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Clients generally don't have much idea about mobile app development. All they have is an idea. It is important to know how to address their queries, extract information and ultimately build a spectacular app.
The path from inception to delivery is fraught with problems. If you are not careful, you may end up totally messing up the project and leave the client hanging and perhaps furious.
As a premier mobile app development company in India we have dealt with hundreds of clients, developing apps at the rate of one per day!
We know how to talk to our clients and work with their pain points. Lets point you in the right direction by listing some queries you need to ask them before building their dream app.
But first...
Six reasons
No Unique Selling Point: In a crowded market, an app must stand out. If it isn't, then it's the same as a dozen others. Customers download, only to delete them until they find one they like.
Poor User Experience (UX): Hard-to-use menus, poor app onboarding, slow load times, and irrelevant registration questions.
Technical Flaws: Poorly tested before release, with over 44% of errors reported by users, instead of the development team.
Battery Drain - a 3rd of users dropped the app because of this.
Too Many Messages: 52% users complain that in-app messages are annoying. And 32% said they would delete the app if they received more than six notifications in a week.
Paradoxically, the correct use of push notifications is heavily linked to user retention. This can be an asset or a risk if used unwisely.
Privacy and Security Concerns: This is an increasingly sore subject and poorly addressed by too many apps. When users are asked to share their locations or unnecessary social media details, they often delete the app without even trying it.
The Queries:
This is to see how well they understand the " essence " of the app. The better they understand it, the more confident you can be that they know what the app needs to do, who its focused at, how they will use it.
What problem is your app going to solve for them?
Why is a mobile app the best way to solve this?
Could a mobile responsive website be just as good, or an even better way to solve the problem?
What devices or platforms are they likely to use - Because of demographic differences between android and iOS platforms.
Is it linked to an activity like a big product launch or tied into a seasonal campaign?
Also Read | Appscrip Featured among top Mobile App Developers In Georgia - GoodFirms
What are the outside dependencies that could affect the timescales?
Addressing this up front will save you a lot of problems. Building a risk register is a great idea. For each risk, actions and owners responsible must be specified.
"We don't have a fixed idea of a budget, we want as much as we can get for as little as we need to pay."
~ Common customer statement.
Mobile projects are really difficult to budget estimate, but to build a scope for the project you need a range to work with. Defining the scope of work is also important. It not just about the physical build.
Is there a budget for researching the app, competitors, key functions that users will highly value?
If the client can't give you a range, that could be a red flag. It may not be a serious project but just a vague idea they are trying to flesh out.
Who is the budget holder?
Who is the Project Owner?
What are the decision making stages?
Who need to be consulted at what stage to move from Ideation, to prototype, to build, to test, to release?
Who are you going to work with post launch?
Is the mobile app an internal app to increase workforce efficiency?
Is it there to open the product or service up to a new profile of user?
Will it increase sales from existing customers?
Answers to this question will have a huge influence on...
How you build the app?
Core features and functions of the app
Platforms it needs to run on.
What analytics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) you need to track once the app goes live.
Is there an existing infrastructure it needs to plug into?
What are the security protocols?
Are there any upstream micro-services that need to plug into the app?
Is there going to be a website that will sit along-side the app and have to share user profile information?
Are there any other vendors that the app needs to integrate with (SalesForce, SharePoint etc).
How are you going to manage user generated content and what's the expected upload/download shape of that content?
These questions above will give BOTH you and your client clarity and draw a clear road-map towards building a successful app. In turn building trust and strengthening customer relationship.