More and more, you find that mobile apps are being developed as an in-house products or for client projects. Mobile apps are a great extension for your brand as it serves as another avenue for you to be seen. Alternatively, an app can also streamline the working process for a business, should an app require to be developed for in-house reasons.

With this in mind, this blog will serve as an overview of how a mobile app can benefit your business and highlight how much it costs to make an app in 2022’s landscape. Firstly, however, if you are unsure as to what a mobile app is – let us explain:

What is a Mobile App?

A mobile app (or mobile application) is essentially an application designed to operate on various mobile devices. These can be in the form of smartphones or tablets such as iPad. Most commonly, you will find that the purpose of a mobile app is to deliver a similar service to those found on a PC.

For example, let’s say that your business needs to monitor both the work and the time spent to complete these tasks by your employees. As such, with the implementation of a mobile app, your employees can both record the time that each specific task has taken on both the computer as well as their phones/tablets. This will help to streamline the working processes of your business whilst also eliminating the amount of paper use that was once required.

Alternatively, should you provide products rather than a service, then a mobile app can benefit you also. Potential consumers will now have the option to browse your website and search for your app VIA the App Store or Google Play Store. Although should your products have a heavy amount of competition, you will need to ensure that a level of App Store Optimisation is provided (ASO for short) to stand out from the rest of the pack.

Multiple names often refer to a mobile app. These being:

• An App
• Web App
• Online App
• iPhone App
• Smartphone App

For most of the general public, referring to a mobile app will usually fall under one of three categories, these being; gaming apps, productivity apps and lifestyle & entertainment apps.

What differentiates these variations from each other? Allow us to elaborate –

Gaming Apps

As the name may imply, gaming apps most commonly take the form of video games. These are some of the most popular types of applications for mobile devices. As such, they are accountable for over one-third of all app downloads whilst also being three-quarters of all consumer spending.

Productivity Apps

Productivity apps on the other hand revolve around improving the productivity of the individual or business. This serves as a more efficient and easy way to complete various tasks such as communications, tracking/monitoring work, and bookings along with other examples.

Lifestyle Apps

Lastly is the inclusion of lifestyle apps. These types of applications have grown increasingly popular as the lifespan of app stores continues to grow. Most mobile and tablet owners likely have a lifestyle app as these can be attributed to social media apps, video streaming service apps and even dating applications.

Why Should Your Business Invest In A Mobile App?

Now that you know what a mobile app is, you might be asking yourself why should your business invest in a mobile app. Essentially, there are four contributing elements that we believe a mobile app can have on your business. These are:

Improve Engagement And Loyalty Of Customers

By implementing a well-structured mobile app for your customers, you are providing them with a more streamlined and user-friendly experience that will ensure that your clients/customers will have a reinforced level of loyalty to your business.

This means that your clients/customers are likely to remain as such whilst also providing the possibility of recommending your app/services/products to their loved ones.

Create New Revenue Channels

Whilst improving the processes of your business can lead to your business discovering new ways in which you can create new revenue channels for your business. The reason for this is as you are digitalising your current services/products – this can lead to a new offering of products and services which can open the door to new audiences.

Spurs Innovation

The innovation aspect plays into the above of creating new revenue channels. Not only this, but it allows you to encapsulate all of the most recent innovations and implement these into your business which will allow you to not only stay relevant but will provide you with opportunities to be seen in new ways.

Improves Employee Experiences

Working with the latest technologies will also see your employees grow their skills which will mean that they become even more valuable assets for the business. Gaining experience working on all of the latest technological innovations with other employees will not only bolster their skills but it will also mean that working relationships will bolster.

How Much Does It Cost To Make An App in 2022?

Now that you know what a mobile app is and what are some of the many benefits, the next logical question is how much does it cost to make an app in 2022’s landscape? In essence, the cost to make an app in this current landscape can vary depending on the agency you opt for. With this in mind, however, allow us to provide some examples in terms of what to expect.

In the UK, there are a whole host of app developers that you can choose from. As such, the estimate for an app being developed can be fairly close to the global average. The average for a single application could sit between £30K and £42K, although, depending on the complexity – the price can be higher.

The reason for these prices is that an app needs to be developed from scratch. This coupled with the fact that quality developers will build the app(s) completely bespoke, results in a lot of time and resources being used.

The work involved includes building things such as a multi-lingual interface, user accounts, in-app purchases and a custom UI design. Should you decide to opt for a freelance developer, yes it is true that you may receive your newly built app far quicker than an agency – although, expect to pay considerably more. Freelance developers will charge per hour, hence their hourly rates might be substantially higher than an agency offering a one-time price.

How Long Does It Take For An App To Be Built?

As stated above, the cost of an app being built is determined by how much time and resource it takes to build the app(s). For instance, a fairly small app might cost a single week to create, or a few days if you opt for a freelance developer. Although, if you decide to go with an agency, you should expect to receive your app shortly after given the fact that they will be building multiple apps for various businesses.

As well as this, the timeframe for an app needs to be based on the factors that can impact production. This means that the actual features of the app coupled with the UI/UX design through to the more invisible timeframes such as the strategy, research and testing aspects. These are equally as important as you want a quality app in line with how much you are paying for the application.

The Process Of Developing An App

There are a whole host of factors that go into developing an app. While you may believe that cutting some of the below factors out will reduce the cost of the app. In actuality, skipping one of these steps will result in your app being lacklustre as a result and a waste of time and money.

Strategy

The inaugural and most important stage is the strategy that takes place. The reason being is that this will define your overall chances of success. Referring to how much an app development agency will charge you, their estimations derive from this stage. For instance, if it is a fairly simple app to produce, the cost will be considerably less compared to a more elaborate app.

Understanding the requirements coupled with catering in the most user-friendly way of meeting your audience’s requirements is paramount. These two factors will form the scope and project plan moving forward.

To get the best results with the money you are spending on your app. It is best to see this as an investment. Allowing your business to keep up to date with the latest technologies. The best strategies come in the form of the agency and the client collaborating with consistent communication throughout the entire process.

The Design Of Your App

You may attribute the design of your app simply is what the app looks like. In actuality, it is more complex. Everything from the colour palette is in line with your brand, the button layout, potential animation style and the transitions in between each section of the app. These should all be designed by the UX and UI design team that understands your users.

Without incorporating good UX, your users will find it difficult to interact with your app. Therefore, UX is one of the most important aspects of your app.

Development

The development phase (otherwise known as the coding phase) will see the design of the app that has been signed off begin to be translated into a working model for the platform(s) that have opted to have your app be featured.

To do this, the development team will create the backend of the app and implement the code that will allow the various aspects of the app to function as planned. It is important to know that should an app be added across multiple platforms, this may affect the timescale. However, the timescale may also vary should more complex functionalities be in place (such as AR and NFC).

In addition to this, timescales and costs can also increase following the integrations you need. For instance, if you have existing CRM or ERP systems and need the app to integrate with them – you can expect to be spending more money on your app.

Testing

If you opt to skip this stage, you can expect the UX to be fairly poor which will result in a significant drop in your user base. The testing phase is essential as 88% of users will abandon an app should a glaring amount of bugs impact the experience whilst using the app.

Without frequent QA testing, you will not have a true understanding of how your app is performing while in use. Whilst undergoing the testing process, this does not just cover highlighting any bugs that the app has. It is also a great way to highlight how the app will be used by users.

Deployment

The last and most exciting process for building an app is the deployment stage. Once all of the design, development and testing are complete and both the developers and clients are happy with the app, in theory – you are free to launch your new app. Although, this is just the beginning of your app’s journey.

While out in the public, you will receive feedback regarding what users think about your app. This will allow you to implement new features, eliminate bugs and generally maintain the app through software updates.

Conclusion

Those are our thoughts on how much it costs to make an app in 2022. Essentially the main reason why the price for an app will vary is dependent on how complex your app is. You also want to make sure that you have chosen a quality app developer who will challenge you on your decisions. Should this not happen, you should be wary as you would want the developers to constantly share their insights on making the app as good as possible.

At Weignyte, we offer an unparalleled app development service not just in Liverpool, but across the United Kingdom. If you are eager to get your app up and running, we would love to discuss it.