How

to Start
Your App
Business
[Guide]
Outline
1 THE PRESENT STATE OF
THE MOBILE APP MARKET

2 TRENDS AND PROSPECTS

OF THE APP INDUSTRY

3 MAKING AND LAUNCHING

AN APPLICATION

4 RISKS AND PITFALLS A

STARTUP SHOULD BE
AWARE OF

5 KEEPING UP WITH THE

WORLD: ONGOING
DEVELOPMENT
THE
PRESENT
STATE OF
THE MOBILE
APP
MARKET
The present state
4
of the mobile app market

The mobile app industry has been developing

rapidly for decades, but its prime came only
after the App Store (iOS) and Google Play
(Android) were launched in 2008. At present,
both the iOS and Android markets are rather
crowded. There are over 2.7 million apps on
Google Play and over 2.2 million applications
available in the App Store, and even more
were uploaded while you read this sentence.
It is becoming more and more challenging to
get into the market, not to mention getting
noticed in the crowd. 

Regardless of the tough competition, new

startups emerge daily all over the world,
inspired by their app ideas. Some remain
unnoticed, others fight for their existence
with a limited but devoted user base, and the
luckiest ones get to the top of the wave and
stay there. 
The present state
5
of the mobile app market

Mobile applications are nowadays integrated

into nearly every sphere of our life, be it
education, healthcare, entertainment, business,
or food services. Whatever you want to do with
your mobile phone, there’s probably already an
app for it. The industry has a lot of room for
growth and development, and its potential is
huge - gross profit from apps reached $41.5
billion in 2016 and it is expected to rise beyond
$101 billion by 2020. The App Store generated
almost $240 million on January 1, 2017, which
made it the store’s most successful day so far.
Mobile payments are also expected to increase
dramatically. See the table below for more
details on this. 
The present state
6
of the mobile app market

The numbers are impressive, aren’t they? If you

want to enter the market with an application of
your own, you should be prepared to face many
challenges and learn how to avoid the pitfalls
every new player faces along the way.  Equipped
with the right tools and knowledge, you can raise
the prospect of your business.
TRENDS
AND
PROSPECTS
OF THE
APP
INDUSTRY
Trends and prospects
8
of the app industry

There is no doubt that the app development

industry has a bright future and that user
engagement in apps is continuously growing.
Most development companies make monumental
efforts to retain their market position. They
manage to do this by following the modern trends
of IT and using newest solutions.  The table
below shows the forecast for annual gross
revenue by the app store. Impressive, right? 
Trends and prospects
9
of the app industry

At the moment, the trends in mobile app

development are pretty clear. We will describe
them briefly so that you can align your app
creation and marketing processes accordingly. 

App safety and security are high-priority

requirements. That being said, if you
want to gain loyal app users who trust
your application, you should put security
first. The volume of online purchases via
mobile and web apps is growing rapidly,
and with it the number of identity thefts
and jailbreaking increases as well. 

Smart wearables with apps to control them are booming

in the market as well. Over the past few years, smart
wearables have become our inseparable fellow travelers.
Users gladly adopt new useful
wearables for health monitoring
and improvement, stimulation of
work productivity and efficiency,
and for general convenience in
various areas of life.
Trends and prospects
10
of the app industry

Developers integrate iBeacons with GPS into apps. iBeacons

offer a lot of benefits to industries like trade and tourism.
iBeacon technology allows businesses
not only to track customer locations
and understand their buying patterns,
but also to engage more with the
audience and suggest relevant offers.
At this point, business owners work on
figuring out how to take the full
advantage of iBeacons.

IoT expands in the market.

The Internet of Things is currently one of the most quickly
developing aspects of the IT world. It remains among
thepopular mobile trends in 2017 as well. IoT solutions
are applicable for areas
such as healthcare,
security control systems,
home automation, and
others. App developers
are actively working with
different smart devices
in 2017 to stay in the
loop of recent trends in
information technology.
Trends and prospects
11
of the app industry

Drones are on the radars of app developers. Drones can be

utilized in so many industries, from agriculture to delivery
services, that it is simply irrational to underestimate their
potential. The business world
is excited to discover how
this technology will develop
further. There are already
several applications that
have been created exclusively
for managing drones like
Parrot AR. Still, there is a
need for stable and effective
solutions in various areas. 

VR and AR are
integrated with apps
often. Virtual reality
and augmented
reality are among
the top market
trends these days.
Nearly every AR/VR game developer was inspired by the
success of Pokémon Go last year. However, AR and VR are
not only about gaming. These cutting-edge technologies
can help any business reach out to more customers and
boost their engagement. 
Trends and prospects
12
of the app industry

Artificial intelligence and

machine learning are trending
in the market as well.
Having access to more
information than ever before,
many businesses find it
challenging to get the most
out of it. AI has not
conquered the technology
world yet, but it is definitely
planning to do so with the help of machine learning. Giants like
Facebook, Google, and Salesforce are already embedding
machine learning in their products. It offers benefits like the
automation of decision making, advanced analytics, and
friendlier, more conversational interfaces.

App analytics and Big data are in high

demand. 
The success of mobile applications often
depends on user interface usability and
ease of navigation. Therefore, modern
business owners use the latest analytics
tools to process an amount of data that
exceeds human capacity to a great
extent. Big data offers a revolutionary
approach to analytics. Most businesses fight for personalization
of services, and that is exactly where big data can perform magic. 
Trends and prospects
13
of the app industry

As you can see, to enter the app market, you

need to gain sufficient, thorough knowledge
about the market and make sure you understand
the rules of the game perfectly (even if there are
no set rules, there are patterns, experiences, and
prognoses). Your idea may be brilliant, but the
world needs to be ready for it and there has to be
a demand for the solution that you are
attempting to implement. 
MAKING
AND
LAUNCHING
AN APPLICATION
Making and launching
15
an application

Prior to any journey, it’s a good idea to prepare a

roadmap and have a plan before you start out.
Over seven years of experience in mobile and
web app development, MLSDev has gained a lot
of knowledge in this field. We will gladly share
this knowledge with you and help you define
what steps need to be taken in order to launch an
app.

1. Define a problem of the target users. 

Some entrepreneurs, especially if they have
little experience, start nurturing their startup
from an idea they have. After this, they dive into
the details of their concept and its
implementation, and they devote all of their time
and effort to it. Consequently, it becomes nearly
impossible for them to evaluate the project
objectively. The starting point of any project
should be the identification of the needs of your
target customers.
Making and launching
16
an application

Define who your target audience is, what their

pain points are, what product they need and
how it would improve their lives and help them
deal with the pain or problem they face. After
thorough research, when you have
comprehensive answers to all of the major
questions about your target audience, you can
move on with your idea.

2. Offer a solution.
The next step is to find a solution that fulfills
the needs of your target customers. You need
to think the solution through from different
perspectives and work through every aspect of
it. Think your product through as exhaustively
as possible. Define the functionality, design,
performance of the first version of the app, and
also remember that there should always be
room left for growth and development. Try to
analyze how your product could be developed
further. 
Making and launching
17
an application

3. Develop a business strategy.

A business strategy is the game plan you have
to prepare before entering the playing field.
You need it to define your business goals and
concentrate on your strengths. It will serve as
a roadmap for your business development.
Creation of a business strategy is impossible
without developing your business model. The
Business Model Canvas is the Lean Startup
and a strategic management template for
creating a new business model or documenting
an existing one. This tool enables business
conceptualization and can be used by any
company. Below you can see a standard
example of the canvas applicable to any
business. 
Making and launching
18
an application

.
Making and launching
19
an application

4. Write functional specifications.

A functional specification is are the
foundation without which anything you build
would not be able to stand. There are minimum
8 reasons why you need to write a good
technical specification, namely:
 - To present your idea comprehensively
 - To document your project expectations
 - To establish a unified vision of the project
 - To reveal hidden mechanics
 - To control your budget
 - To save time
 - To define your project scalability

Those are really important things, aren’t they?

In order to not miss out on anything, do your
best to cover all the aspects of your project in
the functional specs.

5. Find a development team.

Business is personal, and the success of any
project depends mainly on finding the right
Making and launching
20
an application

people for it. When looking for a development

team, you can go one of two ways: hire a local
vendor or find a development agency with the 
right skills anywhere across the world. Based
on the location of the team, the rate can vary
greatly. It can also fluctuate significantly
depending on the type of the company you
decide to work with: an enterprise company, a
body shop, premium providers, upstart
companies, or bottom feeders. Make sure the
company you choose has the right set of skills.
To check it out, pay attention to the vendor’s
website, their portfolio, and client feedback,
not only to what they may tell you in the
interview. Take into account the experience of
the team, the lean approach, development
methodology, project management,
communication skills, and level of English.
Internet presence of the company, their own
products, and transparency of their policy
matter significantly as well.
Making and launching
21
an application

6. Build your project.

It is now time to get down to development. At
this stage, regular, effective communication
is the key to success. Make it your priority to get
on regular video calls with your team to discuss
progress, stay up-to-date, and eliminate any
issues as they arise. Daily meetings are crucial
for staying on the same page with your team.
Demo meetings are of fundamental importance
as well, so make it a priority not to miss them.

Throughout the course of development it is very

important that you confirm the executed work
on time and provide extensive feedback.
Communication is the key to success at this
stage. 

7. Market your project.

Some startups and entrepreneurs make the
mistake in thinking that marketing starts after the
Making and launching
22
an application

project has been built. The truth is, starting at

this point could be fatal for your business. 
Creating a product no one has heard about
and just waiting for the downloads to roll in is
no way to go. Develop a thorough marketing
strategy, according to which action will be
taken from the very beginning of your project’s
development.
Studying your target audience well will help
you make the right moves. The right moves
don’t necessarily have to be expensive. People
are tired of the overwhelming amount of ads
that shout out to them everywhere and they
are much more likely to follow a product that
is well-marketed and well-positioned rather
than aggressively advertised. If you cannot
allocate a significant budget for marketing
during the development of your product, the
infographics below will highlight ways of
marketing an app for free.  
Making and launching
23
an application

When the app is out

there on the market
and has earned
plenty of users,
don’t rush to bask
in your success. It
is high time to
make your initial
users loyal and earn
even more users
with the help of
marketing. All in all,
marketing is an
integral part of
product
development and
growth. Without
proper promotion,
even the best
quality product
risks gathering
dust.
RISKS
AND
PITFALLS
A STARTUP
SHOULD
BE AWARE OF
Risks and pitfalls a startup
25
should be aware of

The startup scene is brutal – about 22% of

startups fail in the first year. Though statistics
on startup failure vary significantly depending on
the source – some say it is as high as 9 out of
10, the number is high indeed. This is not meant
to scare prospective startup founders, but to
warn them and to offer smart and effective ways
to avoid pitfalls and failures in the field of mobile
app development. 

Below you can see the list of reasons that

founders who have presided over failed startups
have noted as having caused the demise of their
businesses. It is better to learn from someone
else’s mistakes and to build a smarter and better
startup business. Pay attention to these factors
when building your project and your chances for
success will grow. 
Risks and pitfalls a startup
26
should be aware of
KEEPING UP
WITH THE
WORLD:
ONGOING
DEVELOPMENT
Keeping up with the world:
28
ongoing development

After your MVP receives feedback from its early

adopters and proves to be successful, it needs
constant support. The major difference between
this stage and MVP development is that your
product now has valuable users and thus must
be stable enough to retain them. The risk of
losing users is already very high, so the task at
hand is to ensure effective maintenance and
improvement of your project. A good
development team can help you with ongoing
development in the following ways: 

Development of new features (functionality

growth + further product development)

Quality assurance (stability control + reducing

the risk of errors)

Business model review and constant

competitor analysis (ensuring your business
strategy and competitor analysis are up-to-
date)
Keeping up with the world:
29
ongoing development

Product update (adapting/adjusting your

product to the latest versions of operating
systems +  server and/or security updates)

Product improvement (improving user

experience and features)

Support and maintenance (help with

occasional requests, monitoring of project
stability, control of server performance,
handling of peak moments)

Ongoing development of your project is crucial

for keeping up with the digital world in general
and for the survival of your product in particular.
The app business is not an easy road, but it’s
definitely an exciting one! We would be happy to
travel along with you!

Let’s take your app idea further - get in touch

with us - just drop a line at sales@mlsdev.com
and let the journey begin! 
 Contact us

Take your app idea to the next level - contact

us and get a free consultation!
https://mlsdev.com

Contact us

Phones
+380 (97) 505 81 61
+1(951) 888 44 81  

Email
sales@mlsdev.com  

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