Recipe to build a Mobile App

The Quick Recipe To Build a Mobile App from a Teenage Millionaire

Nowadays, there’s an app for absolutely anything – no matter how small (or how silly) the task – if it can be done on your mobile device, then you should do it on your mobile device. Apps solve problems; alleviate boredom… apps help you get things done.

And what a time to be alive! It’s now easier than ever to turn your bright and budding app ideas into solid income – creating an even greater appeal for people to develop their own apps.

Below are the standard frequently asked questions for people interested in the magic of app development:

How do I make an app?

Now this is a big question. Developing your own app is a process. First you have to think of an idea, and make sure it’s going to work
For more information have a look at our other blog post on how to create your own app.

How much will it cost me to make an app?

If you’re ready, prepare for a bit of shock. The app development process requires a lot of other work outside actually building the app, which can directly affect how much the cost of the app is going to be. Some suggest the total cost of developing an app can be up to £10,000. However, a true estimate of your total cost is going to come after a detailed research of all the things you are going to need for your specific app. You’ll also need to consider: developing a website, creating a marketing campaign, hiring admin systems to manage your app users, a hosting platform if users need to store photos and videos.

One way to reduce the cost of your app would be to design and program your app yourself so you don’t have to pay the high cost to hire out programmers to make your app for you – which is approximately £1000 per day. This may seem daunting, but there are a large number of different courses which can teach you how to code and develop apps, such a Bermotech in London.

What platform should I build my app for?

This is a question which requires a lot of consideration as the code for iOS and Android apps are completely different – which means an app for iPhone may not work on an Android phone. And if you want your app to be available on both devices, then you need to budget for double the work.

At any rate, its best to do your research your the target audience and establish which devices are more used by your target audience. Here’s some basic stats to help get you started: currently people own more Android than Apple devices worldwide (70 vs 21), (based on user ratings) Apple has higher quality apps than Android (68 vs 63), more android users download apps (51 vs 40), iOS users are spending much more on apps even if they are downloading fewer overall (74 vs 20)
For more statistics on the usage of iOS and Android device, you can read this article.

How do I get my app out there?

Contact publishers and sites, but don’t be invasive. If they don’t reply, move on. Be short and sweet, include a download link for your app.

Don’t forget about the power of social media, really make use of Facebook, Youtube, Twitter to increase awareness of your app.

What’s the best way for me to test my app?

BetaFamily and Testflight, app that can get your app to friends devices so they can be tested.

How much should I charge people for my app?

Again, there a few things to consider here. Firstly, in order to actually submit your app to the app store (and in some cases, keep it there) you have to pay a price. For Android, that’s a one off of $25 to submit as many apps as you want, and for Apple, a subscription of $99 per year to do the same. (also, apple takes 30% of your earnings).

Now, the following question is whether you want to charge users to download and use your app, or to earn money from other revenues, such as ads. The truth of the matter is that users are far more likely to download a free app than to purchase one – if you have a look at the top grossing apps, then you can see that lots of them are free [link]. Marketing companies typically advise clients to create free apps with in-app purchases. Ads can earn up to £700 from a single ad.