It is difficult to go wrong with a mobile app, yet most of the apps developed are flawed at their core. When you are developing a mobile app, you have to get some basics things about your app right to underpin its chances of a shot at glory. There are 9 critical parameters that can make your app a success. They are:
Functionality
- Functionality is most important, as it is the axle around which all other features revolve.
- App, and all its features should work perfectly: buttons should be easily clicked, features should work as suggested, game play should be smooth and without glitches.
- The functioning of the app should be exactly the same regardless of whether the device is a smartphone, phablet or even a tablet.
- Having a powerful functionality will instantly separates the wheat (your app) from the chaff (garden-variety apps lacking functionality).
Value
- The app should be able to serve the users in some way or the other by providing unique value.
- It should become obvious to the users what type of value is going to be provided to them when they open the app.
- The value should not be buried deep inside the app, and the users should not be made to wait to utilise that value.
- The users should feel rewarded by the tangible or intangible value provided by the app.
Design
- The first impressions are the last impressions: your app should look like a well-crafted, high-end (or high-tech) software, which is worth giving a try.
- It should look sleek and modern.
- The graphics of the app should make it look appealing to the users. Graphics as well as all inherent designs should be high-definition, regardless of what size of screen they are rendered on.
User Friendliness
- The app interface intuitive and easy to use, even for naive app users
- The interface should be simplistic. The menus and options on the app should be simple, concise and self-explanatory.
- All the screens within the app should be simple, neat and easy to look at; they should not be crammed with dozens of thing
- Hyper-specialization over Robust functionality: Instead of having several features on the app, only a few specialized and valuable features should be provided; they should be easy to spot and use.
- The Hit Area (buttons and other clickable area) should be of optimal size to fit all thumb sizes.
Customizability
- Users should be given some degree of freedom to customize the app or its settings to their tastes.
- These customization options should be effective, but they should not overpower the functionality of the app.
- An app can include options to change the skin, color and other aspects of the app.
Speed
- The app should open immediately, without taking much time to load.
- The animations in the intro should be used cleverly. They should be short and appealing, load fast, and convey the message without making the user wait to access the app.
- The app should be blazing fast when in operation. Transition between different pages should seem seamless. A delay in loading pages can turn off most users and can result in the app getting discarded in the long run.
- During waits on the loading pages, users should be shown animated indicators instead of blank display screen. This keeps the users amused while conveying the message that the app is working in the background.
Uniqueness
- Even if you are not able to deliver on all promises, you can still make the app download worth it for the users
- Your app should have some unique quality, which would make it interesting and hence an absolute must-have
- The best example to justify the inclusion of this parameter would be the game app Flappy Bird
- Flappy Bird defied everything that was contemporary with mobile app games. Vintage visuals with pixelated graphics, regurgitated formula of dodging obstacles, a seemingly hard game based on a simple idea that dated back to the 80s video games. However, in a sea of similar apps with high-definition graphics and complicated game play, it clearly stood out. Hence, it succeeded.
Off-line capabilities
- Make your app self-sufficient to a certain extent by endowing it with some off-line capabilities. This will ensure that your app is not completely dependent on a wireless signal.
- These off-line features will make the users keep coming back to the app and won’t make it entirely unusable without a network signal.
- These off-line capabilities will guarantee continued usage of the app.
Social Media Integration
- To make your app self-sustaining, integrate major social media sites into it.
- This will make it possible for the app users to recommend the app/share their achievements on the app to their friends and family over a popular platform, giving your app an extended coverage.
- It will thus increase the visibility of your app and improve the chances of your app discovery.
- Eventually, it will help you gain some traction among folks that are otherwise out of your reach.
