Published on November 6, 2024

Complete Guide to Mobile App Development: Key Steps for Success from Start to Finish

Mobile app development has been steadily growing over the years. This type of software development focuses on creating apps that work on mobile devices.

Mobile apps are created for different operating systems, like iOS and Android. By using the built-in features of smartphones, apps provide a better user experience than browsing the web on mobile.

Today, over 78% of people around the world own a smartphone. And what are they doing on these devices? They’re using apps.

Mobile apps come in many types, from games and music apps to calendars and communication tools. You probably know some of the most popular ones, like WhatsApp, Spotify, Headspace, Facebook, and Instagram.

Building an app can be a smart business move. But before you dive in, it’s important to understand the mobile app development process—that’s why we made this guide.

What Is Mobile App Development?

Mobile app development is the process of creating software for smartphones, tablets, and other mobile devices. It involves coding to build the software and designing the app’s look and feel.

App development is a lot like other types of software development, like web apps. However, the key difference is that mobile apps can use the built-in features of a device, such as the camera, GPS, and sensors.

For instance, apps can make use of mobile features like GPS, Bluetooth, the camera, microphone, and other tools already built into a smartphone.

Apple and Android apps lead the global market for mobile apps, so most apps are designed for these two platforms, though there are others available.

Additionally, there are various app development frameworks to choose from, giving you many options to consider. We’ll go over these choices in more detail in this guide.

Types of Mobile Apps

App development today is very different from what it used to be. In the past, the only way to create apps was by using low-level coding for each platform separately. This meant that if you wanted an iOS app for the Apple App Store and an Android app for the Google Play Store, you had to build two completely separate versions from the ground up.

Today, it’s much easier to get started with app development. Tools and platforms are more connected, and developers can use JavaScript to create apps that work on both iOS and Android.

This allows e-commerce companies, businesses, and entrepreneurs to build their own apps from the ground up more easily.

Here’s a quick overview of the different types of apps and what makes each one unique when it comes to development:

Native Mobile Applications

Native apps are installed directly on a mobile device, usually through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store. These apps can often work without an internet connection and take advantage of the device’s built-in features.

To develop a native app, you write code specifically for the operating system of the device, such as iOS or Android.

Cross-Platform Mobile Applications

With a cross-platform app, the same code is used for both iOS and Android. This means you can write the code once, and the app can be installed on both platforms.

From the user’s point of view, there’s almost no difference between native and cross-platform apps. However, from a development perspective, cross-platform apps are more affordable and take less time to build.

Hybrid Mobile Applications

Hybrid and cross-platform apps are often confused, but they’re not exactly the same. Like cross-platform apps, hybrid apps can be written once and used on both iOS and Android.

However, hybrid development is easier than cross-platform development. Building cross-platform apps needs technical skills, while hybrid apps can be made with basic web development knowledge or even no-code app builders, making it simpler for people with less technical experience.

Progressive Web Application (PWA)

PWAs (Progressive Web Apps) are apps that are accessed through the web instead of being installed directly on a user’s device.

Thanks to modern technology, PWAs can look and feel almost like a native app. You can even send push notifications to users through their web browser. However, PWAs have some limitations compared to native apps when it comes to using the device’s built-in features.

7 Essential Steps in the Mobile App Development Process

The process of developing a mobile app can vary slightly depending on the project. However, these seven steps are typically involved:

  1. Defining Your Strategy for Mobile App Development
  2. Analysis and Planning for Mobile App Development
  3. Crafting the UI/UX Design for Your Mobile App
  4. Mobile App Development
  5. Testing Your Mobile App
  6. App Deployment
  7. App Support and Performance Monitoring

Now, let’s dive into each of these stages to help you understand the key steps and considerations to ensure a smooth process before you begin.

Step 1: Defining Your Strategy for Mobile App Development

The first step in the app development process is defining the strategy. At this stage, you need to carefully think about your app’s purpose, goals, features, and business model. This is where you lay the groundwork for what your app will achieve and how it will work.

Identifying Your App’s Objectives

Whether you’re building an app for consumers or businesses, the first step is to identify its main objectives. You can do this by asking yourself a few key questions:

You might already have an idea of the answers, but it’s important to write down these objectives. This way, you can refer back to them throughout the development process to stay focused on your goals.

Research Your Competitors

The next step in strategy planning is to research your competitors.

Are there any apps that already serve the same purpose? How well are they doing? Do they have lots of installs and good reviews?

By studying your competition, you can avoid mistakes others have already made. You’ll also get a sense of the current market for similar apps and find ways to set your app apart from competitors.

Choosing the Right Platform for Your App

During the strategy development phase, you’ll also need to decide which platform your app will be built for. Will it be a custom Android app? Or would an iOS app be a better choice? Or maybe a cross-platform app is what you need.

We’ll go into more detail about these options later, but it’s important to start considering this aspect early on in the process.

Choose Monetization Method

Finally, if you’re creating a consumer app, you’ll need to decide on a monetization method to make money from your app. There are several options, including:

The right method will depend on your goals and the type of app you’re making. For example, if you’re building a dating app, charging for downloads might not be the best choice. Instead, in-app purchases and subscriptions are likely better options for generating revenue.

On the other hand, if you’re building a game app, you’ll likely use a combination of in-app advertising, in-app purchases, and subscriptions to generate revenue.

As you can see, the monetization method really depends on the purpose of your app. However, it’s worth noting that the subscription-based model is becoming increasingly popular and is widely used by many apps today.

Step 2: Analysis and Planning for Mobile App Development

The second step is analysis and planning. By this point, you have your idea, have done some research, and have a clear direction of where you’re heading.

Now, it’s time to get practical. You’ll need to focus on business analysis to identify all the important details before moving on to the design and development stages.

Defining Functional and Non-Functional Requirements

First, you need to be specific about the tasks you want your app to perform. For example, if you’re building a finance app, it might need features like creating new accounts, managing credit cards, making payments, generating statements, and more.

These tasks will go into your functional requirements document, giving you a clear picture of what features need to be developed.

Next, you’ll also need to consider the non-functional requirements, which are about how well your app performs. These affect the overall quality and user experience of the app, such as speed, security, and reliability.

Product Roadmap

Next, you’ll need to define your app’s roadmap. This is like making a detailed plan for the future, outlining how you’ll reach your goals.

When your Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is launched, you want it to be successful and avoid any potential issues. So, while creating the product roadmap, you’ll list all the features you want your app to have. Then, you’ll prioritize the most important features and decide which ones can be added later on.

Technology Stack

The final part of the analysis and planning phase is identifying the skills needed for your mobile project.

For example, if you’re building an iOS app, you’ll need developers who are experienced with iOS. If you’re creating a cross-platform app, you’ll need someone skilled in technologies like Titanium, Xamarin, or other tools suitable for multi-platform development.

Make sure you have the technology stack figured out before moving forward with the next steps.

Step 3: Crafting the UI/UX Design for Your Mobile App

To give users the best experience, a lot of attention must be paid to your app’s design. If it’s messy or doesn’t work well, users will quickly move to competitors and leave your app behind. This is why design requires extra effort if you want to create an app that users love.

Your UI/UX design needs to be intuitive, easy to use, engaging, and provide a smooth experience. With this in mind, let’s take a closer look at each design area.

Designing App Architecture and Workflows

One of the first steps in the app design process is developing rules for your app’s information architecture. You’ll need to decide what data will be in the app, how it will be displayed, and how users will interact with it.

Based on this, you’ll create workflow diagrams. These diagrams are useful for tracking all possible user interactions and help you visualize how your app’s navigation will work.

Wireframes

Next, business analysts create digital sketches called wireframes. These are basic layouts that show the visual structure of your app’s features and functions.

Wireframes focus on the user experience and the overall look of the app, making sure that the final product is intuitive and easy to use.

Style Guides

Style guides are created to ensure your company’s branding is reflected consistently in your app. These guides typically include:

Style guides are crucial for your app’s design strategy. They help maintain consistency, ensuring the look and feel of your app remain cohesive throughout.

Mockups

After creating your app’s style guides, the next step is to move on to mockups. These are the final visual designs of your app, created by applying the style guide to the wireframes.

Once this stage is complete, the key focus is ensuring that your design remains consistent across the entire app. This consistency is crucial for a smooth and cohesive user experience.

Prototypes

Finally, the last step of the UI/UX design process is creating prototypes. Prototypes allow you to simulate the user experience and the entire workflow of the app, giving you a clear idea of how everything will function when completed.

Although this stage can be time-consuming, it’s important not to skip it. When done correctly, a prototype can help you spot design or functionality issues early, allowing you to make improvements before moving forward.

Step 4: Mobile App Development

Now that the design phase is complete, it’s time to move on to one of the most important stages of mobile app development: the development phase. This stage is usually divided into two main parts — the backend and the frontend.

Backend

The backend stage of app development focuses on creating the databases and server-side components that handle your app’s performance.

During this phase, your project team will choose the right programming languages and start coding the app. They’ll also select the database engines and hosting environment.

The backend is crucial because it determines how easily your app can grow and handle more users. If you want your app to scale as your user base increases, it’s important to work with experienced software developers. They’ll help guide you through each phase and ensure your system can scale smoothly.

Frontend

The frontend of a mobile app is what users interact with the most. There are three main approaches to building it:

  1. Platform-specific: These apps are created separately for each mobile platform (iOS and Android). The code isn’t reused, and each version is fully optimized for its platform. This approach can be more expensive, but it often results in better speed and responsiveness.
  2. Cross-platform: These apps use a single codebase that works across multiple platforms. They are compatible with various operating systems, making this approach cost-effective and allowing code reusability.
  3. Hybrid: Hybrid apps combine elements of platform-specific apps and web apps. They use standard web technologies but run inside a native shell. This is a good option if you want your app to run on multiple platforms without the time and resources required for a cross-platform solution.

Step 5: Testing Your Mobile App

Once your app development is finished, it’s time to start testing to ensure the app is stable, secure, and free of bugs.

For the best results, your app should go through five types of testing before it’s released:

  1. Functionality Testing: This checks if all the features of your app are working correctly.
  2. Performance Testing: Here, you test how responsive your app is and how it handles many users at once.
  3. Security Testing: For apps in industries like insurance or healthcare, protecting user data is very important. Even for consumer apps, security is key. Make sure your app follows security standards and doesn’t have any vulnerabilities.
  4. Platform and Device Testing: With new phones and updates coming out all the time, you need to make sure your app works well on different devices and operating systems.
  5. Extended Review: Before launching, it’s helpful to test the app with real users. You can do this through a focus group or a beta launch to gather feedback and make any final improvements.

Step 6: App Deployment

When you’re ready to launch your app, the next step is distributing it, and the process will vary depending on the platform you developed for.

The deployment strategy is fairly straightforward: you’ll either submit your app to the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, or you may choose private distribution.

Both stores require you to fill out forms and submit your app for review. However, the App Store is known to be stricter about the apps it accepts. So, if your iOS app doesn’t meet their high standards, you may run into challenges during the approval process.

Step 7: App Support and Performance Monitoring

Once your app is live and users are downloading it, it’s time to monitor its performance. This step is crucial and should be done regularly, as it may take even more time than the app development itself.

Here are some important KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to track:

Additionally, keep an eye on app crashes, bugs, customer feedback, and overall performance. By monitoring these aspects, you can continue to improve and optimize your app over time.

Overall, it’s important to remember that your work isn’t finished once the app is deployed. In fact, it’s just the beginning.

Mobile apps need regular updates to stay compatible with new operating system changes, app store guidelines, and performance standards. Without these updates, your app could quickly become outdated and stop functioning properly.

So, be prepared for ongoing maintenance if you want your app to remain effective. You can choose to manage this yourself or partner with a software development company. If you work with a development partner, they will likely offer post-launch support, handling updates and maintenance for you.