Building successful mobile_apps

ANSWERSFROMTOPMOBILEAPPDEVELOPMENTFIRMS
Apublicationof
EXPERTADVICEON
BUILDINGSUCCESSFUL
MOBILEAPPS

Producedby
FlaviusSaracut
FollowhimonTwitter@FlaviusSaracut
FlaviusSaracutisco-founderandmarketingmanager
atMobiversal.Heisresponsibleforcreatingcontent
aboutmobileapps,blogging,networking,andcreating
socialmediacampaignsinordertogenerateleadsand
grow reach.BeforestartingMobiversal,heco-founded
severalstartupsincludingTitanBackup,asoftwaresolu-
tionacquiredin2009byGFI.

Contents
INTRODUCTION
APPIDEA
APPDESIGNANDUX
iOSVS.ANDROID
APPLAUNCH&MARKETING
THEFUTUREOFMOBILEAPPS
CONCLUSIONCONCLUSION
04
06
16
24
33
42
51

INTRODUCTION
SincewestartedMobiversalin2011,we’veservedover30
clientsandourappshavebeendownloadedmorethan1,5
miliontimes.Eventhoughwehaveextensiveexperience,we
thoughtitwouldbeusefultoﬁndouthowothertopmobileapp
developmentcompaniesareworkingtoturnclientideasinto
successfulapps.Whatfollowsisaconsolidationoftheadvice
thesesuccessfulcompaniessharedwithusabouttheirdevel-
opmentprocess,plusourownanswersonthesubject.opmentprocess,plusourownanswersonthesubject.
04

Participating
Companies:
KeyClients:LadyGaga,DelFriscosRestaurantGroup,KimKardashian,
InterscopeRecords,NBA
www.appetizermobile.com
www.mobiers.com
KeyClients:Gushcloud,PinyPoint,Shoemocracy,BlueHazeHouse,
GrahamGroup,CTSCapitalGroup,BricksMobile
www.fueled.com
KeyClients:Ducati,Porsche,P&G,Hallmark,Fashism,Malibu,
Bulova,ChicagoBulls,EffenVodka,UrbanDaddy
www.mobiversal.com
KeyClients:Forbes,Russmedia,PhantomALERT,“Findaway,Jose!”,
Paymo,Let’sdoit!,CallFlakes,CraveEat,Shelfster

KeyClients:Parrot,PHM,P&O,V&A,EuroTalk,RKCR/Y&R,Woisio,Just.me,
ADMERICA!
www.lemberg.co.uk
www.savvyapps.com
KeyClients:NFL,PBS,ForeignPolicyMagazine,Homesnap,Speek,
NetworkSolutions,BrainScope,CaptureAudio
www.raizlabs.com
KeyClients:Macy's,B&HPhoto,RueLaLa,Intuit,Bloomingdales,
EMC,SolidWorks,MIT,RunKeeper,HubSpot

Canyoutalkalittlebitaboutthe
initialstageofeachproject,howdo
youworkwithclientsatthisstage?
How doyoumakesureyouelimi-
natebadideas?
APPIDEA
07

APPIDEA
JordanEdelson
Oneofthecompany’scorevaluesistofostera“thinkfreely”
mentalityduringcollaborationwithclientsandstaff.There
isnosuchthingasabadidea-ourjobistoevolveanideaintosomething
amazing,eveniftheideacomesfrom “humble”beginnings.Withclients
rangingfrom LadyGagatotheNBA,AppetizerMobilepridesitselfinits
uniqueapproachtocollaboration,creativity,andsuccess.
08
SharethisEbook!SharethisEbook!
f
SharethisEbook!SharethisEbook!SharethisEbook!
in

APPIDEA
RyanMatzner
www.fueled.com
Whenaclienthasabadidea,Ijusttellhim:yourideasucks,
here'swhy.Ithinkmostclientsareopentocriticism,youjust
needtoexplaintothemwhy,soIexplainthem,eitherthere'sanothercom-
panythatalreadytriedthisandtheyfailed,thefailurewasforthisreason
andit'sthesameproblemyou'regonnahave,orthemarketisnotreadyfor
thatandhere'swhy.It'sreallyjustadiscussionwiththeclienttoeducate
themaboutwhyyoufeelthatway.Sometimesistoughbutultimatelyyou're
reallybuildinganMVPsoyou'regonnastartoutwiththeﬁrstversionand
thenthensortof,workonitandworkonit,soyou'llgettovalidatetheideathat
wayaswell.Clientsusuallycomewithaprettyclearideaintheirmindsbut
onceyoustarttalkingtothem andyoustartaskingsomehardquestions
abouthowthey'regonnadocertainthings,thensuddenlythey'relike,"OK,
Idon'tknow",andit'sok,it'spartofthejobtoworkthesethingsoutwith
them.
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APPIDEA
MichaelWatson
www.mobiers.com
•Demo-Asperthisstep,Mobierssetsupameetingwiththeclientsoas
totakehim/herthroughtheappswhichhavealreadybeendeveloped.The
solepurposeofdoingthisistogivearealfeelofwhattheclientcanexpect
aftersealingadealwiththeMobiersteam.
•RequirementGathering-Asperthissecondstep,ourProjectManagers
haveadiscussionwiththeclientinpersonorviaphone/emailtounderstand
his/herbusinessandtheapprequirements.Here,weguidetheclientbyof-
feringhim/herinnovativeideasintermsofappdesignandfunctionality.We
alsoensuretoconvincetheclientongettingridofanybad/irrelevantideas
whichmayhampertheyet-to-be-developedapp.Wedothisbymakingthe
clientawareaboutallill-effectswhichaparticularapphashadonabusi-
nessduetolackofproperfunctionalityand/ordesign.
•SettingMilestones-Oncewe’redonewithgatheringtheprojectrequire-
mentsandexpectations,thenextbigstepispresentingtheclientwitha
StatementofWork(SOW).
”Mentionedbelow,youcanﬁnd
briefinsightsonthestepswhich
markassteppingstonestowardsiterativedevelopmentofmobileapps.
Thestepshavebeenelaboratedasbelow:
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APPIDEA
Thisisactuallytheroadmapoutliningthemilestonesandcostsassociated
withtheprojectimplementation.Weensuretomaketheclientunderstand
everythingthat’sbeenmentionedwithinthisdocument.
••Wireframes-Framingwireframesisconsideredtobetheﬁnalsteppriorto
startingwiththeactualappdesignanddevelopmentprocess.Here,askele-
talframeworkisbeingdraftedfortheapp,therebymarkingthefoundation
oftheappdevelopmentwork.Theclient’sapprovalisessentialforthese
wireframes.
”
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APPIDEA
AlinMerches
www.mobiversal.com
Clientsapproachusfromallkindsof
sourcessuchas:email,socialmedia,
phone,etc.Firststepistoaskthemto
explainindetailtheirappidea/project.Unfortunatelywerarelyﬁndcustom-
erswhoreallyknowwhattheywant...Soatthisstagewetrytodiscusswith
them tobetterunderstandwhattheirplansare,whattheirbudgetis,etc.If
theirexpectationsareskyrocketingbuttheirbudgetislimited,theyauto-
maticallyexcludethemselvesfrom apossiblecollaboration.Inmostsitua-
tionswedon'ttellclientstheirideaisbadornot;theycomefrom various
marketsandnichesandit'shardforustojudgewhethertheirideawillbe
successful.Whatwecandothoughtoencourageisaskquestions,compli-
catedquestionsthatopenupclient'smindandrealizeanotherperspective.
Andthen(s)hecanchangesomething,pivotalittlebit,etc.
InconclusionWEDON'TELIMINATEbadideas,theyeliminatethemselves,
orsimplyput:ifafterseveraldiscussionswiththecustomers(he)insistson
havingthatappdone,wedoit.Ifwedon'tbelieveinthatideawesimply
don'tlistitinourportfolio.Wearenotyetinthatexclusiveclubofdevelop-
ingonlytheverytopnotchideasformobileapps.
”
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APPIDEA
OlhaMusakovska
www.lemberg.co.uk
AtLemberg,webelievetherearenoentirely‘bad’ideas.If
thereisaneedtobemet,anyidea,ifpresentedproperly,canbeasuccess.
Ifanideahassomethingfreshtoit,mixinsomegreatUI/UXdesign,add
skilledcodingandsufﬁcienttesting,andthendashgenerouslywithexcel-
lentmarketingstrategy-andyouhaveamealtobehold!
However,However,thisdoesnotmeanLembergtakesonallapprequestsitreceives.
Wemostlyraterequestsforwhattheyare-eitheravanilla‘Ihaveabrilliant
idea’request,oracomprehensivedocumentwithsomebasicmockups,or
anythinginbetween.Wegivehighestprioritytothoseclientswhocanpres-
enttheirideainthefullestway,whichmeanstheyhaveputintheirowntime
andeffortintotheiridea,doingresearchintotheappsmarket.Thismakes
usthinktheyaremoreseriousabouttheirideathanthosewho‘justdreamt
ofabrilliantidealastnight’.ofabrilliantidealastnight’.
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APPIDEA
GregRaiz
www.raizlabs.com
Therearenobadideas.Allideasarevalid,someideasare
positionedfortechnicalsuccessandmarketsuccessand
somearenot.Weworkwithclientstounderstandtheirbusinessandhow
ourskillsmatchedwiththeirideascanpositionaproductforsuccess.This
isaniterativeprocessacrosstheproductlifecycle.We'realwayspushingto
ﬁgureouthowwecanexecuteontheideasthattaketheproductfurthest.
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APPIDEA
KenYarmosh
www.savvyapps.com
Oneoftheearliestindicatorsifastartupprospectisgoing
tobeagoodﬁtisiftheycansuccinctlydescribewhatthey
aretryingtodo.Ifwehavetoseeathirty-pageslidedeckorhaveanhour
longconversation,theyaren'tfocusedenough.Ifyoucan'tgrabouratten-
tioninﬁfteenseconds,thenyou'renotgoingtobeabletodothesamewith
investors.Andmuchlikeaninvestor,weneedtoseeaclearmarketoppor-
tunityfortheappandunderstandthebusinessplan.
Welikestartupswhoalreadymayhavehadsomesuccesswithearlyproto-
typesorproofofconceptsandhavepartnershipsorotherrelationshipsthat
willhelpwithmarketingtheapp.Ultimately,wewanttoworkwithwinners.
Ifwedon’tbelievethere’slong-termviability,thenwewon’tevenengagein
thesalesprocess.
15
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Whatisyourworkﬂowand
approachatthedesignstage?Also,
ifyoucan,namesomeappsyou
loveintermsofdesignandUX.
APPDESIGN
ANDUX
16

APPDESIGNANDUX
JordanEdelson
Appdesignitselfisaniterativeprocessthatcontinuously
evolvesthroughouttheprojectlifecycle.Intheﬁrstfewmeet-
ingswithclients,ourgoalistobeopentothefullbandwidthofideas,no
matterhowambitiousoroutofthisworld.Usingtheclient’sdream listas
ourstartingpoint,ourﬁrsttaskistoidentifyatransparentbusinessmodel
thatcanbeeasilypitchedtofuturepartnersandinvestors.Nextweaddress
technicalfeasibilityanddraftaStatementofWorkthatdescribestowhat
extentourcompanywillbringtheclient’svisiontolife.Sometimestheclient
onlyonlyneedsaproofofconcept,othertimestheclientislookingforafullfea-
turedappwithamarketingstrategyinplaceonapplaunch.Givingtheclient
optionsonhowfartheywanttotaketheirideaallowsustoworkwithvirtual-
lyanybudget.
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APPDESIGNANDUX
RyanMatzner
www.fueled.com
Wireframesandthenmocks,Ithinkjusthavingreallytalented
designersisthekeypart,it'snotaboutamagicalprocessor
anything.IreallylikethedesignofRibbonandElevatr,youshoulddeﬁnitelly
checkthem out.AlsoseeJustLanded,WunWun,DarkSky,IFTTT,and
Sunrise.
18
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f
inAPPDESIGNANDUX
MichaelWatson
www.mobiers.com
•Usingprintabletemplates-WithiPhoneappdevelopmentandAn-
droidappdevelopmentbeingourspecialties,theappdesignteam atMo-
biers conductsquickiterationswiththepaperUI/UXprototypessoasto
eliminateanyﬂawsencounteredinthedesign.
•CreatingUI/UXapplicationwireframes-Althoughwireframeslacka
visualdesign,they’reanexcellentmeansofgettingintothedepthoffunc-
tionalitiesthatformacrucialpartoftheyet-to-be-developedmobileapp.
Aftertheabove2stepshavebeencrossedsuccessfully,theactualde-
signingofappisbeingundertaken(whichhasalreadybeenexplainedinthe
formerwrite-up).
TalkingabouttheappsMobierslovesintermsofdesignandUX;Iwouldlike
tomentionthesemobileapps:SwizzShoesiPhoneapp,PinyPointHealth
iPhoneapp,FitnessTrackerAndroidappandSoccerStatsProAndroidap-
plication.Mobiersteambelievestheseappshavetrulyhelpedthesocietyby
anappreciablelevel.
”
Workﬂowatthemobileapp
designstage:
19

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AlinMerches
www.mobiversal.com
Onlyforathirdoftheappswebuild
theappfromscratchmeaningdesign
included.Fortheoneswemakethedesign
for,usuallywehavediscussionmeetingswiththedesigner(theproject
leadertogetherwiththedesignerandsometimesourmarketingspecialist
aswell)andwegivesomeideas.Afterwardsthedesignermakessome
sketchesandthenwireframes.Thentogetherwiththecustomerwediscuss
whatistobeadded,changed,etc.Andstepbystepweﬁnalizethedesign.
RegardingsomeappsIdolike(disclosure:IamanAndroiduser)Icould
namethenewFacebookMessenger-it'sjustawesome,Feedly,Linkedin.
Concerninganappwedesignedin-houseandweareproudofIwouldmen-
tionayardsaleappthatwillbelaunchedsoon.
”
20

APPDESIGNANDUX
OlhaMusakovska
www.lemberg.co.uk
Asatechnologicalsupplierfordesignandmarketingagency,
LembergdoesnotcreateUI/UXdesign.Weconcentrateon
buildingandQAandletourpartnersdothecreative.Thisdoesnotmakeus
inanywayinferiortofull-cycleagencies,wejustthinkthatitisbetterto
masteronestageoftheprocessideallyratherthanbejack-of-all-trades.
Lembergpartnersupwithspeciﬁchigh-proﬁledesignvendorsfromthe
USortheUK,alwaysreadytoprovideadeveloper’sperspectivetothede-
signer.WeparticularlylovetheappscreatedinpartnershipwithKomarov
Mobile,thisisthelatestofthem:http://lemberg.co.uk/showcases/justme
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”
f
inAPPDESIGNANDUX
GregRaiz
www.raizlabs.com
Wehaveaveryintegratedapproachtoourdesignanddevelopment
process.Ourdesignorganizationworkscollaborativelywithourdevelop-
mentteam toensurethatthethingsthatwedesignaresupportedbygreat
technologydecisions.Thishappensthroughouttheproductcycle,starting
withtheconcept,wireframing,andcompositionstages.Theonlywaywe've
foundtocreateworld-classproductsistohaveatightdesignanddevelop-
mentmethodology.
22

APPDESIGNANDUX
KenYarmosh
www.savvyapps.com
WiththereleaseofiOS7,it'sbeenfunwatchingmanyapps
re-launchwiththeirnewdesigns.ButontheiOSsideofthe
house,Ibelievewe'reinatransitionperiodforwhataniOS7application
reallyis.Manyofourfavoriteappsaretoowhite,tooﬂat,andtooApple-like.
It'sgoingtotakesometimefordesignersanddeveloperstolivewithiOS7
beforeweseetrulyinspirediOS7applications.
23
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Androidhasgainedalotof
marketsharelately,should people
chooseAndroidoriOSﬁrst?
iOS vs.ANDROID
24

iOSvs.ANDROID
JordanEdelson
Android’smarketshareiseverincreasing,butiOSstilldominatesin
termsofhavinguser’sthatarewillingtotapthe“buy”button.Ideally,there
shouldbeabudgetallocatedfordevelopingforbothplatforms,butifwe
weretopickandchoose,weprefertolaunchwithiOSﬁrst.
”
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iOSvs.ANDROID
RyanMatzner
www.fueled.com
Youjustlookatwheretheusersare,who'sgonnabeusing
thisproductandthenyoujustlookattheresearchintermsof
whatthedistributionoftheoperatingsystemsisamongthoseusers.Most
ofthetimeinUS,ifwe'rejustgonnabuildoneplatformﬁrst,it'siOS.
27
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f
iniOSvs.ANDROID
MichaelWatson
www.mobiers.com
CreatinganappforAndroidmeanstakinginstridetheinconsistencyin
hardwarecalibration,asthereisahugediversityintheAndroidmarketin
termsofthebrandsthatsellAndroidphones.Contrarily,buildinganappfor
iOSwouldrequireaqualitativeanalysisoftheexclusiveiOShardwareonly.
Apparently,thatmakesiteasiertodevelopanappforiOSsincethedevel-
operisnotbeingpulledindifferentdirections.Moreover,theAPIsofAn-
droidarebulky(forlackofabetterword)andthereisstillalongwaytogo
inmatchinguptothesophisticationofiOStools.Android4hassurelymade
giantstridesforward,buttheglaringtruthisthatmostSmartPhonesarestill
usingAndroid2.x.So,developerscan’tusetheimprovedAndroidbecause
itwon’tbesupportedonthephonesthatrunoldAPIs.
Also,itholdsthedevelopmentcompanyingoodsteadbygaugingthe
marketresponsetotheappbycreatingitonaplatformthatfacilitatessim-
plerdevelopment.IftheappishappilylappedupbytheiOScustomers,it
canbemigratedtoAndroid.
Whilstitcan’tbearguedthatAndroidis
makingsomeseriousheadway,looking
atitfromthedeveloper’spointofview,
thecurrentscenestilladvocatesbuildingappsforiOS ﬁrst.Andyoucan
oweittothefragmentationthatAndroid-basedphonesbringalong.
”
27

f
iniOSvs.ANDROID
AlinMerches
www.mobiversal.com
WorldwidemarketshareofAndroid
is80%,iOSis16-17% fromthelast
stats(strictlyspeakingaboutsmart-
phones...).Now,eventhoughtheAndroidmarketshareishugethatdoesn't
automaticallymeanthatthisiswherethemoneyflowsinandout.That's
whyweaskourcustomersfirstwhatideaapptheyhaveandwhatisthe
PURPOSEoftheapp.Isitthepurposeofbrandawarenessamongmultiple
peopleacrosstheglobe?ThendefinitelyAndroidfirstistheoption,asafree
app.Isittomakemoneyonacertainyoungsters-Ygenerationmarket?
ThenTheniOSwouldbethechoice.Doyouwantagame?Whatkindofgame?
In-apppurchasebusinessmodel?Etc,etc.Allthesequestionshelpus
decidewhattochoosefirst,sothereisnotashortandsimplesolutionto
thisdebate.
Butfrommyperspective,seeingthehistoryofrequestsinourcompany,
Icansaywithoutadoubtthere’sachangefrom 2yearsagowhenpeople
barelyhadbudgetfortheAndroidversion,notmanyofthemchoseAndroid
first.Andasafinalnote,customersfrom USstillchooseiOSfirstbecause
USisamongthefewcountrieswhereiOShasabigchunkofmarketshare.
”
28

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iniOSvs.ANDROID
PS:WatchoutfortheWindowsMobilePhones;inmanycountriesinWest-
ernEuropetheyhavealmostthesamemarketshareasiOS,sonextyearwe
alreadyexpecttohavemoreandmorerequestsfrom Europeancustomers
forthisplatform.
”
29

iOSvs.ANDROID
OlhaMusakovska
www.lemberg.co.uk
Yes,Androidhasjusttakenover80% ofthesmartphone
market,anditmeansthatweshouldpaymoreattentiontothe
AndroidOS.However,itdependswhatcountriesandgenerationsyouare
targeting.Forexample,ifwearetalkingabouttheUSA,morethan40% of
smartphonesinthecountryareiOSpowered.Also,asrecentstudiesshow,
youthistrendingtowardtoiOS.
Duetothehugedevicedefragmentation,ourfirstpickwouldbeAndroid.
Simplybecauseitrequiresmoretestingonmanydevices.Forclientsthat
wanttolaunchbothAndroidandiOSappatonetime,Androidshouldgo
firstbecauseit’seasiertocatchupwithiPhone,whichdoesnotrequire
suchextensivetesting.Thisway,launchingAndroidfirstreducesthetime-
framebetweenthepilotappandrunner-upapp.
Besides,Besides,Androidusershavebeenneglectedbysomanyappmakerswho
alwayswentwithiPhonefirst.HandingAndroidthebatoncanfinallybring
somejusticeintotheequation.
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”
f
iniOSvs.ANDROID
AsmanycompaniesoptforiOSandAndroidatthesametime,it’sreally
essentialtohandletheQAprocessproperly.IntermsofQA,weconsider
testingonrealdevicesessential.Usingemulatorsonlywillresultinmultiple
bugs(especiallywhenwearetalkingaboutAndroid,astherearesomany
differentOSversions,screenresolutions,andotherproperties).
31

iOSvs.ANDROID
GregRaiz
www.raizlabs.com
Itdependsontheappandthetargetmarket.Androidhasalot
ofmarketsharebutittendstobewithcustomersthataremorepricesensi-
tive.TherearesomeproductsthatwouldbemoresuccessfulonAndroid
andothersthatwouldbemoresuccessfuloniOS.Weworkwithourclients
tohelpthemmakethesedecisionsbecauseultimatelywewanttheproduct
tosucceed.
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iOSvs.ANDROID
KenYarmosh
www.savvyapps.com
Itvariesbasedontheapplicationrequirementsandthegoals
ofthecompanyneedingtheapps.Therearesomecaseswhere
Androidmustbeused,especiallywhendealingwithdeephardwareintegra-
tionsorcustomizedROMs.Thereareotherinstanceswherethere'ssimply
notenoughfundingtobuildonbothplatformsatonce.Ourgeneralguid-
anceisthatiftheresourcesareavailabletodosoandit'sbeneﬁcialtobe
onbothplatforms,buildforbothinparallel.
33
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Whatadvicecanyougivein
regardstolaunchingandmarketing
anapp?
APPLAUNCH&
MARKETING
34

f
inAPPLAUNCH&MARKETING
JordanEdelson
Amarketingstrategyiscrucialtothesuccessofanapp.We
canbuildthemostbeautifullydesignedappintheworld,but
theappmaystillfailifpeopledon’tknowaboutit.OurheadquartersinTime
SquaresandourrelationshipswithPRﬁrms,RecordLabels,andcelebrities
givesusadistinctadvantage.Asdevelopers,it’simportanttounderstand
andcultivaterelationshipsacrossdifferentindustries.
35

f
inAPPLAUNCH&MARKETING
MichaelWatson
www.mobiers.com
•PressRelease-It’salwaysbeneﬁcialtoannouncethelaunchofyour
mobileappviaapressrelease.Carefullyplanthereleasedateandensureto
chooseaweekdayinsteadofaSaturdayoraSunday.
•Tweetaway-Createthenecessarybuzzforyourappbytweetingabout
it.Getpeopletotalkaboutyourproduct.
•GetBlogging-Spreadawordaboutyourmobileappbywritingblogs
aboutit.Maintainyourblogandupdateitregularlytogathertheattentionof
potentialcustomers.
•SendoutNewsletters-Doingthiswouldhelpyoureachmaximum cus-
tomerswho’vebeenlookingforanappthat’sexactlysimilartotheoneyou
plantolaunch.
•OptforASO(AppStoreOptimization)-BycombiningSEOwithASO,you
caneasilyimprovethevisibilityofyourappamongotherappsavailablein
themarket.
Forlaunchingamobileapp:
Formarketingamobileapp:
Here,I’m focusingontips(iffollowed
seriously)thatcanproveadvantageous
forlaunchingandmarketingamobileapplication.
”
36

APPLAUNCH&MARKETING
•Optforpaidpromotions-Makesurethepaidcampaignsforyourappare
functionalwithinafewdaysofitslaunch.
•Don’tforgetthepress-Nomatterhowlavishlyyou’velaunchedyourapp,
itisadvisedtokeepthereporterspostedaboutallthelatestfeaturesthat
youtendtoaddintheforthcomingdays.
•Enterintopartnershipwithotherappdevelopers-Integrateyourappwith
otherpopularapps.Thisisrecommendedforexpandingthecapabilitiesof
yourapp.
”
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APPLAUNCH&MARKETING
AlinMerches
www.mobiversal.com
Weloveprojectsthatdisruptcertainindustries,thinkofwhat
HotelTonightdidforlastminutehotelreservations,ittotally
changedthelandscape.Sothebestmarketingisyourproduct,however
that'snotenough.Youneedtopreparethewayforthebiglaunch,soit's
besttostartmarketingassoonorevenbeforeyoustartdevelopmentonthe
app.Firstthingistobuildalandingpage,youcandothiseasilywithser-
viceslikeLaunchRockorusingWordpress,andstartbuildinganemailwait-
inglist.
Appsarenotdifferentfrom otherproductspeoplewanttosellonline,
sogeneraladviceappliestoappsaswell:startbloggingaboutyourdomain,
becomeanexpertonyourﬁeld,engagepotentialusersondifferentchan-
nelslikeTwitterorFacebook,inordertodrawtrafﬁctoyourblog/landing
page.Anotherthingyoucandobeforelaunchistogatheralistofbloggers
onyournichewithwhom youcansetcertainpromotionalcampaignsonce
youlaunch.
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APPLAUNCH&MARKETING
Pickingupagoodappname,keywordsandhavinganawesomeicon
arealsoessential.Youcanﬁndusefulinformationonthissubjectinanice
interview/courseonMixergywithGabrielMachuret,authorofASO Ninja
andfounderofReleasemyapp.Thetruthisthatthere'snoeasywaytosuc-
cess,themobilelandscapeisverycompetitive,ittakesanexceptionalapp
backedbyhardworkandpatiencewhilepromotingit.
”
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APPLAUNCH&MARKETING
OlhaMusakovska
www.lemberg.co.uk
Wecanguideourclientthroughtheprocessofapplaunching
andmarketing,andwealwaystakestepstomakesurethatthe
projectisfullypreparedforlaunch.Thatmeanscheckingwhetherthereare
necessaryresourcesprepared:marketaccounts,marketingmaterials(for
uploadingAppStores).Weadviseourclientsaboutdeveloperlicenses
(whichtochooseetc),suggestideallaunchdate,andmore.
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APPLAUNCH&MARKETING
GregRaiz
www.raizlabs.com
Mobileisbecomingmoreimportantthenyourwebsite.Forsome
ofourclientswe'vebeenabletogenerate100'sofmillionsinrev-
enuewithanincreasingportioncomingfrommobile.Doingthingscorrectly
isbecomingcriticallyimportant.Largecompanieswillsometimestrytotake
shortcutsindevelopmenttoproduceaproductatlowercost.Inourexperi-
enceit'sthedifferencefromathreestarappandaﬁvestarappandthatdif-
ferencecanbe100'sofmillions.
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APPLAUNCH&MARKETING
KenYarmosh
www.savvyapps.com
I'vespokenonandwrittenonthistopicextensivelyand
wouldencouragepeopletocheckoutmybookAppSavvy
ormyinterview inAppvillemagazine.Theshortansweristhatmarketing
startsthesamedaythatdevelopmentdoes.Simplycreatinganappwillnot
leadtofameandfortune.It'sjustthequickestwaytolaunchanapp—possi-
blyevenagreatone—thatnoonecaresabout.
42
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Whataretheindustriesorareas
wheremobileappscouldhaveabig
impactinthenextperiod?Whatare-
asareyoumostexcitedabout?
THEFUTUREOF
MOBILEAPPS
43

JordanEdelson
We’resuperexcitedaboutaugmentedrealityandthepossibilitiesthat
UnityGameengineopensupinthisspace.
”
44
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RyanMatzner
www.fueled.com
Welikeecommerce,anythingthat'smakingmoneyrightawayisalways
nice.Welikeproductsthathaveaclearandearlyroutetomonetization,
that'ssortofourfavorite.Butanythingdisruptive,that'sultimatelywhatde-
ﬁnesaproductthatwegetinvolvedwith.It'snotallecommerce,it'sjust
anythingdisruptive,peoplethatarebringingsomesortofdisruptiveelement
toanestablishedmarket,isexactlywhatwelovetosee.
”
45
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AsperMobiers,theindustrieswhere
mobileappscouldhaveabigimpactin
thecomingyearsincludetheonesmen-
tionedbelow:
f
inTHEFUTUREOFMOBILEAPPS
MichaelWatson
www.mobiers.com
•E-Commerce-Ithasbeenpredictedthatintheyear2015,simplemobile
appswouldallow customerstocheckintoastorebysimplytakingthe
phoneintothepremises.Inadditiontothis,appswouldalsoallowtheretail-
erstoofferpromotionsviamobiledevices.
•Travel-Itisinterestingtoknowthatnowwehaveamobileappthathelps
passengersknowaboutthearrivaltimeofdifferenttrainsandthestations
they’rearrivingat.Thecomingyearswouldwitnessmajorimprovementsin
thetravelindustrywithinnovativemobileappscomingintothemarket.
•Sports-Withmobileappsalreadyavailableforgettingnewsandsched-
ulesforvarioussportsevents,theSportsindustrywilldeﬁnitelywitnessa
hugesuccesswiththeintroductionofnewandimprovedmobileapps.
Comprisedofalivelyappdevelopmentteam,Mobiersisexcitedabout
areasviz:E-CommerceandTravelandisreadytotakeupany‘HARD’or
‘BIG’appdevelopmentchallengethatcomesitsway.
46

AlinMerches
www.mobiversal.com
FortheshorttermornearfutureIstillbetongames,especiallyforthe
creatorsofgameswhoalreadyhaveasuccessfultitle,thenIwouldsay
manyofSaaSwebappsshould havenativemobileappsfortheirmobile
users.Ialsoseepotentialinhealthcareappsandeverythingrelatedtomed-
icalequipment.Thisisgrowingevenindevelopingcountries,wheremobile
technologyisusedtodeliverhealthtraining,enablemoreefﬁcientmonitor-
inganddatacollection,andultimatelyimprovethedeliveryofhealthser-
vices.
”
47
f
in

Medicine
Currently,Currently,asetofheartratemonitors,breathalyzers,bloodpressuremoni-
tors,glucometers,andpulseoximeterscantransferdatatomobileordesk-
topdevicesviaBluetoothorWi-Fi.Oneusecaseofthisisthatpatientscan
bemonitoreddistantlyanddoctorscanmonitortheirstateofhealthusing
theiriPads,forexample.Trafficpolicecanmeasurebloodalcohollevelsin
driversandtransferthedataontoaunifieddatabase.Varioussensorsinte-
gratedintoarmourcantakesoldier'svitalsignsonbattlefield-lookslike
MichioKaku’spredictionaboutsmartarmourwillbefulfilledwellbefore
2050.
There’salonglistofareasthistechnologycanbeappliedin.
”
f
inTHEFUTUREOFMOBILEAPPS
OlhaMusakovska
www.lemberg.co.uk
Forone,wehavebeenkeepingtrackof
how Bluetoothtechnologyisevolving.
Recentreportssaythatmoremedicaldevices
willmakeuseofwirelesstechnologyoverthenextfewyears,andBluetooth
Smartwillaccountforathirdofthesedevices.ThismeansthatSmartdevic-
es(somecallthemappcessories)suchasglucometers,heartratemonitors,
shoesensors,andmorewillpushthelimitsoftheircapabilities.
48

•Lifestyle
Useyourmobilephonetomonitoryourweightusingdatarecordedfrom
yourweightscales,improveyourposturewithSmartposturesensors.Soon
SmartwatchesandNotificationdevices,liketheSmartClock,willbecome
youreverydaycompanions.
•Housing
FromcontrollingyouLEDoutdoorlightswithyourphonetosmarthomesor
hotelslikethehubbyPremierInn.
•Sports
SmartdeviceslikeFitnesstrackersandCyclingsensorswillrecordyour
sportsactivitiesontoyourphoneandpostyourachievementsto,say,Face-
book.
•Gaming
From toyhelicoptersandcarstohigh-endaugmentedrealitydeviceslike
AR.Drone.
•Automotive
Moderncarshavefull-fledgedBluetoothtoworkwithandconnecttoyour
phone,butwe’retalkingsmallaccessorydevicesliketirepressuresensors
etc.thatwillnowsenddatatoyourphone.
•Security
A generalexamplewouldbeallsortsofanti-lossdeviceslikebicycle
locks/alarms,amorespecificexamplearecameraremotetimers.
f
inTHEFUTUREOFMOBILEAPPS49

”
GregRaiz
www.raizlabs.com
NotsureIhaveagoodanswerhere.We'reexcitedaboutworldchang-
ingsoftwareandthereareopportunitiesinmobileacrossallindustries.
50
f
in

”
KenYarmosh
www.savvyapps.com
Thelastyearsavvyappshasseenasizeableincreaseindeveloping
appsthatwillnevergetpublishedonanappstore.Rangingfrom medical
devicestosalestools,enterpriseorin-houseapplicationdevelopmentis
reallystartingtocomeintoitsown.Ofcourse,everyoneistalkingabout
driveables,wearables,andtheconnectedhome.So,whilecorporationsare
justcatchingupinsidetheenterprisewithcustom smartphoneandtablet
applications,theconsumerfrontisagainpushingtheedgeforward.We
expectaninﬂuxforbothareasin2014.expectaninﬂuxforbothareasin2014.
51
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Creatinganappforasmartphoneortabletstartswithagreatidea.
Butonceyouhaveanawesomeidea,theappdevelopmentprocessthen
becomesamatterofweighinganumberofoptions.
Toincreaseyourchancesofsuccess,youneedtohavetherighttech-
nologypartner,atrustedadvisortohelpyoumakesoundbusinessdeci-
sions,andsomeonewhocanbethereforyoueverystepoftheway.
"Inthisnewwaveoftechnology,youcan'tdo
itallyourself,youhavetoformalliances.”
-CarlosSlimHelu
CONCLUSION
52
f
in

Letushelp
withyourmobileapp.
Welovetakingideasand
turningthemintorealapps.
Simplyclickheretotellus
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