to develop an extraordinary, eminent app to endorse your business and increase your market share, there’s nothing better than the option to hire third-party support.

Want to develop a high-end mobile app for your company? We at Enterprise Monkey are the expert mobile app development company in Melbourne, providing end-to-end app-building services to our clients across the Australian continent.