Key Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Mobile App Developer

Key Questions to Ask Before Hiring a Mobile App Developer

Perhaps the least surprising thing you’ll read today is that mobile app development is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world. Businesses ranging from startups to Fortune 500 companies recognize that apps are a must-have in 2019; the benefits are endless, such as boosting sales and user engagement. There’s no question that you should develop a mobile app for your business, but there are questions you should be asking a development agency before hiring them to create your app. 

  1. Can I see some of the mobile apps you’ve developed before?

Qualified developers should be excited to show you their portfolio and provide you with a list of apps they’re responsible for building. This is one of the best ways you can tell if you’ll get a good ROI.

  1. Can I speak with some of your clients?

Many agencies have profiles on review sites like Clutch, where you can read unbiased and verified accounts detailing mobile app development projects. Ask your candidates if you can speak to some of their past or present clients; this will give you invaluable insight into how the candidate performs and whether they have the experience necessary to understand your business model and customer base. 

  1. How skilled are your developers?

This may seem obvious, but make sure the agency’s developers have the skillsets necessary to build the features and functionalities you want on your app. Ask for links to the developers’ GitHub and LinkedIn accounts. 

  1. Do you follow coding standards and use a framework?

We highly recommend hiring an agency that uses web application frameworks, which are organized coding systems. If you ever need to bring the app to another agency, it could be hard for other developers to work on it without a framework in place. For example, most agencies use Bootstrap as a standard coding practice. Does the agency you’re considering use Bootstrap?

  1. Can you build apps for different operating systems?

Keep in mind that some developers specialize in coding for Android apps, while others only do iOS. 

Photo credit: App Partner

  1. How will you manage the development process?

The quality of your app depends on how effectively you relay your app design and functionality requirements, so make sure the candidate is open to frequent communication and feedback. Ask whether they use collaboration tools, such as Asana, Trello, or Jira, which allow you to see the developer’s progress in real-time. 

  1. How can I make money off my app?

If your main goal is to generate revenue, the developer will need to know how to build in features that will allow you to make money. 

  1. Who will own the mobile app? 

Typically, the individual or company paying for a mobile app will own the finished product. To be sure you own all of the rights to the app you commissioned, you and the developer should sign a written contract. 

Photo credit: BuildFire

In 2018, global mobile app revenues amounted to over $365 billion USD. In 2023, mobile apps are projected to generate more than $935 billion USD in revenues via paid downloads and in-app advertising. 

Don’t miss out on this potential income for your business—find the perfect mobile app developer for you on great platforms like Clutch, where we are ranked as a top app developer in Delhi, and The Manifest, where we are listed among the best web design agencies in India. And don’t forget to ask the right questions! 

For more information, contact us.

React Native App Development : Impact On Cost And Efficiency Of App

react native app development company

Delivery of the app in a shot period of time is nothing new in the application development environment . Developers are always under intense pressure to deliver the app within limited time , but at the end result is what it matters .

An organisation is called to be professional app development company if they efficiently provide the on demand quality and function software as per the emerging demands of clients . But now it seems to be very often that trend is changing day by day . Every business want to reach wider number of user on the go . When it comes to mobile app development , every business aims to get the best product as soon as possible and at the same time does not want to pay more on the development cost .

As the result of the above outcome , companies fails to achieve the desired result which in turn comes up with unpleasant experience for both the parties . Specially when business are budget constrain , they usually focus on developing the app for only one specific platform  ( Either Android or iOS ) and later on plan to expand to other platform once they started generating revenue from it .

Native app development is something requires double the cost for development and so is the time for development cycle to get it done . Since 2008 it has always seen been rise in the new improved development technology and so is React Native . In 2015 , Facebook has introduced React Native in 2015 which has left huge imprints in app market . By the use of Javascript and XML-esque , it build mobile application interface .

Lets quickly look at some of benefits of using React Native for development platform :

Code Shared Between Android And iOS Is Easily Reusable

We all know that Android and iOS are two different platform equally completive to each other . As they are two different platform , they also have their own specific programming language namely Java for android and Swift for iOS . The major benefit of using react native is almost 90% of the code can be easily shared between android and iOS platform . A good react native app development company can deliver fast app for both the platform which in turn also improves developer velocity .

Hot Reloading

A major benefit of this framework is it precodes with Hot Reloading feature which is based on Hot Module Replacement ( HMR) . No other can understand a pain than a developer itself for time taken to recompile the app again and again just for testing purposes . Under react native platform app changes can be seen immediately in the app once changes done in the source code by developer and developer has not to recompile it to see the effect of changes . Thereby hot reloading in turn speed ups development time .

Navigation

React native has a pre enabled in built navigation bars that aids developers to just to write few lines of code in order to set up the screen of the application . Developers also has the option to create custom navigation pattern for mobile app with using the pre built in feature . The best part is it offers common stack navigation and tabbed navigation patter on both iOS and android .

UI

Apps build using react native have a capability of building apps in native app using native widgets . React native framework is based on Angular JS or Meteor JS which aids developers in delivering beautiful and attractive user interface .

Animation , usability , keyboard behaviour are more smoother for even a complex app , which is even known for its better performance than native app .

One Single Team Is Required

We all are aware that for developing apps on native platform we always required 2 different teams namely Java team for Android and Objective C / Swift team for iOS  . But when it come to developing apps on react native platform , it requires a single development team that has the efficiency of delivering apps for both the platform .

React Native Uses Native Components

React native uses the components of native which is used in Java and Objective C or Swift , thereby optimising app’s efficiency as per the customised requirement . Apps are always being easy to develop using Javascript’s engine without even disturbing main UI thread .

React Native Proved Best For Location Based App

In present scenario many of the apps are using location feature in the app to make it user oriented .Apps like Google , Facebook , Amazon – all are using location feature in their apps .

Is is tested that if you are planning to launch app that needs device location on continuous basis , there is no other option that react native . Android and iOS both the platforms requires sets of permission in order to access the device location . React native makes it easier by allowing native Javascript API .

Faster Development

The apps build using React Native platform can be launched on fast scale . The React Native framework is pre equipped with various ready made components and libraries which makes even the heavy task simple . Developers has a wider option of choosing from the best library which includes APISauce , react-native-vector-icons , react-native-i18n that benefits the developers in numerous of ways , which in turn boost the developmental process and reduces the turn around time of app development .

Better That Web View App

A good mobile app development company always suggest you to go with react native app in place of web based view app , because of the fact that cross platform framework has the capability to achieve 60 frames per seconds while giving awesome native look and feel .

Bundles Of API’s

React Native framework offers different set of API’s which includes Android and iOS specific API’s to which allows taking the advantage of almost all platform features such as camera , contacts and other storage .

Conclusion

Over the time , the React Native app development framework has been scaled to next level which in turn supports every essential mobile app development requirement right from delivering the awesome UI to even management of database . It helps developers focus on building something unique with simple code logic .

Fixed Cost Vs Hourly Cost : Which One To Consider For App Development ?

Fixed Cost Vs Hourly Cost : Which One To Consider For App Development ?

Whenever anyone takes a decision of moving ahead with mobile app development , the very first factors that strikes people mind is the cost of developing the app . But even before going ahead with the app development , have you ever thought of the full defined features that will be present in your would be Mobile application ?

Especially when you are budget constraint , you have to predefine the features to get the exact cost estimate of developing a product .

But inspite of taking into consideration various factors , an app development company or app developers will unfortunately not be able to provide you with exact exact figure of app development cost . As the pricing of the app development depends on various variable elements such as man-hours to be spent , whether a company or freelancer has been choose by you for an app development , on which platform you want your app , ie Android or iOS , do you want the app on Hybrid or Native , technical’s aspects , the location of the development team and so on .

In addition to it , in case you are planning to key in some more features in your app ( which is the usual case with most of us ) which is beyond your predefined scope of work , you have to pay more for the add on features .

We are all aware that when talking about the app development industry , most of the companies follow dual pricing model :

  1. Fixed price model
  2. Hourly price model

Fixed Price Model

The fixed price model is best suitable if you have a pre defined scope of work . App development company will give you a fixed cost with predefined timeline with almost no scope in alternation of the project .

In this model , app idea , implementation of features and functionalities , platform on which app needs to be developed on are all well defined in advance . This is specially the case with the project which are small and have low budget . So it is not the touch task , even a small team will be able to accomplish it easily .

But you have to always keep in mind that in fixed price contract do not expect a single , I repeat ” not a single ” change in terms and condition of the contract under any circumstances .

However the biggest cons of this model is you are more concerned about your budget in comparison to what you are getting as a product in terms of quality , which may also results in failure  .

Essential Features Of Fixed Cost Agreement

  • The budget and timeline to complete the app is predefined in advance with mutual agreement between developer and client .
  • The development team knows in advance how to mould the app to give it a highly polished shape and they will focus on app UI designing accordingly .
  • You are not allowed to change the features later on , probably not in any case .

Situation When Fixed Price Cost Work Best

  • When you are planning to launch a simple app without any complexity .
  • You have a limited budget and no other alternatives can be chosen .
  • You are planning a Minimum Viable Product or App Prototype to test your app idea

Hourly Pricing Model

A hourly pricing module as the name denotes is based on the manta of hourly pricing . The hourly cost varies from region to region and from one company to another .
For instance say you have hired a single resource in some app development company for 600 hours , and their hourly rate of what they are charging is $ 25 per hour , then you have to pay $ 15000 to them which is multiplication of $ 25 and 600 hours .
The hourly rate or we can say Time and Material Model is preferable for clients who have a vision to make the app with demand on the go , rather than predefining everything in advance . As you have hired freelancer or company on hourly basis . As you have hired as per your flexibility , you are most welcome to share your suggestions together with using their expertise knowledge on improving the overall quality of product .
The best thing being you can always add on more features as per your convenience .

Essential Features Of Hourly Pricing Model

  • The pricing depends on working hours and rates they charge as per their skills .
  • The price is not fixed in advance , so it can be higher or lower as per your requirement .
  • Not only cost , but timeline of the project is also flexible .
  • Client and developer both can give their valuable inputs from time to time for addition as well as removal of any unnecessary features .

Situation When Hourly Price Cost Work Best

  • The hourly rate approach works best when you have a clear app idea and you are not sure about validating it .
  • When you have a really complicated project with not pre defined requirement .
  • When you directly want to get involved with project and desire to know how developers are proceeding with given task .

Fixed Cost VS Hourly Rates : The Conclusion

We have discussed in details about the two popular pricing models that almost all app development companies follows in present scenario . Every model has their own pros and cons . If you are choosing a fixed price model , you might get a quality comprimisement and not any further scope of changes . Alternatively choosing hourly basis model will always be on higher side in terms of pricing but you can get your product as desired .