Custom mobile apps offer a huge amount of potential for businesses and individuals looking to increase their income or raise brand awareness. Indeed, it’s possible to reach THOUSANDS of downloads a day. There are a lot of identikit tools out there that’ll allow you to create an app without much effort: it’ll be just like the thousand other apps made by tools. Or, you could do it the other effortless way, and hire a specialist firm – like Iconic Solutions – to do it for you.
But why should you? What are the benefits of bespoke app design? Keep reading to find out.
All effective businesses evolve over time. Improvement is vital, and companies that stand still don’t tend to last.
If you’re investing in your app as a long-term brand promotion tool or as a long-term revenue creator, you need to be able to make changes and alterations quickly and efficiently.
Building a long-term relationship with a skilled developer will mean that you can make alterations to the software quickly as they arise.
Why can’t you do this with ‘off-the-shelf’ apps that have been tailored? Simply because they weren’t built with your company in mind: you may well be able to make the changes, but it’ll take more time – and be more expensive – as a result. What’s more, you can avoid the issue of having to find someone amongst the thousands of freelancers working on the web.
Bespoke apps will also be more efficient in terms of their aims, because they have been created specifically to meet those aims. In using ‘off-the-shelf’ software, you’ll usually find there are features or design aspects included that you simply don’t require. Removing them can be an obstacle and – in some cases – impossible.
WordPress is used by hundreds of thousands of websites around the world.
However, this flexibility comes at a price: security.
Because of the open-source nature of WordPress’ code and the thousands of plugins and themes developed by different software creators, loopholes are inevitable.
Bespoke apps are the opposite: no open source code and a one-of-a-kind security approach designed to protect all of the data contained within.
Put simply, bespoke software is the safer option. And with many modern apps containing a wealth of customer data – some of it financial – you can’t afford to compromise.
What’s more, having total control over the code will allow you to mitigate against other potential risks and ensure that the data can easily be restored in the event of any data loss.
The chances are that your business already makes of some software to deliver products or services to your customers.
Working with a bespoke app developer will allow you to guarantee integration of your existing software, should the need arise.
For instance, if you’re running a booking engine for a hotel or managing an e-commerce store, you’ll be able to integrate the app with your existing checkout cart. And because development of the app will be from scratch, you can do without having to sacrifice any of the features your customers require.
Existing and off-the-shelf software can be compatible, of course, but without access to the source code it’ll be much trickier to manage – and foresee – any issues.
Again, this will save you both time and money in the long run. Bespoke software means not compromising.
So, you’ve got a great app in place and it’s making profit.
The problem comes when there’s more demand for the app than you expected: suddenly, the resources you’ve allowed for aren’t enough and the app starts developing problems.
If you’ve got a bespoke developer in place to work with you, this isn’t a problem: they’ll be able to make adjustments to the app and allow it to continue to run effectively for the new users.
However, off-the-shelf apps usually have firm limits in place, and there’s no way to make adjustments.
Downtime for a popular app can cause a lot of problems:
- You can lose sales
- You can lose customers fed up at the app not working
- You can lose potential leads
- You can lose advertising revenue
And so on. Bespoke apps are less likely to suffer from downtime
The other stability benefit is future maintenance. Apps and software that piggyback on already-existing technology can do little if the technology is discontinued. Instability and uncertainty are guaranteed.
With bespoke apps, you can continue to update the code to ensure stability in the event of any changes to the operating system or the publisher’s own technology.
Your customers will thank you: there’s nothing more annoying than software that’s always crashing!
Like all skills, app development have a stiff learning curve.
Many companies aren’t in the position to lose a developer or two whilst they learn the necessary skills.
Bespoke app developers such as Iconic Solutions have encountered virtually every problem app development throws up, and have the experience to handle any issues quickly.
The user experience should always be top priority
The alternative could be losing hundreds of man hours to troubleshooting whilst your app is developed: this, in itself, is often far more than it would cost to have a bespoke app built.
Time is money, and bespoke developers can save you lots of it.
We’ve highlighted before just how competitive the app market is.
What’s the key to making waves in a competitive market? Standing out.
If you’ve got twenty competitors and nineteen of them are using the same tailored software, bespoke app development is the key to standing out.
- If your industry’s designs are mostly traditional, you can go modern.
- If your industry’s copy is modern, go traditional.
- Grey and white industry? Go purple and gold.
You get the idea. A bespoke designer – and solid UI research will enable you to create a design that sets your company apart AND gives customers exactly what they want in terms of features.
We’ve left this point to the end, but it’s probably the most important factor on the list.
A custom app developer will allow you to design the app in a way which suits the needs of your customers.
You’ll get EXACTLY the app that’ll make them happiest.
How can you achieve this? By carrying out in-depth research of your market and looking at the type of app they’re likely to respond to.
(For our guide on UX Design – a key part of this process – click here).
Customer happiness is the ultimate goal when it comes to app development, as without good reviews, frequent downloads and positive PR, your software will quickly slide out of view and be rendered invisible by the markets.
In the end, custom mobile apps are about getting exactly what you want AND exactly what your users want, all without any time investment on your part.
If you want to make money, increase brand exposure or give your customers an outstanding service AND do it all without the work or hassle, give Iconic Solutions a call today.
