You might have already had the time to look at what constitutes the pillars of a truly great website. But not all online business and design is done on websites anymore. Apps have started to encroach in our lives in a big way. If you have an app in mind, then you better keep in mind these essential building blocks of a successful launch.
Problem solving
The first thing you need to consider is the purpose of your app. What’s the problem that it solves? Is it supposed to help them accomplish something they could already do but much quicker? Is it supposed to be a more convenient way to communicate with a business or to receive information? If that’s the case, then solving that problem should be the first, second, and third priority, and anything that might get in the way should be eliminated from the design. Solve the problem as well and as simple as you can.
Responsiveness
One issue that will get in the way of anyone’s enjoyment of an app is that idea it’s not working as fast it should. A user interface that gets them where they need to go in fewer steps is one element. But also consider how you implement feedback into your app. People expect apps to work faster than websites, despite the fact they tend to run on slower networks. Building in some measure of haptic feedback, like a vibration or a response animation, can create the illusion that the app is working as quick as people expect it to.
Reliability
People also expect apps to be relatively finished and professional before they hit the store. You can’t launch it before running it through an extensive quality assurance phase, including the use of functional testing types. Launching an app is different from delivering a piece of software to a client. A buggy launch can kill it before it had the chance to live.
Polish
The same goes for the visual design of it. Even non-designers can piece together a UI that’s pleasing to the eye if they spend a little time researching graphics. If you fail to give it a professional finish, then people will worry that the functions are amateur, not just the optics.
Analysis
Data rules the world nowadays. If your app connects to the internet, then you should always keep in contact with it, learning as much from it as you can through data collection. Not only can you learn usage habits, but you might even be able to learn more about the demographics and needs of the app’s users. Meaning that you’re able to implement changes that have data-driven evidence to support them, not just the answers to a questionnaire or survey.
Of course, even with all of the above, it’s not guaranteed your app is a success. You need to start by investigating the idea first. Who’s the target market? What’s their need? How likely is it they’ll use the app to fulfill it? If you can answer those questions, then the points above should get you much closer to a successful launch.
