What Makes An App A High Quality One

The mass adoption and rapid advancement of mobile devices have shifted the way in which businesses and consumers interact. If your business does not offer a mobile app, in addition to a mobile-friendly website, it will be difficult to engage users and surpass the competition. Organizations that lack a successful app are missing out on the opportunity to connect with consumers and bring in new business.

A well-built mobile app can skyrocket your business. When you cater to your target audience via their mobile devices, you can improve your User Experience and increase your customers’ loyalty and trust. Given that your app creates value for your customers, they will keep coming back for more, helping your business along the way.

The app stores are overcrowded with apps that are covering all genres and categories. If we only take the two leading mobile platforms- Play store and Apple’s App Store into consideration; the stats show 1.5 million apps on Apple Store and 1.7 million on Play store. This approximate calculation of available apps means the mobile app market is swarming already.

As for apps; the advanced capabilities of software and hardware are making mobile apps like never before. Having an app idea developed for a mobile device is not enough. It is necessary to undergo a robust development process that considers the right app features. It is also important to deliver your app users an adequate app design that improves user engagement.

If you are planning on moving forward with your app idea, this post discusses what makes an app a high-quality one.

The Power of a Great App for Mobile Devices

A mobile app is one of the best ways to achieve your business goals. However, with so many apps available in the marketplace, the competition is stiff. Businesses everywhere are fighting for their customers’ cell phone real estate. The goal is to be one of the (on average) 23 most frequently used apps on a mobile user’s device.

Many companies are trying to mimic the success of top apps like Instagram, while others have smaller but still ambitious goals. No matter the objective, one thing is clear, if you want to succeed, you’ll have to find a way to break through the noise.

Successful apps for mobile devices have more than a great marketing strategy. They tend to have a few common characteristics that you can also apply to your mobile app. In fact, these characteristics should be on your top of mind before you even start planning how to develop your app idea.

1. Creating a Great App

Behind every great app is a great idea. But make no mistake, a great idea does not guarantee a great app. The most successful apps are those that identify and solve a problem, whether that be communicating with international family or friends, like WhatsApp, or conveniently checking in for a flight, like American Airlines.

2. Simplicity

Many people have short attention spans and if you make your app difficult to navigate then they will lose interest fast. If your customer cannot access their information quickly and easily, they will become frustrated and do it another way – possibly by using a competitor’s app. Clear, uncluttered screens with obvious leads to the next step in the app process and no ambiguity improve the customer experience and will encourage them to continue to use it.

3. Consistency

Keep the immersive experience consistent and your app will prove its worth. The gestures or font or color scheme used in an app should stay the same from screen to screen. Everything in-app should follow the same principle to bring out the magic of an app.

4. Speed

Fast loading screens are vital. No one likes waiting, particularly when all they have to look at is a screen-loading symbol and this frustration soon gives way to boredom resulting in a decision to seek something better. Speed means an appropriate set of graphics and not fetching large tables and databases. Keep it simple and keep it quick.

5. Flexibility

There are three main mobile operating systems – iOS, Android, and Windows – and in order to achieve the best out of your app, it needs to be available on all of these. Android apps are easy to upload to the PlayStore, but iOS needs to be tried and tested by Apple before they are allowed on the App Store. The coding doesn’t necessarily need to be different but you may be dealing with different screen sizes and resolutions so make sure to test on both systems before uploading.

6. Great User Interface

When it comes to what people perceive as a great app, first impressions are everything. People judge books by their covers, and the same happens with apps within the first few seconds of usage. The way your app looks and operates is crucial to its success. This is especially true with free apps because there is a high churn rate. If your app doesn’t look and perform as well as a rival app, the user won’t bother to learn more about what it can do.