Mobile devices such as tablets, smartwatches, and, of course, smartphones have gained greater global acceptance in recent years, changing how people interact with information.

Its consumer base is growing as more and more people around the world own use smartphones.

Every smartphone has many apps for everything from ordering food to finding a partner.  In the Q3 of 2022 alone, users downloaded 27.1 billion apps from Google Play, one of the largest app stores.

According to another report, between 2019 and 2020, the time spent using mobile apps for global users increased by approximately 30%, with users spending over four and a half hours daily using apps.

If you are considering developing your app, then this is the right article for you. In this guide, you’ll learn how to make a phone app; the six steps, from start to finish, are necessary to create one that’s right for you.

Step 1: Planning and Business Analysis

The first phase in the process of how to make a phone app is thorough planning. It helps to gain clarity by understanding where you are now and how to achieve your goal in building an app.

Connect your app development team or at least share your research with them before the start to help them understand what you want.

But before you do so, study the market and analyze other apps similar to your idea. Analyzing the trends will help you know the features you want and those you don’t want.

If you don’t find anything similar, don’t worry. At The APP Solutions, we also provide our clients with experts in specific industries for businesses that belong to a rare or highly specific field.

After you have decided on the idea, use the SWOT analysis to check your competitors, underlining their strengths and weaknesses and adjusting your strategy.

At this stage, you also need to make a user persona analysis and set up KPIs. These would give you a broader insight into what you want to build.

If you’re worried about idea theft, a good way to prevent it is to sign a non-disclosure agreement with your developers’ team.

Step 2: Technical Feasibility Assessment

The first step can be completed without any help from your development team, but steps two and further would require their assistance.

Running a detailed technical assessment can help you determine all project features and establish milestones.

Everything to be included in the assessment document, includes an introduction, the aim of the app, all interpretations of technology solutions to be used in the project, testing to be done, milestones, estimations of the project’s scope and cost, and even concerns or doubts.

It’s also important to, break down user stories to specific functions, prioritizing them, and creating a mobile app development project plan.

The writing of this document would be ongoing throughout the development process.

Step 3: Prototyping & Design

Prototyping is essential to any design. It is when you create a  working model of your future app that helps “to translate” the idea from your language to the one that your development team understands.

When creating a prototype of your app for any operating system, you’ll need to work with a UI/UX designer. The process of doing so is divided into:

  • Freehand sketch. The very first and draft version of your app is on paper.  It sets up the main logic, the number of screens, and the way they interact with each other.
  • Low-fidelity wireframes. Provides the visualization of the draft app structure. Usually, a non-colored digital version of your sketch.
  • High-fidelity wireframes. The initial stage of creating the app. Helps to find out and analyze all possible use cases.
  • Examine the app. After creating a clickable prototype, you’ll need to sit with your team and discuss any gaps in logic or technical inconsistencies in the idea and how it’s supposed to work. The more issues you find and fix before coding, the more time and money you’ll be able to save.
  • Designing the app. At this stage, we collect all wireframes and put them together to improve the design and create a final prototype that effectively works and reflects the idea we had at the initial stage.

Step 4: Developing Your App

This phase is at the crux of how to make a phone app. Before you start, decide whether you want a native app or a cross-platform one.

At The APP Solutions, we develop native applications, which means that, in the end, you have a custom app for every operating system.

This type of development allows reaching faster performance, provides better security, and helps ensure users with a better experience.

Also, in many cases, it makes sense to start with MVP or minimum viable product. This is the very first version of your application with only the essential features.

It allows you to make a quick start with release and to test the viability of your idea. MVP helps reduce development time and allows users to interact with your products and give you feedback.

Step 5: Quality Testing

It’s important to test every part of the product manually and automatically while creating your app. The type of Quality Assurance (QA) method employed depends on the project, but some of the commonly conducted tests include:

  • Requirements testing validates the requirements with technical capabilities.
  • Compatibility testing involves running the app on different devices and screen sizes.
  • Interface testing checks the navigation, menu, and button performance.
  • Low-level resource testing tests such device resources as a battery, memory consumption, and temporary file storage.
  • Performance testing checks the app’s performance with and without an internet connection and running on low battery.
  • Security testing provides quality assurance of user data safety.
  • User acceptance testing involves the user partaking to check the usability and the general impression of the app.
  • Beta testing gives users access to the app with the application stores to get feedback from a larger audience.

After your application is ready, the QA team tests whether all parts of the app work correctly together. It is also crucial to check all security issues carefully to protect the privacy of your users.

Step 6: App Release & Maintenance

Finally, your app is released, and it’s time to show it to the world. Don’t forget to optimize before the app store release.

It helps users find your product in the endless ocean of options. Also, note that the higher the quality of your promotional materials, the more attractive your app will be.

After the release and publishing, issues would still crop up, and bugs to be eliminated. The APP Solutions team ensures all its projects have three months of bug fixing or free.

Technologies evolve faster than light speed and require regular updates to fix bugs, handle complaints and upgrade to newer technologies.

It’s easier and saves time if the same development team takes care of the updates your application needs.

Conclusion

Of course, there are difficulties in building an app as it can be time-consuming and labor-intensive. But finally, seeing your idea borne into reality is well worth it.

A key ingredient to your success is a professional development team, who will share the passion of your idea, help extrapolate the latest trends on your projects, and make every effort to create the app that will only complement your business goals.