People who use apps typically love the good ones, the ones that are well built, easy to use, and that solves a problem. After all, the smartphone is designed to make your life easier by combining many of the things you use daily in one palm-sized device. It’s a revolution in efficiency and ease compared to the piles of equipment and products it replaced.
There is no doubt that well-designed apps can be lucrative and gratifying to create. The beauty of app design is that it often doesn’t have to be complicated to be successful. If you are an app lover or see a future for yourself in app development, here are the basic steps you’ll need to know to move from your initial idea to a working app.
Find Your Niche
Some people come into app development knowing exactly what issue they want to tackle and have a concept for a solution. Others may have a passion for a genre of apps, such as word games, finance, or pop culture. Some people approaching the app design business may just be interested in app building as a concept.
No matter where you are starting, you’ll want to focus on something specific. If you try to solve too many problems or try to create too many different types of experiences, you’re likely to lose your way. Test whether you have successfully focused on a narrow enough purpose for your app by summarizing it in one normal-length sentence. If you find that you need a paragraph to explain it, you probably need to do some concept editing.
Check Out the Competition
You might feel like your idea is brand new, but there are lots of creative people out there. It’s possible that someone else beat you to the punch with your idea. That shouldn’t be a barrier to your research, though. Just because someone else may have gotten there first doesn’t mean you can’t do it bigger, better, faster, or more efficiently.
If your stroke of genius addresses a problem in a novel way, take the time to explore related apps. You can learn about which features work and which don’t, avoiding costly development time and resources. Pay attention to common themes that run through these related apps. They may signal things that consumers will expect you to provide.
Learn to Code
Familiarize yourself with coding languages and development platforms. It is important to have a good understanding of which language and platform will be most suitable for your application before you begin writing the code. Take some time to look into popular programming languages such as Java, Swift, or Python, as well as their associated development environments like Android Studio, XCode, or Visual Studio.
There is no need to get overwhelmed with this step, even if you don’t think of yourself as a coder. There are some extremely accessible in-person and online courses that will teach you what you need to know. If you are in a hurry or just want to learn the basics, check out classes that are created as boot camps. A Swift bootcamp, for example, will quickly teach you the basics of writing code for apps, enough for you to get started on your project.
Start with a Simple Project
Once you’ve chosen the language and platform you want to use, it is recommended that you start by writing a simple application. This will get you used to learn how to use the development environment and understand the basics of coding. You can experience and get comfortable with creating code, debugging, and troubleshooting before you move on to more complex projects.
Sometimes practicing something simple can be inspiring as well. Coding is both creative and logical work, which can put you into a good zone for brainstorming and envisioning larger projects.
Break Down a Plan
Once you are familiar with the basics, it’s time to start planning out your project and breaking it down into small tasks that can be completed independently. This will help you get a better understanding of how each part of the application works, as well as identify potential challenges before you begin coding.
Test and Troubleshoot
After writing the code for your app, it is important to make sure that it works as expected by testing it out. While you test, look for any issues or bugs that may need to be addressed. You may want to have others use the app to ensure that it’s functioning the way someone using it would expect.
Deploy It
Put it out in the world and see how it goes!
Keep Learning
Make adjustments based on user feedback or improve the performance of your app. This is an ongoing process as users interact with and use your application. Additionally, keep learning about coding. If you stay up-to-date on the latest coding trends, you can keep improving the quality of your application.
