Mobile apps serve as a great way for businesses to bring value to their audience. And while hiring a mobile app development team has become trivial, finding the right partner for the job can feel overwhelming both for newcomers and seasoned entrepreneurs. To help you make the right decision, our team has prepared a comprehensive guide for navigating the market, bringing your vision to life, and reaching the full potential.
Why Invest in Mobile App Development?
For nearly a decade, the mobile app market remains a lucrative destination for businesses. The worldwide revenues from mobile apps have grown from under $100 billion in 2014 to nearly $700 billion in 2021 and are estimated to reach $935 billion in 2023. Still, even if you don’t consider your bottom line the only thing to care for, there are many good reasons why businesses should invest in the development of a mobile app:
- Broader reach: Having a mobile app makes your business visible on the global scale, especially if it is properly localized.
- Engaged audience: Mobile apps offer a variety of marketing strategies that can create a virtuous cycle of referrals and facilitate sustainable growth.
- Communication: One of the key aspects of fostering brand loyalty is showing the customers that their voices are heard, and apps provide a state-of-the-art platform for that.
- Outstanding experience: Aside from communication, apps offer many ways to create a memorable user experience that can help to build your company’s image.
- Valuable insights: The data gathered by mobile apps will let you better understand your audience and exceed their expectations.
To sum up, investing in mobile app development will not only make your business more profitable but also increase its resilience and sustainability in the long term.
Before You Hire Mobile App Developers: Things to Consider
To be clear, an investment will only pay off if the resources are allocated appropriately. Otherwise, even with the stellar mobile app development team at your side, you may end up with the right product in the wrong place. To avoid unnecessary expenses, go through this checklist before you make the decision.
Understand your audience
In the end, the app is expected to serve your customers, so the first logical step would be to determine who these people are. There are many proven techniques for identifying your app’s target audience as well as collecting data to inform your strategic decisions. Just remember that an app user is not the same as your clientele in general, so don’t skip on research.
Identify the problem and the solution
Now that you know who you are developing the app for, find out what problems it might solve for them. This will also help you flesh out the general idea of an app and how it is expected to meet your business needs.
Formulate the requirements
Now that you have a general sense of direction, you can specify your requirements for the app. The key decision you will make at this stage is whether you want the app to be developed for Android or iOS. While it might be tempting to just answer “both,” such an option may be risky from the budget standpoint, which will also be outlined once the requirements are laid out.
Choose between outsourced and in-house developers
Developing the app in-house vs outsourcing the task is an important decision that will determine success of the outcome. Outsourcing comes in many forms, from working with offshore companies to hiring freelancers, with each option having its own set of advantages. None of them will be an ultimate one-fits-all solution, unfortunately, so make sure you understand the strengths and limitations of each.
An in-house mobile apps development team becomes a part of your company and usually works in the same office as the rest of staff members. Its main features may be outlined as follows:
- High level of integration with business processes;
- Robust and seamless communication;
- The highest level of control over the development process;
- Considerable investment (full-time salary, vacations and sick days, inventory, supplies, workspace, etc.);
- The available talent pool is restricted to candidates residing nearby or willing to relocate;
- Depending on the size of the team, management may be required to keep up with the company’s business processes.
The bottom line: A great way if you need as much control over the development process as possible but also the most resource-heavy one.
Outsourced mobile app development service can be an independent contractor or a full-fledged company that specializes in working remotely. It is characterized by:
- More flexibility in setting up the development process;
- Broader talent pool – an opportunity to choose from experts on a global scale;
- Usually greater affordability due to highly competitive environment;
- Possible communication gaps – proficiency with remote communication varies;
- Less tight control – integration with the workflow can be challenging.
The bottom line: More affordable and often higher quality of service than the in-house team but requires some autonomy and research prior to hiring.
Hiring a Mobile App Development Team: 5 Essential Steps
As you can see, the success of your app depends on whether you select the right people to do the job. Here is the essential list of things you should check to guarantee the desired outcome.
Portfolio
Perhaps the most obvious step, yet also one of the often misunderstood ones. Check what the mobile app development team wants to share about themselves and their work. Try to understand whether this aligns with your expectations. Is it close to what you are trying to achieve?
Expertise
It may look difficult to evaluate the level of technical proficiency without being an expert developer yourself. However, you can get a sense of what to expect from a given mobile applications development team by downloading the app and trying it out yourself. If it feels like something you would be happy to offer your customers – that is definitely a good sign.
Reaching out
No number of success stories will ever beat asking a question directly. Not only will it give you all the information that is missing from the portfolio, such as specific competencies, it will also provide the opportunity to test their readiness to communicate as well as a glimpse into their workplace culture and whether it will work with yours.
Other clients
If you still have some doubts – don’t hesitate to ask around about the team you consider hiring. Check the clients listed on their website and contact those you find trustworthy. A satisfied customer will always be happy to share their story – or help you avoid the same pitfall.
Scope of Services
App development is a continuous process. You’ll probably want maintenance or security upgrades later on, or a UI redesign to keep up with the latest tastes and trends. Ask the developers whether they provide these services to avoid the hassle of changing the team midway.
Where to Find Mobile App Developers for Hire
If you settle on the outsourcing option, the next challenge you face is where to look for them. Luckily, these companies specialize in working via the Internet, so there are plenty of ways to find them online:
- Freelancing platforms: There are many online marketplaces where you can find experts in any field. Upwork is perhaps the most recognizable example, although there are many more, like Behance and Dribble. Note, however, that these platforms are generally for individual freelancers rather than full-fledged mobile app development teams.
- B2B directories: These services work in much the same way as Upwork but focus on companies and service providers. Vendors like Clutch and GoodFirms work predominantly with teams whereas communities like AppFutura are more encompassing and feature both. The validation procedures here are rather strict, so you will know at once whether the selected company is trustworthy.
- Client websites: If you have something very specific in mind and the options above won’t give you what you want, you can go the other way: Pick a product that you like and find out who developed it. The development team responsible for the app will be credited somewhere on the website, and you can always try and reach out to them to offer cooperation.
Final Thoughts
Creating a great app to complement your services is challenging; keeping it that way is even more so. However, finding the right people for your team will solve both of these problems. Our team of professionals offers a broad range of mobile app development services tried and tested by numerous satisfied clients. Contact us and we’ll help your business reach its true potential.