Android is the most popular operating system with the highest market share. The reason for its popularity is that it offers users apps for free. Developing apps on android is cheap and it also offers the apps a wide reach.
The above-mentioned factors make the field of android app development a highly competitive one. If you are considering a career in this field, the following are the mistakes that you must avoid making in order to make sure that your app stands out:
Cloning iOS Apps
Android and iOS are different operating systems that also have their own different sets of design guidelines to be followed by app designers. These guidelines specify the rules to design high-quality android apps with respect to aspects such as the media, navigation, UI, notifications, etc. The design of the app icons and system notifications is also different in Android and iOS – Android’s apps should not be placed inside rounded rectangles and their notifications should not have any colour.
Not Doing Research
Before developing your app, you should do thorough market research which involves researching your audience and competitors. Researching your audience involves knowing their demographics and identifying their problems to which your app will be the solution. Researching your competitors will give you an idea of their app’s strengths and flaws, and what its users like and don’t like about it. You can use this information to build a unique app to avoid copyright issues with your competitor or build an improvised version of the competitor’s app that fixes its flaws.
Neglecting User Experience
You cannot enhance the user experience of your app by solely making it look attractive. Making the app colourful and having appealing visuals can bring users to your app, but factors like fast loading time and seamless navigation are what will retain them. Design a simple menu and keep ads and popup notifications to a minimum. Allow users to disable ads and choose which notifications they would like to receive. A good user experience will result in more users, good word-of-mouth, and good ratings and ranking for your app on the app store. Keep testing the app on small groups of users and keep modifying it according to their feedback.
Not Having A Marketing Strategy
Just creating an app and launching it on the app store is not enough. Apart from having the right features, marketing your app in the right way is what will make it stand out from the competition and make people take notice of it. Using ads and targeting multiple social media channels will help you to spread the word about your app. To reach out to a large number of the right audience through social media, you must experiment and find out the right time to post on your target channels.
Not Optimising The App For Different Android Devices
Android apps can be accessed on multiple smartphones and tablets. Different android devices and models have different screen resolutions. You must optimise your app for all android devices and models so that the quality of the content and the resolution of the images is not compromised.
Not Seeking Help From The Android App Developers’ Community
The process of developing Android apps is not a smooth one, and it also involves the maintenance of the apps. You will not be able to do all of this alone. You have to reach out to fellow Android developers in case you need help with any of the steps. This will make the process seamless and speed it up.
Not Updating The App Frequently
It is not enough to update your app just once. It is an ongoing process. You have to ensure the security of user information, constantly incorporate the latest technology into the app, and keep fixing its bugs. You must also optimise the app for the latest version of Android. This helps you to improve user experience and win their trust and stay on top of trends and competition.
Not Handling Negative Reviews
Your mobile app is your brainchild, and it can be tough to read negative reviews about it. But ignoring user feedback can make them feel neglected and damage your reputation. Keep looking for negative reviews on the app store and the internet. Respond to all the negative comments immediately. Even if you don’t solve the issues immediately, admitting your mistakes and letting your users know that you are working on them will help you to win their trust.