Mobile Application Development – How to Choose The Right Development Partner

So you’ve got a great mobile app idea and you’ve done your research to understand the competitive landscape. Now you are looking to transform your app idea into reality. However, you are now faced with a crucial question of “How to select the right Mobile app development company”.

With such an abundance of choice, choosing the right mobile app development company is difficult and confusing with several factors to consider such as experience, size, geography, costing, et al. 

We know how important it is for you to get things right as your business is in question. Here are a few important considerations that will help you make the right choice. We have also compiled seven important questions later in this article to help you in decision-making. 

Organizational alignment

A good app development company should act as an extension of your organization and be aligned with your business objectives. Not only should they guide you through the process of mobile app development, but they should also provide inputs based on their experience with similar apps and their understanding of what works and what doesn’t on the app store.

The mobile app development team involves several designers, programmers, and testers. Thus, organizational alignment becomes increasingly important while working with several individual freelancers across these roles. Freelancers can deliver flawlessly in the short run, but mobile app development is not a one-time activity and needs to evolve based on user feedback and requirements. As a result, a mobile app development company is more suited as a reliable partner in the long run given their access to multiple resources with diverse experience, dedicated focus, and aligned business priorities. 

Expertise 

Mobile app development is specific and requires skilled developers with the knowledge of required programming languages, software development kits (SDKs), and the ability to take advantage of unique features of various mobile devices (i.e., iOS or Android). The right company should be able to understand your project and overall objective. 

A good way to evaluate expertise is to ask about their project portfolio across different platforms and check out some of the apps they have developed. A few evaluation criteria could be the app’s interface, its ease of use, and reviews on the app store. A good development company will understand each platform’s guidelines and will ensure that they work within the right parameters to deliver the best for your business objectives. 

Pricing

Pricing is one of the crucial factors in the selection process. However, cheapest isn’t the best option while selecting a mobile app development vendor, so always look at the bigger picture in the long run. Never pick a company purely based on their rate. Rather look at the approach they came to the overall pricing. 

The best way is to review a few proposals with a detailed breakdown of work, and then compare the project plans and time estimates. Understand the # of hours and resources each company is proposing, and then compare their total costs. Making payments in line with delivery milestones ensures that you and the development company are aligned towards delivering the project on time and within budget. 

Best Practices

A gap in understanding of the requirements can cause the complete failure of your project. Hence, the app development company must follow best industry practices across communications, execution, documentation, budgeting, quality assurance, security, etc. Project management methods can vary greatly between companies and for a successful engagement with an app development company, it is crucial that they follow a process that is organized, consistent, and supports quality control. For offshore partners, good communication is a must to understand requirements correctly and efficiently coordinate for smooth and timely execution. 

7 questions to help you decide the right Mobile App development company

Based on the above considerations, here are seven important questions for which you need clarity to select the right mobile app developer. 

  • Who are the key management personnel behind the company and how long have they been in business?

(Tip: Ask about the top management and their vision. Also, ask them how they differentiate themselves vs competition.)

  • Do they have expertise across mobile app development – design UX/UI, SDKs, platforms, testing, security, et all? 

(Tip: Ask about a few sample projects completed. Have a call with a few technical leads to understand their backgrounds. Also, discuss the challenges faced during the execution of these projects.)

  • Can they provide some references from their earlier clients as they can provide valuable inputs about the team, technical expertise as well as project handling capabilities?

(Tip: Check clutch.co or Have a Zoom/Skype call with the references.)

  • In the case of outsourcing, have they worked with clients from your location?

(Tip: Ask them about a few clients that they worked with who were in the same timezone as you. It will help you understand issues such as time differences, cultural and linguistic barriers.)

  • What industry best practices do they follow?

(Tip: Ask them about their best practices around the app development process, documentation, security, quality assurance, communications, execution, etc.)

  • Do they provide code ownership of the app?

(Tip: Ask them about their policies around copyright. You must have ownership of the code.)

  • Will there be continued support after the app is released?

(Tip: Ask them about their support and maintenance offerings after the app is live.)

Conclusion

A careful selection of the mobile app development company can transform your app idea into reality. We know how important it is for you to get things right as your business is in question. If you’ve any doubts related to mobile app development and if you need assistance developing one then feel free to talk to us here.

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