[vc_row type=”in_container” full_screen_row_position=”middle” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″ shape_divider_position=”bottom”][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ column_shadow=”none” column_border_radius=”none” width=”1/1″ tablet_text_alignment=”default” phone_text_alignment=”default” column_border_width=”none” column_border_style=”solid”][vc_column_text]You’re an expert in your own industry, but bringing your idea for a mobile app into reality demands a whole new world of skills. The right mobile app development company in Toronto can make your app better than you ever imagined, but how do you know which partner will understand your industry, your needs and your vision?
The stakes are high.
Your mobile app partner will impact your time to market, your budget and the progress of your business. It’s tough to fully grasp the complexity of your project, but when it comes to searching for a partner, you may not even know what questions to ask that will inform your decision.
It’s impossible to make a blanket prescription—your goals, style and project are unique. However, there are a few guideposts to show you’re looking in the right place.
The right skill set
The development world comprises a broad spectrum of services and specialties. To determine if a partner is right for you, research these initial questions.
- Has this potential partner completed projects in your industry?
- Do they have experience in the broader category of your project—like IoT, e-commerce, fintech, etc.?
- Have they worked with clients at the same stage of business? For example, if you’re a startup, it’s noteworthy that your potential partner has worked with startups before.
- Have they completed products on a wide array of platforms? If they’ve built for Android, iOs, and native, they can help you decide which is best for your project, if you’re unsure.
A partner with experience in these areas can help you anticipate outside factors that may influence your project, like newly emerging technologies or industry trends.
Security capabilities and compliances are becoming increasingly mandatory. In this era, all information is sensitive and your app should safeguard sensitive information belonging to both your business and your customers. Your potential partner should tell you exactly what measures they will take to secure your app. If they downplay your security concerns or give you a fuzzy answer about what security measures they provide, that may be a red flag.
Your potential partner should be comfortable with an array of programming languages — Java, C#, Swift, Kotlin, WebAssembly, React Native, Angular, PHP, and JavaScript are just a few. Programmers who are comfortable with multilingual programming are usually more willing to learn something new, if needed, for the good of your project.
But you should look beyond coding.
The design and usability of your app will have the greatest impact on user experience. When looking at your potential partner’s portfolio, try some of their projects yourself. Is the experience smooth, seamless and enjoyable?
Think about the customer journey within your app and what functions they need to complete. They may need to reserve a product or a timeslot with your business. They may need to make purchases or redeem coupons. They may need to get directions to your location.
From artificial intelligence to chatbots, from maps and voice assistant integration, each step of your customer journey requires its own specific functionality. Once you understand what your customers need to do, you can identify whether your potential partner can facilitate that action.
It should go without saying, but your partner should design your app to perform on mobile devices and employ best accessibility practices. The more you can smooth out your customer journey, the better overall experience you’ll provide and the better impression your app will make on your customers.
As you investigate potential partners, contact them for a meeting to talk about your project. Voicing your needs in real time gives your potential partner the opportunity to speak directly to their process and gives you a taste of what working with them will be like.
A solid track record
Your potential partner’s website should tell you most of what you need to know — clients they’ve worked with, projects they’ve done and awards they’ve won.
However, this information doesn’t automatically qualify your potential partner. For instance, if your potential partner is a big name in the product development space, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re right for your project.
Word-of-mouth referrals are always the most honest. If you can talk to someone who’s worked with your potential partner before, they can give you a firsthand account of what went right. It may take a bit of digging to set up these conversations, but they’re absolutely worth it. Here are a few questions you should ask:
- Did your potential partner hit deadlines and stay within budget?
- Did they meaningfully collaborate on the project?
- How did they handle unexpected challenges that came up over the course of the project?
- Did they help you think through the next evolution of the product?
- What support did they provide after launching your product?
If your potential partner has a good track record, it won’t be hard to find. Good work and good relationships tend to create advocates who are more than willing to talk about their experiences with your potential partner.
The right approach
The approach your partner takes to your project and working relationship is paramount to your project’s success—it’s also the least binary facet of your potential partner.
Communication is key to navigating the arduous process of creating your app, and your partner should keep you in the loop every step of the way. Not only does communication boost the quality and speed of the work, frequent and open communication creates trust between you and your partner. When you’ve established the good faith that comes with a running dialogue about your project, that’s when real magic is most likely to happen.
If your potential partner merely requests the necessary assets and says, “We’ll have something for you in four months,” they may not be the best fit for you.
A good partner is more than just a vendor. A good partner acts as an extension of your team, lending their expertise to that of your in-house talent to equal a sum of more than its parts. When you work with a partner who is engaged and proactive about your project, you won’t have to wonder if they’re thinking about your app between meetings, or if they could be doing more. They’ll go the extra mile to understand your business beyond the project.
A can-do attitude can help your project reach its potential. The last thing you want is a partner who is simply an order-taker. You’re not just hiring them to build your app. You’re hiring them to use their expertise and give critical input on the development of your project. A great app partner will challenge you to reach further than you initially planned — to go bigger for hte benefit of your end user.
Your partner should want to push the limits of what your app can be, and they should live on the bleeding edge of the latest developments and practices. They should challenge you to think differently and closer to your customer.
Budget
In the world of mobile app development, you get what you pay for. A good app partner will help you get the most out of your investments and strike the right balance between cost and value. Ultimately, you should invest in a partner you can feel confident with.
Maybe you’re thinking of assembling an in-house team for your project. If you choose this route, don’t underestimate the burden of managing this team across their individual disciplines and silos. You’ll also be paying each member of this team, even when their phase of the project isn’t yet active.
In the hustle of managing these team members, it’s more likely that your project will drift from its intended course, resulting in an end-project that wasn’t necessarily what you were looking for. Then you’ll be back at square one, having lost valuable time to market.
A mobile app development company that possesses the necessary skill set provides the best ROI. They have the expertise, depth, and availability to build your product most efficiently and effectively.
As you shop around, make sure you know what your quote covers. The last thing you want is a surprise bill for usability testing or post-launch support.
Starting on the right foot
Choosing the right mobile app partner is the first step to bringing your idea to life. It’s crucial to make the right choice.
To recap:
- Make sure your potential partners have the skill sets your project requires.
- Get a sense of their experience and results with previous clients.
- Find out if they have a collaborative, communicative, proactive approach.
- Don’t let cost be the deciding factor in your decision.
The good news is that there are many right choices out there. Once you define what your app experience needs and get a sense of what your working relationship will be like with your potential partners, you’ll have everything you need to make your decision and start collaborating.
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The AppLabb is a leader in the strategy, design and development of mobile apps. We work with global brands across a number of industries to create innovative and user centric business solutions and app experiences. Have an idea? Tell us about it.
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