The era of start-ups has been opening opportunities for dedicated founders all around the globe to meet customers’ demand, create jobs, develop new and unique products and bring them to the market. Especially in the IT industry, when funding for AI start-ups increased by 327% from the year of 2016 to 2020. A great number of start-ups make profit and grow rapidly when making and delivering irreplaceable products and services. However, we have to look at the other side of the equator, where there are a number of companies that failed in this initial stage of business. From talk shows to start-up conferences, entrepreneurs are looking for an answer to the question “I have an idea to develop an app, now what?”.
And based on our own experience, in this stage, we face a variety of uncertainties, such as:
I have an app idea but don’t have enough money to develop
I have an app idea but don’t have a strong in-house team
I have an app idea but don’t know how to sell it
….
So, just have a walk with us now and we will go through some crucial steps that your company should follow after having an app idea. We cannot promise that you will have a happy-go-lucky path right after finishing reading this article, but you will have deeper insight into what you need to do with your idea, then a plan for it to thrive.
Without any further ado, let’s dive right in!
When an app idea springs to your mind, it is easy to be “blind” because of the excitement. At this moment, seeing the drawbacks is hard. That is the reason why you have to be clear and accurately do some discovery, for instance:
Market research: this is where your app will finally be. So, let’s carefully check its recent trends, statistics, changes, upgrades, volume, size, even experts’ predictions.
User research: this is whom your app will finally serve. So, let’s navigate your target audience, interview them, conduct surveys or questionnaires about their opinions, habits, make the most of all other available databases, etc.
Competitors research: this is whom your app will finally compete with. So let’s list out your top opponents, as well as their strengths and weaknesses. Decide on what you can do to make your product better than theirs.
Just you, yourself and the claiming “I have an app idea …” cannot convince investors to give you money. According to start-ups statistics 2022, nearly 20% of start-ups failed because of team issues.
That’s why you need to gather a team which boasts the necessary professionals. Even though things seem clear and look great on paper, you do need the best of minds working together to lay the right foundation and make it thrive in the future. They have to be as committed to your vision as you are to guarantee long-term commitment and stabilization of your team. Don’t let yourself lament that “I wish we had a CTO from scratch” or “ Two more developers would have been much better”.
You can build your team by:
Hire seasoned individuals for your in-house team. Look at the aspiration for each of them carefully and compare them with your goals and vision.
Hire a dedicated outsourcing vendor
From our own experience, the best option, for both start-ups and other companies, is to combine the two mentioned ways. A good in-house team is your core. Make sure that 100% of them are committed to your company’s mission, ready to stay and create the company's culture and vision. In addition, a dedicated outsourcing partner will provide you with highly-skilled tech talents, products’ consultation, development, delivery and maintenance. You can focus on your core business or other necessary and profitable projects.
(Read more: In-house Development vs Outsourcing Development: Which way to go?)
Here at NSC Software, we don’t just develop and deliver services as a partner to our clients, we become a part of a product. And clients trust us!
Sit with your team and make a list of your goals and objectives. For any start-ups, it is important to be self-aware about where you are at and where you want to go, from which you can direct your company to future success.
You can take a look here at some examples of goals and objectives that start-ups should set:
Goal and Objective for Marketing
Goal: Develop Brand Awareness
This goal could be the ultimate one for any business. Peak brand notoriety is considered a company’s success, which happens when your customers remember your products or services because they are widely used and become prominent. This is the distinct difference between a start-up who is thriving and a business who is truly developing.
Objective: Deliver Strategic Marketing Content
In order to achieve brand awareness, a company has to simultaneously invest in good products, great customer service and marketing of course. Needless to say, besides understanding the market needs, your company has to know which products will appeal to customers’ expectations and needs, and then how to bring them what you have. To reach this objective, you and your team need to create a message, find suitable and effective content, then choose a platform to deliver and even projects or campaigns to approach your customers.
Goal and Objective for Customers Retention
Goal: Increase Customer Retention
Obviously, your business is born to serve customers, therefore, the loyal ones play a vital role in your business’s development than the on-time ones. As a result, building and maintaining long-term relationships with customers, thereby, increase customer retention. This should be a top goal for any start-ups on the boards in perpetuity.
Objective: Build Up Ideal Customer Profile
The hardest task here is to know who your ideal customers are, who will benefit the most from your products or services, etc. In order to answer these questions, you need careful market research and understand the value of those who will be your target customers in the future.
You have made a discovery , gather a team, decide on your goals and objectives. It’s Great! Now you and your team can start to build stuff. The design part won’t be time consuming if you have clear preparation for Customer Journey Map (CJM), user flow or feature set. And when your app idea is developed into an MVP, it is wiser for you to iterate again and again. This initial version of your app will help you to test out your idea with potential users and investors.
Then, based on their reaction, you can implement changes, alter functions, add more features and test it again. Obviously, the best way to get it ready is to test, gather feedback and improve.
When you get it right and things are at the right positions, it’s time for your app to thrive. There will be some iterations along the way, but don’t let them create any long-time delay. Direct a part of your focus to marketing strategies and customer service to build a solid foundation, letting you scale up your product.
Just ready to move in cycles of testing, iterating and improving till your app is fully developed and widely introduced.
It’s great when you have an app idea. However things become more complicated when it comes to how to get that idea developed, especially when it’s your very first time developing a product. Many startups are at a loss, spending days not knowing what to do next, while others take several steps forward to find the way out.
That’s all for 5 steps to take when you have an app idea. Of course your way will differ as well as mistakes and lessons learned.
And if you are struggling with how to start or develop your ideas, we, as your trusted outsourcing partner, are here to support and give your free consultations. Feel free to check out our portfolio and please don’t hesitate to drop us a line.
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