June 2017

For any construction project, time, planning, and effort are essential. To build a beautiful office building, management needs to invest in concrete, bricks, mortar, equipment, and human resource, among others. The same goes with application (app) development. Both front-end and back-end development take time, effort, and resources, which is why estimating the amount of time to build an app is quite hard.
So how long does it really take to build a mobile app? After the planning, strategizing, and organizing stages, most information technology (IT) companies will say that development can take anywhere from two to six months—but really it takes much longer than that.
Let’s go through the mobile app building process together. While many online IT courses will say that mobile app development is easy, it’s a little more complicated than that.

Before getting down to business and actually building the application, a lot of planning and strategizing needs to be done. This includes ironing out the concept of the application, when you want it to be launched, and who will handle the project. Pre-planning also includes assigning roles and defining boundaries, allotting budget, and setting goals, among others. 
Apart from that, you also have to check if there are applications similar to yours out there. Before getting too excited, you have to know if what you plan to introduce is new to the world—if it’s not, then you have to know how to differentiate yourself.

Before starting the design and preparation, first you have to identify which operating systems and devices you want to develop your app for—iOS, Android, Windows, all? Next, the team must get together and iron out the final details—what functions the app should have and what the app should look like.
A storyboard containing all your ideas will also help smoothen the development process. During this stage, it will also be beneficial to quickly build a prototype to ensure your plans were well thought out. Remember, quickly making a prototype is beneficial for testing purposes—it does not have to be perfect, just functioning.

The last thing you need to do before actually building your application is designing the user experience (UX). The success of your application will rely heavily on the UX, later, as dictated by the user interface (UI). Ironing out the design and codes of both of these functions is essential before the actual app development can be enacted.

After all the pre-planning and preparation, here comes the actual building of the app. Select the platform—Swift, Agile, etc.—you would like to use to build the application and start enacting your plans, making sure that the code is flawless.

After building your application, testing your program out for bugs is essential. Releasing a faulty product is always a bad thing to do. If the public sees that your application is filled with inconsistencies, there is no coming back from that. Starting strong should always be the best way to go.

​At App-Scoop, we believe every person and organization experiences one of two mutually exclusive states, either growth or decay. In an effort to educate our readers and provide insight into the latest mobile app trends, below we highlight 4 of the more exciting mobile app trends of 2017 we have observed:

​Smart apps for homes are continuing to be developed that help with monitoring and the better use of utility resources. For instance, mobile apps for the home allow users to remotely control the home lights, heating, home locks, and alter and monitor home security features from anywhere around the globe. This affords homeowners an intelligent new method to keep costs down and also addresses the rising concerns of parents and care providers to monitor their aging parents, pets, and children.
 
The Internet of Things is the interconnection via the internet of computing devices embedded in everyday objects both household and otherwise, allowing them to both send and receive informational data. According to http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/internet-of-things-market-573.html, the Internet of Things market is estimated to grow from $157 billion (US currency) in 2016 to $661 billion (US currency) in 2021. The integration of the Internet of Things application is impacting transport, security, healthcare, energy, education, and automobiles. Given the breadth of its applicability, it stands as one of the mobile app trends to watch out for in 2017.

As discussed in http://www.ascendle.com/blog/top-7-trends-in-mobile-apps-for-2017-and-beyond, technology companies are beginning to embed their technology with more sophisticated Artificial Intelligence (AI). For instance, Apple has developed Siri, IBM has developed Watson and Microsoft has done the same with Cortana. This AI technology could further be commercialized to impact virtually any industry and can be utilized for any form of education, professional development and even lead to further replacement of employee jobs and job functions. Moreover, as highlighted by Hollywood films, the AI technology can be useful for personal company and entertainment. 
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​Location based services are gaining further momentum and gaining focus within marketing efforts. Mobile apps with location based services embedded allow for a business to do such things as:

• advertise at one specific store or specific stores and not across all stores;
• cross-promote with corporate affiliates or partners; and
• provide nearby customers with spur of the moment or timed specials. 

 
In essence, location based services allows a company to target customers in specified areas and engage with them through various promotional or information alerts. 
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​2017 will introduce a minor yet convenient revolution with Android Instant Apps. Android Instant Apps have the capacity to instantly load on a phone without the need of downloads or installation times. The instantaneous nature of Android Instant Apps will serve those constantly imploring for technology to become faster, stronger and more robust. Additionally, the particularly beneficial element of Android Instant Apps will be overcoming the reluctance some users may have in trying a new mobile app.
 
Technologically speaking… the future is brighter than ever!
 

​Building a technology-based start-up without a technological background is a daunting challenge to most. Although bright business and technological ideas invariably fuel excitement, the excitement often is quickly overshadowed by trepidation over the lack of technical skills and a technical background. Start-up success should be premised on the viability of the concept rather than primarily the technical execution. In spite of technological shortcomings, one can build a technology-based start-up (and eventual empire) through persistence, organization, and intelligent decisions. Below are a few rudimentary strategic ideas and elements to consider to help build a technology start-up even without a technical background. 

​Ideas may be small and simple, or large and complicated. Crystallize your thoughts and ideas by documenting them. The act of rolling up your sleeves and taking the necessary time at the outset to write down your business idea has numerous benefits to visionaries and entrepreneurs. One of, if not the most important benefits of writing down a business idea is that allows for the opportunity to gain clarity. Writing down business ideas allows one to think more clearly, creatively, and critically about what it is that they will be creating and or selling. Additional benefits of writing down business ideas are that it averts the chance of forgetting ideas, and increases excitement and follow through with ideas.

​After you have documented your business idea and formulated a business plan, it is wise to reach out to your target market to better understand the desirability and feasibility of your product or service and collect feedback to help build upon your original idea. Some of the sort of questions you would ask your target customers would be:
 

• Would your technology assist them with a current problem?
• Would they pay for it and if so, how much?

 
In the event that you require more detailed guidance in understanding the sort of questions to ask or the information you should seek, it is beneficial to take  Steve Blank’s free online class on the Udacity website. 

​Depending on your time and interests, you may wish to learn to code to help bring your tech start-up to life. Nonetheless, a more prudent use of your time may be to recruit a technical partner who can manage the technology end of the business while you work on the business itself.  Although you may be reluctant to provide a percentage of the ownership share of the company at the outset, it may be your best bet to take on a partner to progress the initial idea into a product and in turn, a viable business. In essence, when one lacks both the necessary technical skills and the monetary resources to outsource the development work, working with a partner is virtually essential. Keep in mind that a smaller share of a viable business is more valuable than sole ownership of a non-profitable business or simply just a great idea.
 
Commonly, entrepreneurs will rely on their personal and professional network to team up on tackling new start-ups. This allows entrepreneurs to work with those who they feel most comfortable with. Nonetheless, alternatives to resorting to your personal and professional networks are to create connections and recruit through various networking events, university job fairs, start-up events etc. Additionally, online tools like LinkedIn and Angel list are excellent platforms for creating connections with various technical and non-technical professionals. Like all important personal relationships in life, it is critical not to rush in selecting those who you wish to work with in starting or managing your company. Perform reasonable due diligence in determining whether the individuals you have selected not only have the capability of completing the nature of work required but also fit well personality-wise. Toxicity and disharmony among work relationships will more often than not result in failed start-ups. 

The success of all business enterprises requires marketing and an ambitious sales team as the product or service it offers must be known to potential buyers. Do not wait to have a polished product or refined service before commencing your marketing and sales efforts. In terms of branding, you can begin creating an identity through the creation of a tailored image consisting of particular colors, a logo, taglines, social media channels etc. With respect to sales, you can begin introducing the product or service to your target market even before you launch the business off the ground. Not only will it allow you to gain feedback to help you refine your product or service but it will also lay the foundation for future sales efforts.
 
Like Rome, start-ups and viable businesses are not built overnight. You have to be patient and maintain enthusiasm and drive during the entire process. Invariably, there will be challenges but resilience and drive are a part of the genetic makeup of every successful business enterprise.
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Enjoy your entrepreneurial journey!