How to Choose the Best Mobile App Development Company
Picture this: you come up with the perfect app idea to help your customers and grow your business. But you realize that you don’t understand development or how to choose a mobile app development company.
Appvales is a development agency with a fantastic track record. We can help your company develop an app to suit your needs, whether you want something simple or complex.
Read on to learn how to choose the best mobile app development company for you.
Top Tips for Choosing an App Development Company
Choosing the right software development company for your app can be difficult, but it’s a critical step in the development process. A good mobile app development agency will be able to complete your project well so that you can make money.
When outsourcing your app development, you can give up a lot of things, like control over when and where development takes place. However, you can still design the app you want without having to compromise on anything.
Here are a few things that will help you determine how to choose a mobile app development company.
Qualifications and Experience
A good mobile app development company should have a team of experts on staff. The developers should have experience working on mobile apps, and ideally, they’d have experience with apps similar to the one you want to create.
You should look for a company that knows various programming languages and can work with different operating systems. Organization and attention to detail are also vital skills because they’ll help the developers create a great final product.
Look for a mobile app development company with specialists who have years of development experience. Consider what types of apps the developers specialize in and how that can help you.
While formal qualifications, such as a degree, are nice, the experience is just as important. Experience proves that the developers you hire can put what they’ve learned into action.
Company Size
Next, consider how big of a company you want to hire for your app. A smaller mobile app development firm can be great for smaller apps where you want to work directly with developers.
Go with too big of a company, and you might not get the same experience that a smaller firm offers. A massive development company might have a team of account managers, but it can be easy to get lost between all of their other clients.
If you go with a smaller mobile app development agency, like Appvales, you’ll get more attention. The company will be able to devote more time to you and your app, so you’ll get the results you desire.
Think about the experience you want to have while developing your mobile app. Then, you can determine if you want to work with a smaller app development house.
Tech Stack
Another factor in how to choose the best mobile app development company is their tech stack. This covers the technology they use to develop mobile apps, and two are the most common: hybrid and native.
Native apps are those that you develop specifically for one mobile platform, either iOS or Android. However, hybrid uses the same code to develop apps for multiple platforms.
If you know you only want to develop an Android app, you might want to hire a company that uses native development. But that can limit you, if not now, in the future.
Be sure you’re choosing the right software development company long-term. That way, you won’t have to find a new developer or pay for a separate app when you want to expand to iOS, for example.
English Proficiency
One of the biggest risks of outsourcing app development, especially overseas, is a language barrier. If you want to look for the best mobile app development firm, you shouldn’t let that keep you from hiring a particular company.
Instead, make sure that the company you hire has people who can speak English well. Then, you can communicate your ideas more easily, and you can ask questions to help decide if they’re the best company for your app.
Take a look at an app development company’s website to see if they have English speakers on staff. That way, you’ll have someone to contact from before you hire to after you launch your app.
References and Portfolio
Perhaps you find the perfect development company, but you end up not liking the look of your app. Fortunately, you can avoid this by asking for references and looking at the company’s portfolio.
Ask them about some of their former clients or for testimonials. You can also ask business owners you know if they’ve worked with a certain company and get feedback from the client side.
A company’s portfolio can show you what apps they’ve developed, how those apps look, and the features they have. You should hire a company with a design style that you like.
And the company should be able to include features that you want in your app. If they don’t have examples in their portfolio, they may or may not be the right fit.
App Development Cost
Of course, your business budget can have a role in how to choose the best mobile app development company. Whether you have a small startup or a massive corporation, think about how much a company will charge you.
Consider if an app development firm charges per hour or uses a fixed price. Determine when you’ll need to pay and if the company requires a deposit at a certain time.
Some apps cost much more than others, but you don’t need to spend that much on your minimum viable product. Be sure to think about the app’s complexity when setting your budget. And choose the technology wisely, React Native development can cost you less than native development.
However, you don’t want to go with the lowest rate either. Less experienced developers may charge less, but they won’t always have enough experience to do what you want.
Communication Process
The communication process is another vital aspect of any mobile app development project. You should know how you can contact the company, such as by email or phone.
Consider their work schedule so that you know when to expect a reply to an email. And think about who you’ll be communicating with, such as a developer, manager, or another person in the company.
If you aren’t talking to a developer, consider how and when they’ll get your message or question. Then, you can determine how long it will take to make changes to your app.
Client Focus
You should also determine how important you and your project will be to the development agency. The best mobile app development firm will take your project seriously and treat you well throughout the process.
While they may not communicate with you all of the time, they should do so regularly. You shouldn’t have to go months without a response or receive a response that appears like the company doesn’t care about you.
As you look at references and testimonials, pay attention to anything relating to client and company interactions. If clients say the company is easy to work with, that’s a good sign they’ll be easy for you.
On the other hand, if multiple testimonials and reviews state otherwise, you may want to avoid the company.
15 Questions to Ask a Mobile App Development Company for Assessment
As you narrow your search to a few mobile app development companies, you may want to contact each of them. Use that time to get a quote and ask some crucial questions.
Then, you’ll know how to choose a mobile app development company that you like and trust.
1. How Does Your Company Approach Planning?
You should know how the developers will plan and execute each step of the development process. Asking this question before you hire a company means you can understand how they work.
It also gives you the opportunity to ask follow-up questions if something is unclear. You can ask how detailed the company goes when outlining an app and how long the planning stage takes.
Consider if you like the way the company plans apps or not. Even if they meet all of your other requirements, don’t force yourself to hire a company that has a planning process you don’t agree with.
2. What Is Your Approach to Quality Assurance?
A good quality app is essential for growing your business, so you need to know the company will develop a fantastic product. Be sure you ask how they assure apps are of the best possible quality.
Figure out what devices they use to test apps and how often they test them. Consider what they do before and after you launch the app and if they will fix any bugs for free or if you’ll have to pay extra.
Developing a perfect app without issues can be almost impossible. Make sure the developers can and will fix problems as they arise so that you don’t lose any business.
3. Do You Follow Any Specific Methodology?
App developers can use different methodologies, including:
- Agile
- Waterfall
- Scrum
- Kanban
Before you get into the process, you should know which method, if any, the company uses. For example, Agile is great for making changes, and you can give your input more often.
Waterfall offers a nice app structure, and it includes situations to help test for app quality. Scrum has the organization necessary for bigger apps, and Kanban is efficient and flexible.
Think about which method you’d prefer, if any, before hiring a development firm. Then, you can use that to help decide who to hire.
4. How Many Apps Have You Developed?
Don’t be afraid to ask how many apps the company has developed. While developing more apps doesn’t guarantee a better result for your app, it can help.
The more experience a company and its developers have, the more likely they can add the features you need. You can even ask specifically about the experience of the developers who will work on your app.
Consider if they’ve worked for the same company for years and what experience they have outside of it. With each app, developers can learn new things to make future projects better for everyone.
5. Have You Developed Similar Apps?
After you determine how many apps a company has created, ask if they’ve developed any similar to your idea. You should know if they’ve developed apps for other companies in your industry or apps with a similar layout and features.
If you haven’t already, take a look at the company’s portfolio to look at different views within the app. Ask how they developed each page and how long it took.
Looking at similar projects can give you an idea of if the company can do what you want. While you don’t want to copy existing apps, the developers should understand what works well for your industry to help create an effective app.
6. Can I Download Some Live Apps?
Viewing a company’s portfolio is great, but checking out the live apps they’ve developed is even better. You can download a few of their apps to see how they work in real-time.
Take some time to go through each page or view on the app. Consider if there are any bugs and when the last update was. If you find the company developed an app for a competitor, you can do some basic competitor research.
Then, you can ask the developers if they can create an app with certain features that will make you stand out. And downloading live apps may show you that you don’t want the features you thought you did.
7. Do You Develop Apps for iOS and Android?
Assuming you know your ideal customers, you might know that they tend to use one operating system or the other. However, you might have an even mix of iOS and Android users.
If that’s the case, be sure to ask the mobile app development company if they can create apps for both operating systems. You can also ask if they will use a native or hybrid tech stack.
Hybrid apps can take less time to create, but native apps work well with the specific OS. Either way, knowing where you want to launch your app is crucial in determining how to choose the best mobile app development company.
8. How Many Developers Are on Your Team?
Asking the company how many developers work for them can tell you a couple of things. First, it gives you an idea of how much time they can spend on your app over a week or month.
It can also give you an idea of if they can start developing your app soon. To confirm this, be sure to ask about their other projects and if you’ll have to join a waitlist.
Having more developers isn’t always better, but it can give you peace of mind to know they have a team. That way, your app won’t go on pause if someone needs a day or week off from work.
9. What Is Their Experience?
You might also want to ask if the company will assign specific developers to your app. If so, consider asking about the experience of those developers.
Consider if they have any formal degrees or certifications to help them develop apps. Ask how long the developers have worked for the company you want to hire and how long the company expects them to stay.
Make sure the developers working on your app have developed similar programs. That way, you can expect the best possible product.
10.What’s Your Rate per Hour?
Many developers charge per hour of work, and rates can vary based on experience, location, and other factors. If they charge per hour, get an estimate of how long the project will take to help budget for the cost.
You should also consider if they will send you an invoice each week, month, or at the end of the project. The invoicing frequency can help you plan for when you need to pay.
An hourly rate can be great, but things may come up that make the app take longer to finish. If you can, try to save extra money for any issues.
11. Do You Offer Project Rates?
When thinking about how to choose a mobile app development company, you might decide you would prefer a project rate. You’ll give the company an idea of your app, and they can provide a quote based on that information.
While the quote can change if the project changes, it can be easier to predict the final cost compared to an hourly rate. If you get a fixed rate, you should still ask about when the company will expect payment.
Ask if you’ll need to pay a deposit before the project begins or if the full amount will be due at the end. Either way, that will help you set aside money and not miss a payment.
12. What Information Do You Need?
As you narrow your search and decide on the mobile app development agency you want to hire, ask them what they need from you. The company will need certain pieces of information, such as:
- Idea
- Features you want
- Overall complexity
They’ll use this information to give you as accurate of a quote as they can. You should also ask how much involvement you can or should have at each step of the process.
By providing your app idea and other details, you can take away a lot of stress from your plate and that of the developers. But make sure you know what they need aside from the idea to make your app the best it can be.
13. Do You Offer Support After the App Launches?
Imagine you find the best app development firm, and they develop the app of your dreams. You launch it on both Android and iOS, but now you’re on your own.
If you want to avoid that scenario, make sure the company can provide support and updates later on. Then, you can make sure your app continues to be compatible with operating system updates and that bugs don’t stick around.
Consider how frequently the company will check on your app and update it. Ask if they offer emergency updates, such as if someone hacks into your app. Then, you can keep your app working for you and your customers.
14. Who Do I Contact?
Another essential question you should ask is who you’ll contact when you have questions or concerns. Make sure you know their email address, phone number, and any other pertinent information.
Ask when the contact person is most likely to respond and if they’ll be available for emergencies. And consider if there’s another person you can reach if the main contact is sick or goes on vacation.
You might also want to know when you can expect to hear updates on your app. Weekly or monthly updates can be good because you can hear about bigger changes, but you won’t have to go so long between messages.
15. Do I Own the Code?
After the development is complete, you should consider if you will own the app source code. Ideally, you would become the owner of the code because you paid for the app and development.
Then, you can manage the code yourself or hire another person to manage it. In case you can’t get the development company to update the app in the future, owning the code can come in handy.
And it will give you peace of mind knowing that the code isn’t under the control of someone else. Whether you want to switch companies or not, make sure you own the app and its code.
Why Choose Appvales for App Development?
Choosing a mobile app development company is difficult, but you shouldn’t have to sacrifice features for a good deal. Appvales focuses on the client and has a great portfolio of work.
Our project management and communication processes put you and your success as a priority. And you get all of this for a reasonable price.
Ready to get started? View our mobile development services and get a quote today.
