Tag Archive for: Mobile Apps

What Makes a Good UX Design? 6 Features

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User experience UX is the cornerstone and the lifeblood of any successful venture and brand. The user experience determines how users, mostly customers or prospects, view or interact with your product, app, or enterprise. That’s why UX is evolving as a prominent design feature in mobile app development processes.

Mobile commerce platforms are growing exponentially, owing to the growing need for enterprises and brands to tap into the web to bolster sales and improve revenues. New applications have provided entrepreneurs with opportunities to tap into online marketplaces. But, only a few enterprises are acing online marketplaces; these are brands accelerating their tech efforts and brands with creative UX solutions.

For instance, Amazon’s UI gives users an instant view and access to all categories and product sub-categories, streamlining the buying process and providing a flawless fly-out interaction with clients and prospects.

So, what elements make a great UX design?

1. Usable

The user experience design must reflect usability, which means that users must find your interface easy-to-use, rewarding, and friendly to interact with. While it may sound obvious, your product, brand, or enterprise must fulfill a particular need for your target audience. That means that usability must be integrated into the user experience overall design to achieve its desired purpose.

2. Learnable

Another great feature or element of your UX design is learnability. Users must find your platform, app, interface, or product faster and easier to learn. There’s clear evidence that no matter how good a match is if the audience doesn’t understand the rules, it won’t work. Your app’s functionality must be understood and learnable to make sense to the target audience.

3. Memorable

Users shouldn’t re-learn your app’s interface anytime they return. The design features must be explicit or laid out in a way that they’re memorable to users. By creating a memorable layout, you provide users with incentives to locate different features in your app, increasing usability and reliability.

4. Effective

Always ask yourself whether the user experience gets the job done. At the beginning of the app design project, you probably had some goals laid out. Your product, application, and service must be tested and evaluated vis a vis the set goals to ensure optimum effectiveness. Testing can be done through surveys, analytics, and structured interviews. Identifying and collating response patterns may help developers identify the right app features.

5. Desirable

Your UX must be desirable so that users cannot replace it. For instance, take supermarkets like Waitrose and Asda, while both sell the same products, Waitrose is desirable. Desirability is influenced by the marketing pitch, brand image, and the emotional response it evokes from customers.

6. Delightful

Using the app must be delightful and fun. Successful products usually have fun and amusing detail that excites users by evoking a positive emotional response. That should be the case with your UX design. It should be fun and exhilarating that users want to come back for more. Delight can emanate from the usability and functionality of the app, and other times it may be the quirky feature that makes your product phase out the competition.

Contact NS804 to tap into the best UX design features.

New to Apps? Tips For Beginners

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Mobile applications are the new frontiers in technology. With the ability to support multiple functions such as messaging, social connections, interactions, payments, and banking, apps are proving to be an instrumental force in propelling the mobile revolution.

But, if you’re struggling with learning mobile app development, you’re at the right place. You don’t have to be an expert programmer or a coder to develop an app. With the right knowledge and a solid grasp of one of these programming languages (Java, C++, CSS, and HTML), you can ace any mobile app development journey.

So, if you’re new to apps, here are a few tips for beginners:

1. Start with A Killer Idea

A killer idea is the cornerstone of any successful application. An app must be able to solve a real-life problem and provide an instant solution to a deep-seated problem. So, to get started with apps, draw out a sheet of paper and bring your idea to fruition. Write a list of features you’d like to incorporate into your app, and don’t get lost in the design details. It’s just the beginning!

2. Do Research

Unless you’re creating an app for your purposes, it’s important to ensure you’re providing an entertaining service or fixing problems for people. Find out what features people are looking for in apps and incorporate them to stand out from the competition. Usually, your research should be directed at finding out what’s missing in other apps. Try to fix an existing problem and provide new solutions.

3. Create Mock-ups

At this juncture of your development journey, you should know what you’re building, who it’s for, and what audience you’re targeting. This is the time to think critically about the build itself. Develop rough sketches of your layout known as mock-ups before you start hiring programmers.

4. Get Graphic

As an amateur developer, it’s crucial to be realistic with your programming strengths and weaknesses before you commit to building the first app. This is because you’ll need to hire expert programmers and developers to make your dream a reality. If you’re not a design expert, you can hire an expert developer or programmer. Many companies and agencies offer app development services. So, it’s advisable to select a service provider who offers excellent, quality, timely, and affordable app development services.

5. Lone Ranger

Use an app design template if you’re taking this programming journey alone. You’re free to use the standard design templates to create app features that you can customize later. Some great building block app templates include TETHR, NOW, Stark UI Kit, Apply Pixels, Phoenix, and Stitch.

App Development Journey

It’s important to remember that app development is not a one-off task but a journey. What you do today will impact your app outcomes tomorrow. So, remember that app development is a learning curve that requires patience, discipline, and consistency. Other crucial tips for beginners include:

  • Sort out your Google account. Your Google account will be linked with the app you want to create. So it’s advisable to create a new google account for a new app.
  • Master transfer tools. Most developers and manufacturers provide free (and paid) transfer tools to help developers move old content into a new interface. However, if you’ve been using a Google account before, the content will be transferred automatically without a hitch.

NS804 provides professional app development services.

You can contact NS804 to kick start your app development journey.

Mobile Apps: Does Your Business Really Need One?

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In 1997, Nokia designed a built-in version of the arcade Snake Game that many consider the first app. Over the years, the app market has grown extensively to capture different apps – for gaming, shopping, banking, and many other purposes. Mobile apps are widely being adopted to provide the best use in business process development.

However, it’s worth mentioning that most people perceive mobile apps as a reserve for large enterprises. Most think that mobile apps apply only to established, reputable brands that have a reputation to protect.

Well, if you think mobile apps are for big-boy enterprises like Amazon and Walmart, you’re mistaken. More and more small businesses are adopting mobile apps after understanding that an effective digital strategy transcends beyond simply having a mobile-friendly website.

Undoubtedly, e-commerce has been phased out by mobile commerce, as evidenced by the accelerated adoption of mobile solutions by retail establishments. Today, more than ever, you’ll realize that most enterprises you interact with have a custom app – be it a spa downtown or a corner coffee shop. If you’re not sure whether your business needs a mobile app, here’s what to look out for.

Nine reasons your business needs a mobile app:

1. Customer Visibility

Customer relationship management is taking a new turn with exciting developments in custom mobile apps. The growth of mobile apps allows businesses to connect and reignite touches with their most loyal customers, reinforcing trust, loyalty, and retention.

Statistics show that the average American spends two to four hours a day on their mobile devices. While only a handful of apps make up a bulk of this usage, it doesn’t change the fact that every user has to unlock their phones and scan for apps. Being “available” with a custom business app can be an advantage because it requires a user to spot your brand and their mind subconsciously records your business.

2. Marketing Channel

A custom app can translate into an excellent sales channel, especially if used with diligence and tact. Apps serve diverse functions. They can provide information, store data, process trends, and report insights. One of the biggest advantages of having a custom mobile app is that all the information you’d like to convey to your customers is right at their fingertips.

You’re getting closer to reinforcing your interactions with your customers through features like push notifications. You can remind customers about your services and products. Thus, there’s no doubt that mobile apps are transforming outreach by reigniting touches with clients and maintaining relationships.

3. Customer Connectivity

Smartphones are one of the most personal things; they harbor our personal information – email addresses, credit card numbers, and addresses. Statista reports that 90% of the time spent on a smartphone is spent on downloaded applications.

With mobile apps, businesses can connect with clients on the go. Some offline apps don’t need an internet connection which means that users can constantly check new updates, access notifications, and interact with other users. So, if you find a pressing need to connect with clients on the go, a custom mobile app can be an ideal solution for your business growth.

Industries and companies that can connect with clients on the go include:

  • Transport and logistics. Railway, airline, and sea transport companies can use mobile apps to connect with passengers and allow them to book tickets and do in-app purchases.
  • Travel and tour. Travel and tour enterprises can reinforce their relationships with clients. These firms can use mobile apps to; advertise destinations, arrange bookings, and launch virtual tours.
  • Mining. FIFO jobs present opportunities for professionals and technicians who want to work away from home. Thus, mobile apps that enable FIFO workers to connect with their families directly while reporting and tracking progress remotely is a win.

With the above examples, it’s clear how mobile apps can bridge gaps in multiple sectors and industries.

4. Building Brand Recognition

A custom mobile app can immensely contribute to your business and brand awareness. Below we break down brand recognition into two separate parts to understand how mobile apps can help strengthen your brand.

  • Brand. A mobile app is like a blank paper, an empty signboard. You can make it fun, stylish, entertaining, functional, or informative. But what you want is to create an app that has features your customers will like; an app that’s well-designed and beautifully branded.
  • Recognition. The more often you engage users with your app, the higher their likelihood of interacting with your products or services. Higher app interaction translates to brand awareness and leads to purchases. In advertising, this aspect is called effective frequency. Essentially, seeing or hearing your brand about twenty times is what makes it recognizable or truly noticed.

So, mobile apps are classic channels for fuelling brand recognition.

5. Customer Engagement

Customer engagement is an essential aspect of positive customer relationships. Signs of poor customer engagement include slow welcome, unfriendly gestures, keeping customers waiting, and inflexible appointment times.

Whether you’re selling insurance or renting out gym floor spaces, your customers need a way of reaching you, anytime and anywhere. Having a helpdesk or a messaging feature in your app can make a difference in how you handle customer communications.

For instance, OpenTable designed its business model around customer engagement. Instead of calling restaurants or fast-food chains for a table, OpenTable’s management made it easy for customers to book online on their mobile app. Now, if you think about it, you’ll realize most customers prefer to speak to you via text instead of the phone.

6. Market Competition

Many businesses are gradually adopting mobile apps to streamline their processes: performance, customer engagement, procurement, and spend management. Nevertheless, it’s crucial to note that business apps are still at their nascent adoption stages these days. And this is where you can leap ahead of your competitors. It’s advisable to offer a custom app for your small business and exemplify your forward-thinking approach.

7. Customer Loyalty

Shifts in customer shopping behavior are clear indicators that your business is ready for a custom app. The most important reason you should consider investing in a custom mobile app is customer loyalty. With all the melee and noise out there – billboards, Facebook ads, road sign banners, flyers, flashing signs, coupons, and newspaper ads, we slowly lose our impact on clients because they’re overwhelmed by immense advertising.

Now, it’s time to go back and make a sincere connection with your customers by making them loyal lovers of your product. While a mobile app may not save your business, it’s a way of coming closer to your customers and being just a finger away from your prospects. Custom business apps provide a way of connecting customers with support providers and strengthening client bonds. So, if you’re looking forward to transforming positive customer relationships into lasting value, look no further: custom mobile apps provide lasting solutions.

8. Business Process Optimization

Having a mobile app gives you the option of developing an app for any purpose. For instance, you can have an app that facilitates interactions within the workspace. Alternatively, you can create an app that supports the exchange of files, aggregates statistics, monitors and manages processes.

The significance of mobile apps is that they can effectively be used for the organization and automation of business processes. The creation of products for internal use by the organization is a common practice. With a custom mobile app, you can ensure employee interaction regardless of location. Changing work cultures and emerging “work-at-home” patterns underscore the need for mobile apps.

9. Smart Analytics

Data is the backbone of most business processes because data-driven decisions inform business processes. With a business app, you can collect vast volumes of data for further analysis. For instance, you can collect data that enables you to understand shifting customer preferences, shopping habits, and app usage patterns. Mobile apps can help you know what areas and functions of your business are most important and which ones are least important.

NS804 – Powering Business Transformation with Custom App Solutions

Not all enterprises optimize the power of their websites, let alone custom mobile apps. If you happen to be among the first to adopt mobile app solutions, you can confidently reinforce your market position and edge out the competition. Mobile app solutions provide immense benefits and stand to transform your enterprise’s growth efforts.

You can contact NS804 for inquiries and solutions on mobile app development.

 

Best IOS Apps To Install on Your phone

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You just unwrapped a shiny iPhone. That’s probably the best feeling to welcome the New Year, and something to smile about.

The next step is to install some apps to get you started. While you could just install the apps you’re familiar with, this is a great time to try something new. It doesn’t matter whether you’re rocking a new iPhone SE or iPhone 13; here are some apps that are just better than what came pre-installed in your iPhone.

1. Spark Mail

Listen, Apple’s mail app is perfectly fine. Google’s Gmail is marginally better. Microsoft’s Outlook is a favorite of many for a reason. But Spark Mail is solid, simple, and easy to customize. This mailing app gives you the option of toggling on smart notifications. You don’t receive notifications you subscribed to years ago.

2. Facebook Messenger

Whatever your take is in the social network of record, Facebook’s Messenger is without equal. Messenger can be used in any endpoint device; you don’t need a phone number to use it. The app works on every platform, unlike iMessage. Facebook messenger has many cool features like video chatting, audio calling, and mobile payments.

3. Widgetsmith

Apple makes it easier for users to customize their phones with iPhone 14, offering easier methods and new widgets for custom application icons. One of the biggest names around when it comes to the iPhone is Widgetsmith, which lets users add quotes, texts, images, and more. Widgetsmith can be integrated with smart icon swaps, and you have a perfectly customized iPhone.

4. Libby

The pandemic has made it hard to access libraries and physical bookstores. But if you have a smartphone, you can get to the best thing: Libby, which lets you borrow audiobooks and eBooks from the local library. The app is a superior reading application to enjoy books without a dedicated endpoint like Kindle.

5. TikTok

TikTok has exploded to become the most downloaded app on the planet, with everything from comedy sketches, internet memes, and a fully-fledged musical. Without a doubt, it’s the most fun place on the internet. When you add in an algorithm that marginally displays videos perfectly suited to your tastes, you’ve got almost unlimited content to watch.

6. Tweetbot

Twitter is a horrible way to spend your time these days, but if you can’t tear yourself away from Twitter, you’ll want a Tweetbot that makes Twitter less boring and interesting. Tweetbot displays the tweets of those you follow in the order they tweeted. There are no promoted tweets or ads and powerful mute filters to block noise. Thanks to Twitter-friendly API tweaks, there are no notifications to ping you to return to the app.

7. Strava

If you want to stick to your resolutions and be more active and productive this year, no app does it better than Strava. You don’t need a smartwatch or a fitness tracker; Strava supports many activities, including staples like walking, biking, and running. Strava has third-party integrations, making it easy to use and a hub for your exercise goals. Alongside challenges that allow you to earn points on fitness gears, Strava has several safety features and many ways to measure your progress.

NS804 – Gearing Mobile App Development Efforts

If you’re searching for an app for your brand, or a business looking to reinforce your brand and market positioning, contact NS804 for iOS app development solutions.

How to Achieve App Store Success: Tips and Tricks

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Even seasoned developers need a few tips and tricks to succeed in today’s crowded app marketplace. According to Statista, there are approximately 2.2 million mobile apps on the App Store and 3 million on Google Play. Now, let that sink in!

But if you go in prepared with a well-conceived plan, you can enjoy phenomenal success in 2022 and beyond. There’s no reason why the mobile apps you’ve worked so hard on should fail to find their audience. Below, we provide several helpful tips and tricks to make app store success a reality.

Have An App Store Optimization Checklist Handy

One of the most crucial tools at your disposal is the app store optimization checklist. And that’s because it will help you focus on the key processes that lead to success. Without this checklist, you’ll waste valuable time figuring out what works and what doesn’t. Here are the ten things your app store optimization checklist should contain:

  • App store SEO tools
  • Keyword research
  • Adding local keywords of the target market
  • Checking on competitors and their keywords
  • Creating engaging icons
  • Creating impactful videos
  • Capturing screenshots
  • Picking a catchy and distinctive app name
  • Updating app description
  • Encouraging user reviews

Tips And Tricks On Getting Featured On The App Stores

The above checklist will go a long way in securing some level of success. But if you want your mobile apps to steal the show, there’s only one way to do this — and that’s by getting featured on the App Store and Google Play. While this isn’t easy by any stretch, it’s more than worth the effort. 

First and foremost, you’ll need to create a high-quality app that’s meaningful to users. That’s an app that runs smoothly and takes advantage of the latest OS and mobile phone features. Furthermore, you’ll need to quash any bugs and closely follow the developer guidelines set by Apple and Google.

Then, put in the time and effort to localize your app for all target markets. Optimizing for local languages and cultures not only wins over new audiences but also increases your chances of getting featured in foreign app stores. 

More importantly, listen to your audience and update your app regularly, as this will improve your ratings and downloads. Both Apple and Google take performance metrics seriously and will usually only feature apps with 4.5 stars or higher.

Network And Build Relationships

For the majority of developers, getting featured is a long-term process. But it’s possible to speed things up by networking and building relationships with key people in Apple and Google. That’s why you should always budget for travel expenses and ticket costs to attend Apple’s WWDC. Currently, Google keeps its Android Dev Summit a free online virtual event.

Attending such events helps keep you informed about upcoming developments that will benefit your endeavors. But they also present opportunities to connect with the right people that can play a decisive role in your success. Familiarize these people with your company and the apps you develop and build a relationship based on your mutual interests in releasing amazing apps. 

If it’s not possible to attend these events, always reach out via LinkedIn and other social media channels. Better yet, try to locate the app store contact responsible for your local or target market.

The Bottom Line

The tips and tricks we’ve provided will help narrow the gap between an app fading into obscurity and one bound for success. It’s hard work creating mobile apps that connect with today’s audiences and breach those vaunted top app store rankings. Contact NS804 today to learn how we can help you develop apps that rank and succeed. 

6 Interaction Design Tips For Your Mobile App

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It’s easy to establish the quality and functionality of mobile apps. A clear sign of professional design work is when the usage is effortless and smooth that users don’t think twice when using it. But, if there are interactivity issues or problems, users will automatically recognize and won’t be pleased.

Mobile apps should be clear and smooth to be effectively used anywhere and anytime. The designer’s task is to create an intuitive and engaging interface that guides users within the app, helping them operate it without navigation or interactivity issues.

Below we look at essential interaction design tips for mobile apps:

1. Provide Simple Navigation

Simple navigation provides an obvious way to move between screens and find the desired items since users must navigate back and forth in the same window. App navigation design is like a GPS or a map that helps us navigate across places, and identify the specific features we’re looking for. A great navigation design makes you feel you are in control of where you’re going, letting you know where you’re headed and where you are at all times.

2. A Large Touch Surface

Ensure to create control areas or surfaces that are easier to touch by the thumb. Providing smaller touch areas may potentially annoy the user when s/he uses the app. The finger-friendly design provides ease of use, making it possible for users to hit their desired target icons with precision.

3. Eliminate Clutter

It’s unnecessary to display every icon and information on the app’s interface. Arrange and structure your content in a way that provides users with a comprehensive understanding of the features. Reduce clutter by keeping minimum content on the screen to enhance visibility and readability.

4. Display Large Texts

As a developer, keep in mind the small size of mobile screens and keep your app’s texts large and readable. One advantage of texting in the modern digital era is immediacy. Composing and conveying a text is easy and replying to a text is even easier. So, apps with large display texts provide convenience and easy readability.

5. Leverage Touch Controls

There’s no doubt that there are a lot of mobile app controls available in design. So, there’s no need to use web controls as they’re difficult to operate on mobile. Designers must keep interfaces sleek, smooth, and easy to use with mobile touch controls.

6. Leverage Simple Forms

Provide simpler forms where users can input details and information with ease and precision. Use form controls where there’s minimum typing. A simpler form saves users time, enables users to achieve easier navigation, and helps users to manage their information with ease.

Other interaction design tips for your mobile app include:

  • Take care of thumb position
  • Provide consistent user experience
  • Lead users towards the next step
  • Match interactions to your platform
  • Use clear simple icons
  • Apply recognition patterns
  • Add game mechanisms
  • Consider multiple holds

Luckily, with outsourced mobile app development, you can enjoy interactive designs for all your mobile app development projects. You can always contact NS804 for interactive mobile app design solutions.

How Much Does It Cost To Build An App Like Waze

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Nowadays, many drivers plan their daily routes using apps such as Waze. And it’s easy to see why that is, considering how much it enhances the driving experience. A few of Waze’s features include enhanced Google Assistant integration, lane suggestions, and traffic notifications. All these give drivers an accurate visual representation of their trip, how long it will take, and when they’ll encounter traffic.

If you’re considering a real-time navigation app as your next project, Waze can serve as inspiration. But developing such an app is also complex and costly, which we’ll cover in more detail below.

A Brief History Of Waze

Waze has roots dating back to 2006 as a community project known as FreeMap Israel. The project introduced a free-to-use digital database and map of Israel. And its enthusiastic and growing community of users contributed significantly to its early success. In 2008, Waze was established as a company to commercialize the project.

The company then raised $25 million in 2010 and $35 million in 2011. And after updating the app, it presented users with curated points of interest in real-time. And in 2012, Waze offered advertisers and resellers the opportunity to advertise via a web interface. It also extended this opportunity to news networks in the US and Brazil.

All that hard work and growth did not go unnoticed. In 2013, the GSM Association awarded Waze the Best Overall Mobile App. But the good fortunes of the company didn’t end there. In June 2013, Google acquired Waze for the princely sum of $966 million. 

The acquisition drew attention from the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) due to the similarities between Waze and Google Maps. However, the FTC did not challenge the acquisition, and it went through successfully. 

Key Features Of Waze

What makes Waze stand out is its effective collection and dissemination of crowdsourced information. However, it doesn’t rely solely on the information provided by users but also from the relevant state agencies. 

So what type of information is reported to Waze? Usually, information about construction work and traffic events, likely to hinder travel. In some cases, users may report the locations of traffic monitoring cameras to warn other drivers. Furthermore, registered users may alter map data using the app’s built-in editor. 

But the range of features has grown significantly over the years. It’s possible to choose a navigation app voice from celebrities such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, DJ Khaled, and Kevin Darnell Hart, to name a few. Users can also record their voices to serve as navigation prompts. 

Moreover, Waze introduced trip suggestions, lane guidance, and specialized routes. The app isn’t limited to car drivers but also accommodates motorcyclists and those using carpools. 

More importantly, Waze has partnered with popular apps, media networks, and services. Users enjoy additional functionality due to Waze’s integration with the following: 

  • Android Auto
  • Apple CarPlay
  • Deezer
  • Google Assistant
  • iHeartRadio
  • NPR One
  • Pandora
  • Scribd
  • Spotify
  • Stitcher
  • TuneIn
  • YouTube Music

Similarities And Differences To Google Maps

Google Maps and Waze are both owned by Google and may seem very similar. But given the strong branding and market positioning of Google Maps, most users will opt for this particular navigation app. However, we need to look at both apps in more detail to appreciate what makes each unique.

  • Advertising: Waze displays banner ads every time drivers come to a stop. These ads tend to distract and not to everyone’s tastes. Alternatively, Google Maps takes a more subtle approach by displaying small square icons on the map of businesses that have paid to advertise. 
  • Data collection: Both apps collect a plethora of data about road conditions and traffic events. But Waze relies on user-submitted information, whereas Google Maps taps into a wider pool of information, including historical data.
  • Navigation: Waze always tries to find the most efficient and quickest route to the destination. Alternatively, Google Maps will suggest the most eco-friendly and safest route instead.
  • Public transportation: Waze caters to drivers and not those using public transport. On the other hand, Google Maps greatly helps public transport users, cyclists, hikers, and pedestrians.
  • Road hazard and traffic notifications: An area where Waze truly shines is notifying drivers about upcoming road hazards and traffic. As long as enough users have reported these incidents, Waze will find the best route around them. However, Google Maps seldom provides a similarly time-saving route.
  • User interface (UI) design: Since both apps are Google products, they have good UI design. Waze has a cartoony appearance with a simple UI since it’s aimed primarily at drivers. Google Map’s UI is a bit more complex as it doesn’t only cater to drivers but also businesses. 

Cost Of Development

It’s possible to start creating a compelling navigation app with several core features and the right development partner, such as NS804. Here’s what features you’ll need to have basic functionality:

  • Authorization and user profile: It’s crucial to allow users to log in via their emails and social media accounts. Thus, it’s necessary to implement an integration pipeline with the Facebook SDK and Twitter Kit, at the very least.
  • Camera functionality: The app must work flawlessly with the cameras and file systems on both Android and iOS. Users will want to take photos of traffic incidents and store them on their devices or share them with other users.
  • Chat and user reviews features: Users will want to chat with other users, leave reviews and ratings about rides, and share road trip information with others on social media. All these features will require backend development to store and retrieve data on a server. Additionally, further social media integrations will be necessary.  
  • Geolocation mapping and navigation: Geolocation determines a user’s location, while navigation allows the user to pick the destination. It’s essential to integrate with Apple Maps (iOS only), Google Maps, and Mapbox Maps SDK to make this work.
  • Voice assistant: It’s potentially dangerous for drivers to look at the navigation map while driving. Therefore, it’s better to offer navigation coordinates by voice with API.AI, Google Cloud API, and Google Maps Directions API.

The cost of a basic navigation app with the above features will range between $40,000 and $60,000 and take four to six weeks to develop. But you’ll likely need additional features such as machine learning (ML), ridesharing, planned driver, Spotify, and ad integrations in the long run. As you add these features, expect development costs to reach $150,000 and beyond.

Development And Maintenance Considerations

Developing and maintaining a navigation app is a massive undertaking. After all, it relies heavily on data collection and sharing relevant data in real-time. And it must allow users to post photos of traffic jams and other road incidents. But it must also integrate with social media and a wide range of apps to increase its functionality. 

Then, to drive further engagement, the app may need gamification features. Waze offers a ranking system, incentivizing users to score points and gain a high position on the scoreboard. Thus, users can compare their level and score with their friends and other Waze users.

Since app development is an ongoing process, it won’t be necessary to roll out all features from day one. But it’s crucial to maintain and update the app at a regular cadence for the best results. As we’ve seen with Waze, it was a project that started life over 15 years ago and then gradually introduced new features and partnerships. 

The Bottom Line

Waze is a prime example of how indispensable and life-changing the navigation app is in people’s lives. It’s not cheap to develop and maintain such an app, but it’s a worthwhile endeavor for developers and appreneurs that see the big picture and how lucrative it can be in the long term. Contact NS804 to find out how we can help you develop phenomenal navigation apps that will empower your users.

Enhancing User Acquisition and Retention Strategies

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There’s no doubt that a central tactic for driving mobile app success is achieving user acquisition, engagement and retention. However, without an effective acquisition and retention strategy that keeps active users around, higher rates of downloads won’t yield any lifetime business value.

Mobile app engagement and retention are two critical metrics that give a clear and accurate insight into the success of any mobile app. Lower app retention and engagement rates are a sure-fire recipe for disaster.

App developers, brands, and enterprises must know that achieving sufficient app engagement and retention is difficult. For instance, Statista reports that only 32% of mobile users will return to a mobile app ten times or more after downloading. What’s even surprising is that a whopping 25% of users will abandon an app after one-time use.

Enhancing user acquisition, engagement and retention leads to an active user group that drives leads and sustains growth. The following tips for increasing user acquisition and retention will help you reduce your app churn rate and help your enterprise see the desired ROI and the results it anticipates from your app investment.

Let’s delve right in!

  1.   Efficient Onboarding

While it may seem simple to welcome users to your app, not all apps kick-start an efficient onboarding process. Therefore, it’s advisable to make your onboarding process as simple and as efficient as possible to initiate user acquisition and retention. The more difficult it is to use an app, the more likely new and existing users will abandon it.

Some of the ways to simplify the user onboarding process include:

  • Cut down the number of steps required to set up a new account — and capture multiple registration platforms (Facebook, Google, Twitter, and others)
  • Educate users throughout the onboarding process to launch the app’s functionality, but don’t overload users instantly.
  • Teach and educate through actions and pointers to show the main gestures in the app’s functionality.

An efficient onboarding process equals faster and easier user acquisition and engagement.

  1.   Track Data Early Enough

To accurately evaluate and measure data and improvements, you need to start tracking your app’s data early enough. Early data collection and tracking will give you what you need to evaluate performance. It will also help you fast-track which features and strategies affect engagement and retention.

  1.   Push Notifications Right Away!

Users who experience personalized brand interaction are reportedly more likely to return to a mobile app for ten or more sessions. To put it simply, if you walk into a retail outlet and you aren’t acknowledged, you’d most likely feel disgruntled. Consider app experience the same way.

An app interaction can be as simple as sending a push notification, thus providing valuable information as users leverage the app. Successful mobile applications use this approach to shape the customer’s journey. They’re strategic and thoughtful in how they access and engage new users. For instance, giving relevant retail deals based on user patterns and geo-location are clever approaches to promoting app retention.

  1.   Offer an Incentive Program

If your business model allows you to offer loyalty or a reward program, it’s vital to capitalize on this opportunity. Not only do reward and loyalty programs incentivize users towards the app, but they also make users feel recognized and part of the brand.

Realize that apps that utilize in-app purchases as a monetization approach, especially the quick router set-up (QRS) applications, offer time-sensitive discounts. However, freemium mobile apps can be incentivized with usage-based discounts instead of monetary benefits.

  1.   In-app Messages

The more disposed your app experience is with your users’ needs and preferences, the more likely users will continue using the product. Brands utilizing in-app messaging to communicate with users will see a retention rate within a month.

In-app notifications denote notifications that don’t demand immediate action or response but are altogether crucial in the customer’s engagement journey. These messages can capture notifications or warnings about version upgrades, app issues, or payment failures. Therefore, remember that not every notification you see is relevant to every user. Fragmenting your audience ensures the information you convey is relevant to their needs and expectations.

Contact NS804 to discover how your app can respond to new user acquisition, engagement and retention needs.

 

The Future of Enterprise Mobile App Development

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Enterprise mobile app is a sophisticated software system designed, deployed, and maintained to deal with routine business operations. The app is developed according to the company’s global strategy and makes certain app functions available on mobile devices to streamline business tasks and enterprise operations.

Enterprise mobile app development focuses on developing apps for employees to address their immediate needs and streamline business processes. Thus, these apps serve their core purpose in making your company’s operations results-oriented and focused. The app performs several other crucial but mundane tasks, including tracking sales, invoicing, and inventory tracking.

The future of enterprise mobile app development is bright. Today, enterprise mobile apps are experiencing an upsurge with the rapid adoption of mobile strategies by companies. Small, medium-sized, and large organizations alike are adopting high-end mobile strategies to optimize offline and online marketplaces.

Organizations are also using mobile applications to manage their employees and routine operations remotely. Enterprise mobile app development has become an integral part of every business – from designing and deploying marketing campaigns to managing routine operations. Mobile apps are further leveraged to engage small communities in social platforms to create brand visibility and strengthen brand value.

So, what indicators mark the future of enterprise mobile app development? Let’s dive right in.

  1.   Transaction control and additional payment features

Transaction control and additional payment features are especially valuable for retailers involved with e-commerce payment systems. Having an enterprise mobile app focused exclusively on money management can help you cut spending and improve your money management. The evolving role of enterprise mobile apps in routine money management tasks has made it a frontrunner in the contemporary business landscape.

  1.   Improved data management

Enterprise mobile apps help enterprises to improve their operations related to data processing, analysis, adjustment, and data verification. Routine data management can have a big difference in the overall business efficiency and can positively improve the bottom line. Mobile applications also record users’ data such as product interaction information (likes, loves, impressions, etc), user attitudes, and comments. This data provides actionable insight and improves business decision-making on different fronts like product design, marketing, pricing, and product positioning.

  1.   Eliminating paperwork and the human factor

Human error is to blame for 90% of the workplace and occupational hazards, can cost money, interrupt workplace productivity and create a loss of time. Knowing the different sources of human error can help you learn how best to prevent them. Enterprise mobile applications reduce the amount of paperwork and automate routine tasks. In addition, these apps enable employees and workers to focus on complex problems and mission-critical enterprise operations.

A New Dawn for Enterprise Mobile App Development

Enterprise mobile applications are doing wonders in the contemporary business domain and across various sectors: manufacturing, retail, finance, telecommunication, and logistics. With automation, transaction control, improved data management, and supply chain control, enterprises cannot help but leverage the revamped capabilities of these apps. In addition, enterprise mobile apps are automating employee onboarding and certification processes, and client support.

With NS804, we guide you through deploying the best-of-class enterprise mobile app that responds accordingly to your business and market needs. NS804 expertise and experience in mobile app development help businesses transcend contemporary operational challenges, including invoicing, customer relationship management, accounting, and enterprise resource planning.

Contact NS804 for time-to-value solutions in enterprise mobile app development.

Free Mobile App Development Tools

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The app development space is growing at an exponential pace, thanks in part to a growing number of phone ownership and rising internet penetration. Today, the app development market is one of the largest globally with an average release of 5092 apps on the Google App Store and 6140 apps on the Google Play Store.

Artificial intelligence, machine learning, cloud computing, and the Internet of Things IoT are some of the technologies that are being incorporated in most apps. A virtual assistant is one such improvement in mobile applications. Looking closely, you realize that WhatsApp, TikTok, and Instagram apps are topping the chart of leading apps with the most downloads. Amazon Prime and Netflix lead the entertainment app market, and Candy Crush is at the apex of the gaming app development market.

It’s with no doubt that mobile applications have schematically modified human life. Quick navigation and exceptional UI through mobile applications have become a trademark. The projected number of mobile phone users is expected to cross the 7 billion mark by 2025. This growth will automatically bring a shift in app downloads. So, in this context, it becomes important and valuable to understand the best app development solutions prevailing in the market, with the current and future app development trends.

In this post, we delve into the top free mobile app development tools.

  1. PhoneGap

PhoneGap is a popular mobile app development application that allows you to create a hybrid of software. With PhoneGap, the user or developer doesn’t necessarily need to know mobile programming languages. Instead, they can kick-start with languages like HTML, CSS, and JavaScript for app creation. PhoneGap allows you to create apps that will work on multiple platforms with a single codebase to reach the largest audience.

Features

  • Allows you to view and manage any changes in the app using PhoneGap
  • Easily integrates with various library integrations for easy app development
  • Operates on multiple platforms: iPhone, Windows, and Android

Pros

  • Rapid code testing and faster code deployment
  • A single codebase for multiple platforms

Cons

  • It lacks a user interface widget
  1. Outsystems

Outsystems is a comprehensive full-stack app development platform. By using connected, high-productivity, and AI-supported tools, developers can create and deploy a wide range of applications – from consumer applications to mission-critical business applications – faster, better, and for the future.

Features

  • It has a remarkable acceleration because no code or minimum code is required.
  • Easy integrations with other platforms
  • Easy to learn as it contains free training and learning material for everyone

Pros

  • The responsiveness of the member community allows for faster and efficient learning experiences
  • All members are open to sharing ideas, and these ideas are taken into consideration in further improving the platform

Cons

  • More explanation needed for some tools or widgets
  • No synchronization between consumer and producer modules, so users have to manage dependency frequently.
  • Better training material or documentation in forging components
  1. Flutter

Flutter is an open-source app development software that is best suited for hybrid apps. It’s one of the newest members in the mobile development market, and it’s written in C, C++, and Skia Graphics Engine. Flutter is a Google UI toolkit that allows users to create applications for web, mobile, and desktop from a single codebase. In addition, you don’t have to restart your application when testing your project. The application offers the Hot Reload functionality which makes the entire development exercise optimized and stress-free.

Features

  • Offers fully customizable widgets to render faster development of native apps
  • Incorporates critical platform differences like scrolling, navigation, fonts, and icons
  • Creates plugins using channels that can easily be used by every developer

Pros

  • Builds native apps in just minutes
  • Expressive and flexible user interface

Cons

  • Contains not-so-rich library collections
  1. Ionic

Ionic is one of the best free, open-source mobile applications for developing hybrid apps. It allows developers and users to build apps for various platforms including web, iOS, and Android using a single codebase. What’s more, Ionic offers intuitive UI components, thus accelerating the app development process. This app can be deployed almost everywhere. Ionic boasts of over 120 predefined elements, native device features, and a large community of members.

Features

  • Written in JavaScript, this application is covered by the MIT license
  • Includes mobile components, interactive paradigms, typography, and an extensive base theme
  • Allows Cordova based app building

Pros

  • Ease of learning and contains popular technologies
  • Wide range of library integrations

Cons

  • There’s no hot reloading capability
  1. Buddy

Buddy is an open-source mobile app development application that allows for seamless, change-set-based code deployment. Thanks to a plethora of dedicated, pre-configured services and actions, app automation has never been easier than now. Therefore, if you’re looking for a tool that will build, sign, test, and publish your android or web app effortlessly and in a single click, then Buddy is the ideal choice.

Features

  • Intuitive and clean UX/UI
  • Over 100 actions
  • A wide integration including Azure, Google, Amazon Web Services, and WordPress integrations.

Pros

  • It contains dedicated android actions: Ionic, Reacts Native, and Flutter
  • It supports all popular languages and task managers
  1. Kobiton

Kobiton mobile app development software makes the continuous testing, IOS, and mobile app development exercise a reality. This app also prevents bugs before pushing codes to test, thus perfecting your website or mobile app with functional, performance, and visual test automation. It also helps developers to resolve issues before the production release, and rapidly deploy tests with seamless CD/CI integrations.

Features

  • Allows you to test on real devices in the cloud
  • Cloudify all your local devices for remote access
  • It integrates with Jenkins, CircleCI, Travis CI, and so on.

Pros

  • Scriptless or scripted automated functional, performance, and visual testing
  • Commercial scalability with unlimited user policy
  • Access to real devices in your integrated development environment for rapid debugging.
  1. Xamarin

Xamarin is an open-source mobile app development application founded by Microsoft in 2011. It’s a set of tools that enable developers to build apps for various OS like Windows, Android, and IOS, all in one programming language. One of the reasons that Xamarin is quite reputable is because it uses the C# programming language. Besides using the Xamarin Test Cloud, you can automatically test applications on around 200 real mobile devices.

Features

  • Easy integration with modern back-end services, native APIs, and components
  • Enables you to build stunning cross-platform user interfaces
  • Extends a real-time testing module to monitor and catch app errors when they occur

Pros

  • Full technical support by Microsoft
  • Flexible with .NET and C#

Cons

  • Not build for game development
  1. Buildfire

Another best in this category of best open-source mobile app development software is Buildfire. Buildfire offers a robust set of tools to build applications for web, android, or IOS. This software is well-known for its high-end custom app development capabilities, as well as its easy, intuitive DIY platform. In addition, Buildfire supports more than 10,000 applications and it’s flexible enough to scale as your enterprise grows. Users and developers cannot ignore the simple and functional drag-and-drop user interface, as it makes it easier to build the app faster.

Features

  • Offers an interactive and intuitive app builder where no coding is needed.
  • Allows users to build custom functionality with their developer SDK
  • Can be integrated with any third-party API or pre-built integrations

Pros

  • Has an excellent social networking feature
  • Includes advanced development features

Cons

  • Does not have a reliable customer support service

NS804 – Your Partner in Mobile App Development

Every app development software has its uniqueness and demerits. To understand a software better and to pick the one that perfectly fits your needs, consider the following elements:

  • Privacy and security.
  • Reseller options
  • Push notifications
  • Customer discounts and loyalty programs
  • Instant messaging
  • Geo-targeting
  • Social media integration
  • Third-party integration
  • Analytics and reporting
  • Admin control
  • Customer service

Now that you know the best open-source app development software, it is time to kick-start your app development journey. We always encourage you to contact or consult the experts anytime you’re stuck in your app development exercise. You can also contact NS804 for questions concerning mobile app development.