Mistakes to Avoid when Developing Mobile Apps

In today’s digital market, mobile apps are gaining more attention and demand than ever due to the worldwide increase of smartphone users. A report claims that over 4.5 million mobile apps are available on the Google Play Store and Apple Store combined.

Mobile apps have become more prevalent, helping businesses level up and increase sales and exposure while serving customers better. However, developing an app is not as simple as it seems; there are several mistakes your mobile app developers can make leading to app failure.

The mobile development industry reveals that 80% of apps are uninstalled after their first usage. This means the mobile app industry is getting more competitive, and consumers are extremely picky about apps that give them the best experience.

Therefore, in this article, we will discuss how you can ensure your mobile app stands out from the crowd and provide a real competitive advantage for your business. Also, what mistakes should you avoid in the mobile app, and what causes apps to fail? At the end of this article, you'll be a step closer to developing a successful mobile app that better serves your customers.

Without further ado, let’s dive in.

Why do apps fail? Top 6 Reasons for Mobile App Failure

Many factors contribute to problems with app development and launch. Here, we review the top six reasons why apps fail.

1. Failure to Research and Communicate Users' Demand

   Developers are usually overconfident in their abilities to develop user-friendly apps. Many upcoming mobile app developing companies won't bother to ask you about the result of market research you have conducted before reaching out to them. You must have a well-documented research report to present to developers. Every mobile app should be built on well-tailored and intense user research, especially in the initial stage of development. Intense user research will help your developer create an app that gives users the best experience.

   However, apart from conducting user research, you must also ensure your analysis is precise and accurate. Successful research must give developers insights into user intents, motivations, pain points, and behavioral patterns. Also, you must research what the competition looks like and provide a unique solution that gives you a competitive edge in the marketplace.

   

   To provide your potential users with their wants, start with an analysis of what you want to create. Here are questions you need to answer before developing your app.

   • How demanding is the solution your app is offering to users?
   • What unique features will your app offer that makes it stay competitive and overwhelm users? Because app stores are saturated with thousands of similar app options.
   • Is your app UI/UX design compatible with the new market trends?
   • Does it fit into your business model?

   This is the first head start technique. It saves your app developer time and helps them build a user-friendly app.

2. Involving Too Many Experts

   Planning and hearing opinions from different stakeholders are essential strategies in kick-starting app development. However, involving too many experts can be a disaster for an app development project. This is because you will struggle to manage them effectively. Moreover, opinions from each expert can contradict, causing the app to fail.

   Therefore, your responsibility as the business owner is to listen to each professional’s opinions and strike a balance because everyone wants a say. You must devise an effective strategy for achieving project goals and ensure everybody adheres to your business standards.

   Your project strategy should focus on figuring out necessary experts only and assign roles that suit their expertise from the initial stage of app development. This includes project developers, recommendation givers, feedback providers, and the planning team. Also, set up an effective communication platform such as Slack Channel to keep everybody on the same page. Creating a solid project management structure will prevent unnecessary mistakes that can cause app failure.

3. Mismanaging App Development Budget

   Budget misappropriation is another critical factor that can cause an app development to head for the rocks. As a business owner, you need to pay attention to the size of your budget and how it’s managed.

   Here are three strategies you should incorporate right from the first stage of your project to safeguard against mismanaging and blowing up your app development budget.

   
   • Make a detailed and realistic budget. Do your research and earmark a clear budget before initiating the app development process. Get quotes from different mobile app development companies and freelancers. This will give you an idea of how much to budget. Also, having a good understanding of your app features and elements will help you set a reasonable budget before getting on track.
   • Plan for unexpected costs. Unexpected needs and development will always emerge, regardless of how extensive and detailed your budget is. A solid budget should leave provision for unplanned finance.
   • Stick to your budget. Once you've made a detailed budget and planned for unexpected costs, ensure to stick to it at every phase of the app development process.

   Developing a Mobile app is a complex and expensive project. To avoid app failure, you must adopt effective budget management that guarantees success. Check out our guide on how to estimate app development costs.

4. Poor Communication with Developers

   Most mobile app failures are traceable to poor communication during the development process. A proven way to prevent this mistake is by prioritizing communication from the beginning. Making clear and concise communication a priority helps inform your developers of your expectations at the initial stage of app development.

   

   Ensure that the developers understand your proposed app synopsis, the app objectives, its unique features, and your business model. You can start by creating flowcharts, diagrams, and sample sketches of the app interface so that developers can get the idea and work closely with it.

   Communicating the entire idea of your app to developers may seem like a daunting task, but it’s one you have to commit to, as it will save you the stress of app failure in the long run.

5. Mimicking a website as a Mobile App

   The purpose of a mobile app is to make the customer journey more accessible and provide enhanced user value. However, if your mobile app isn’t different from your website, why should your users bother downloading it?

   Your mobile app may be similar to your website interface, but it must be distinct. One way to achieve this is by ensuring that developers incorporate unique functionalities and designs suitable for smartphones, as users use website/web apps and mobile apps differently. Although this might not be a direct measure of app success, both channels must create a different user experience and interface. This will help you offer various performances to users in optimum conditions.

6. Developing an App for Multiple Platforms at Once

   Developing a mobile app for multiple platforms can help your business reach many users. However, creating apps for too many platforms at once can often cause app development to fail. One practical approach is to focus on a single platform and choose the OS that suits your users.

   

   But beyond app failure, there is also one other downside of developing a mobile app for too many platforms, which is:

   • Financial implication. Building apps for different platforms at once can blow up your budget. For instance, developing iOS and Android apps at once is a daunting task and not good economics in app development.

   Therefore, starting with a platform and optimizing the app based on users' feedback is safer if you are just beginning to build an app. Expanding your app base should be a gradual process, as this will help you achieve customer retention and conserve your budget.

Partner with a mobile app developer from Boston UniSoft

Now that you know which mistakes to avoid when developing your app and how they can affect the success of your app, endeavor to entrust your project to an experienced mobile development company with a good understanding of both business and technical aspects of app development.

At Boston UniSoft, we pride ourselves on an experienced team and IT professionals and mobile app developers. Over the years, we have worked with top companies and produced outstanding results for our clients. Also, we have a wealth of experience in industries like FinTech, mutual funds, and other payment systems. Rest assured that your work is in a safe hand when you partner with our developers.

You can glance through our mobile app portfolio to see our recently completed app development projects. Also, are you looking for a mobile development company to cater to your project from the initial to the final stage? Don’t hesitate to contact us.