The rise and rise of app land

We are all learning very quickly about the world of the phone apps. The vast majority of apps are from ideas with their beginnings in small business.

So, you have an idea for an app – where do you start. An outline of the processes from Russell Emmerson:

Basics

Deloitte Digital lead partner Frank Farrall says successful apps tend to have one critical attribute addictiveness.

Games such as Angry Birds or his current favourite, iBomber Command, drag people in so they can’t put them down, he says. “If you have an idea, whether it is a game or a productivity product, that is addictive, then that is going to make it go viral,” he says.

Free options

The most straightforward apps for app development either use a template or allow the user to drag certain elements on separate pages and link them with basic functions.

AppMakr develops iOS, Android and Windows apps, largely based on existing content and social media feeds, without exposing you to code.

GENWI offers a free trial with more advanced options. If you are willing to get your hands dirty, dive into the coding universe. Apple’s iTunes U contains free downloadable coding sessions, while a search for “Java tutorials” will give you a base to launch your new Android career.

Low-cost options

At some point, you will need to bite the bullet and pay cash and if you’re in business, that shouldn’t come as a surprise.

An easy point for game development is GameSalad, a service that includes testing and iOS publication, with an option to “go pro” for other platforms for $300 a year.

Most other apps work on templates that can run on major platforms.

The App Builder charges $5 a month to remove advertising, and BuildAnApp relies on your own email distribution lists for marketing. Publication starts from $19.

And, if you are getting serious, you will need to sign as a publisher with either Android (one-off $US25 signing fee) or iOS ($US99 a year).

Bizar Mobile chief executive Mike Clucas says these cheaper options are best used to develop a “proof of concept”.

“There are free or cheap prototyping tools out there. It is a good way of understanding what you want,” he says.

The danger, Farrall says, is your lack of technical, design and business expertise will see your idea stolen and improved upon.

Going professional

Sales-based businesses should not be shocked by development costs between $20,000 and $100,000, Farrall says, given a shopfront without the scaleability of any cloud-based product can cost as much as five times more.

Clucas suggests looking beyond the promises of potential developers to see if they can actually deliver. Ask what have they previously done and how well have they done it.

“The other area where small businesses can cut costs is to look for a provider that has built a more or less off-the-shelf solution for their industry,” he says.

“Some of these solutions can be rented, some work on a ‘percentage for each transaction’ model.”

A good developer will always be willing to point out the shortcomings of your thoughts. Then use social media to sell it.