Launching Your App: Are you committed?

If you’re like me you have five app ideas that could be amazing and a fun/cool project to work on. However people always has a great idea of an application that could change the way others use, touch or interact with with the world. But not everyone thinks about the steps that you have to go through to make this a reality. There are several things for you to consider before you start making your dream app into a reality. The three main things to consider are your investments: Money, Time and Sanity. In this article we are going to make sure that you are ready to take the step into making your app.

by jenn_jenn

1. Money

Figuring out how to setup the logistics of paying for an app is something that people often just barge into without considering what it is going to take. Unless you are a developer/designer and can learn to whip out some lines of code in your sleep and design something while driving to work you are probably going have to hire someone that can.

Developer

A key point to remember if you are using a developer is you are going to want to use a good developer. This will save yourself some time and headaches in the long run. Don’t get sticker shock on what the cost of a good developer could be. After all they will be giving you the tools to have a great application that could sell all thousands of copies. DO NOT try and get a developer to split profits 50/50 as business “partnership” or ask them to do this for their portfolio or anything of the sort. If a developer wants to spend their time doing something for free it is going to be on their own ideas and not yours.

Furthermore, you asking them to do it for their portfolio or free is degrading all the time and effort they have put into making themselves a competent professional so save yourself the hassle and don’t do it. Now if your a developer your money that you invest will be a bit different, it would be in hardware/software to make the app and not in labor.

Design

Your app needs to have an interface that is intuitive and something of beauty. Now I am not saying that this thing has to have all the bells and whistles in the world from a design standpoint. Some of the best apps have simple interfaces. Remember K.I.S.S. Keep It Simple, Stupid. The idea is to make something that people can use without having to think about it. A well designed application will blend into the background letting the user DO what the app is supposed to do instead of trying to figure out how to use it. As with a developer a good designer is an investment and is not something you can just pick based on coin toss.

A designer is not wanting to do something for their portfolio or for free for the exposure. They like the developers lead very busy lives with extensive project time lines and if their free time are bettering themselves in their field. You offering them $200 for 60hrs worth of work or trying to make it a freebie will anger the designer, devalue their work and just make the entire situation a nightmare. Now before you have a designer make the interface MAKE SURE you know what you are wanting your application to do. The designer only knows what you tell them and cannot read your mind. Communication is a HUMONGOUS money saver when working.

Marketing

Another thing to consider is advertising. Are you going to sell this app based off of word of mouth or are you going to place ads? Marketing of your app is just as important as designing/developing it. So in order to “make the most” of your money consider all of these factors before you get started. If you don’t really have an idea on how to market your app sit down and think about: What steps can you take? What market will your app be sold in? How are you going to attract customers? Do I need a website?  Am I going to use social media? Etc etc. You can make the best app in the world but if no-one knows about it or where to get it from how are you going to make money?

by FJTU (a veces on-line)

2. Time

I know what your thinking “My app is only this one little simple thing”. Stop right there. Rewind and lets try this process again. Just because it is simple in theory does not mean that a developer/designer can just sneeze, wiggle his nose and it will automatically appear. This is very important to realize from the get-go. Maybe your simple idea takes ten complex steps to figure out and it needs X, Y and Z to work. Maybe X isn’t invented yet and the developer needs to figure out a way to make it work.

Remember these kind of things take time and cannot just be Googled, slapped into a code window and then given to you. Once you get a simple problem solved there maybe another issue… Your server may not be able to handle the load…. The application keeps crashing…. etc. etc. Just be ready for a realistic time table and having setbacks and errors. Going into the process with an open mind and thinking about the worst case scenario will make you less apt to blowing a gasket and driving yourself crazy.

3. Sanity

Your mental state of well being will be pushed and beat on, abused and tested. Keep that in mind from the get-go. Just like these few things could happen, the app won’t work, your hosting will go down, your designer will be sick for 2 weeks. Things happen in life and creating a picture perfect time line and launch is setting yourself up for disappointment.

Let your people work. Watching them like a hawk is going to drive them crazy as well as yourself. “A watched pot never boils” is a perfect example. It does eventually boil but if you watch it you are consumed by it, engulfed in it and nothing else matters. If you do this with your application without taking time to  unplug and letting the people you paid do what they are supposed to do then you will go insane.

by Mac(3)

Final Thoughts

Hopefully this post has shed some light onto planning your app before you just run in there guns blazin’. This post was not meant to scare you out of making your app. It is a polite wake-up call before you get 3 months in and are wondering what you should do next.  Just remember to keep your head on straight and do the cliche’ thing and “make lemonade when life gives you lemons”.