On average, people spend around 4.2 hours a day using apps on their smartphones and this number keeps growing every year (for example, in 2019, it was reported that people spend around 3 hours a day using apps). That is why app development is an effective marketing tool that can help your business by allowing you to increase customer loyalty and create an additional communication channel with current and potential customers.
It’s only natural that you, as a new company, want to reduce application development costs. Users don’t care how you built an app and how much money you spend on it – they just want a quality product. Otherwise, they will not be willing to pay for it. Some founders tend to cut costs by foregoing the discovery phase of the project, reducing the size of the development team, etc. But all this can influence the quality of the project and lead to complete failure. In this article, we are going to show that a limited budget does not necessarily mean a low-quality app.
How to Calculate App Development Cost
Calculating the costs required for application development begins with a consultation. The development team then collects and analyzes the requirements and defines the specifications.
If you want to calculate yourself the approximate budget required for the creation of the application, the best way to do it is to use the following formula:
Project complexity x Hourly rate = Application development cost.
Recommendations on how to reduce the cost of developing custom applications
Define the limits of your budget
If you want to use an app development company, start a negotiation defining your maximum budget. If you start by saying what you want to see in your app, the final price may come as a nasty surprise. Knowing the budget, the specialists of the development company will be able to offer you the best app model/prototype without going overboard.
Start from MVP
If you decide to develop an MVP, it will allow you to launch your product at minimal cost. First, you need to determine the purpose of the app and define who your potential users are. Then, prioritize the features you want to have in your app, dividing them by:
- functions without which the application cannot function
- features that the application can run without
- features that won’t add too much value to the app
Building MVPs will allow you to focus on the features that your target audience requires the most. Also, when analyzing the market, you can exclude features that will not be useful for your application.
Clarify technical requirements for developers
Before the development process begins, try to create as detailed a list of requirements as possible. This way you will avoid risks. If any element of the application is vaguely described, developers can implement it according to their vision, which often may not match yours. In this case, you will need additional resources to rebuild certain parts of the application.
Don’t ignore the testing phase
The testing phase is important for all applications, without exception. Fixing bugs right after they appear is much cheaper than doing it when the app is finished and released. That’s why you need to make sure everything works perfectly before your app is available to users. To do this, hire a qualified quality control specialist.
Implement standard layout
If your app doesn’t necessarily need a fancy design, build your first version with a simple and intuitive design. Fortunately, both iOS and Android have their own design guidelines that you can use to save time and money creating your app design. By following them, your UX/UI designers can create great designs 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 may cost even more than the functional part.
Do not limit yourself in terms of time
Be realistic about your project deadlines. Don’t pressure your team to complete the application faster. Working under pressure, developers are likely to make mistakes that are costly to fix.
Hire a team that has experience developing a similar app
Such a team can help you avoid pitfalls and pitfalls that can arise during the development process. It can also tell you how to streamline the development process, allowing you to lower your budget. You will not have to include additional risks in the cost. Also, with an already established team, the development process will be faster.
Factors Influencing Custom Application Development Costs
There are 6 main aspects that affect the cost of application development:
Development team
When it comes to choosing your app development team, there are 3 main options to choose from:
Internal team. This is one of the more expensive options that is suitable for people whose resources are not limited. Having an internal team to work on your project means that you will have to pay each team member a fixed salary on a regular basis, even if, during certain periods, they won’t have much work to do. You’ll also need to provide your in-house engineering team with the workplace, equipment, and software needed for development.
Outsourcing. This is the most efficient option to get good value for money. You can choose the development team from anywhere in the world where development salaries are significantly lower than in your home country.
Free spear. Hiring freelancers is the cheapest option. However, it has advantages and disadvantages. Despite being a profitable variant, hiring independent specialists is not reliable. In addition, you will always have to be involved in the process. You will need to recruit and manage the team, monitor the work process, etc.
Keep in mind that you will need at least one highly qualified app developer to work on your app. Entrusting the entire project to low-salaried rookies is attractive, but it’s a bad idea: they may not be able to handle various problems.
Platform
Ideally, you should launch your app on all existing platforms. However, this will require more resources than most startups have. In this way, you will have to choose a platform. According to data provided by Statista, the Android operating system has an 87% share of the world market. The iOS operating system has only a 13% market share. Other research shows that iOS owns the vast majority of the US market. Also, iOS users tend to spend money on apps more often than Android users. However, as you can guess, by releasing the first version of your application for the Android operating system, you can spread it to a wider audience.
If you still want to create an app for both Android and iOS, you can turn to hybrid app development. It gives the possibility to launch an application on both platforms with minimal investments. However, keep in mind that a native app will always be technically superior to a hybrid app. Also, you won’t lose much if you wait a while and launch your app on the second platform when it starts generating revenue.
functions
The number of features you want to implement and their complexity directly influence the cost of development. The more features an app has, the higher the development cost.
back end
Backend is another factor that determines the cost of an application. It’s actually what’s behind the user interface and layout, the internal part of the application that runs the webmaster. The application that contains large amounts of information must be supported by a backend server with a complex structure, based on multiple programming languages.
The more complex the app, the more important it is to get a backend. Simple applications may not require it at all.
Post-release expenses
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 promotion and effective marketing strategies. Regular updates, bug fixes, server maintenance, and user support are also included in post-launch costs. These costs are usually calculated separately, but are still part of the app development.
Application security level
A high level of protection is one of the main requirements of any application. Access to personal data, money and the user’s location must be reliably protected from hacking, viruses, etc. Therefore, the development of a secure mobile application that can detect suspicious activities, weaknesses, etc. requires large financial investments.
Conclusion
Mobile app development is a complex process with many factors affecting the end result. Fortunately, there are many ways to reduce the price: create an MVP, use a standard and simple design, etc. Remember that additional features and updates, as well as integration with the other platforms, can be added when you are sure that your application is what the market needs.
Categories: How to
Source: vtt.edu.vn