These days, if you want to make the big bucks you need to be in mobile app development.
Whilst in the past being a doctor, lawyer, or stockbroker was the only way to guarantee a big payday, in the age of smartphones and the gig economy the next big app can make billionaires overnight.
But how do you go about making your first app?
Assuming you’ve come up with that groundbreaking idea that’ll change the game, or even if you just want an additional touchpoint with your customers, the next step is figuring out how you’re gonna actually build the thing.
Here are the three ways in which you could go about turning your app idea into a reality.
Use an App Building Platform
Probably the easiest and least expensive is using a web-based app building platform.
Whilst these kinds of services would not have been possible a decade ago, there are now plenty of websites that offer app building as a service. Most of these platforms use standard templates that you can customize (to a degree) to suit your needs and build a functioning app in a couple of hours.
Clearly, the benefits of this avenue are the speed and convenience they offer. Being able to create an account, drag and drop your buttons and produce a halfway decent app in the one day is certainly an alluring option. This will work fine for an app this is designed more to showcase content, capture customer information or act as another sales and marketing funnel.
However, the downside of this type of app building is its lack of customizability. If you have a truly unique app idea, these kinds of platforms will not be able to handle the likely complex architecture you will need to build in order to produce a high quality app.
Many of these platforms also work on a monthly subscription model. Some of them can be as cheap as $10 a month, but some can get over $100. Whilst this may not seem like a huge expense at the beginning, the costs can quickly add up over time.
Using a prefab app building platform is quick and easy but restricted in its capabilities. If you just need something simple and fast then this is a good option for you, but if you need a totally bespoke app made, you might want to look at your other options.
Hire A Developer
Another option for people who are serious about getting their app built is to hire a professional developer.
This will allow you a much higher degree of freedom when it comes to designing and building your app, as any good developer should be able to craft the unique systems and features you envisage for your product.
Working with a developer is an iterative and collaborative process, which will likely require many revisions and updates to get the app exactly to where you want it. A developer might also have their own strong opinions on how the app architecture should be laid out, which could lead to some workplace friction.
This option is also likely the most expensive option. There is a reason that Mobile App Developers are able to charge so much for their services, and that is because everyone wants to build an app and learning to build one is difficult. Thus, Mobile App Developers can almost charge whatever they want when it comes to quoting for a new job, and most developers are easily earning six figures a year.
If you are short on time and flush with cash, this is the route for you. If you have a bit more time and don’t have buckets of money, you could consider investing some time and money in yourself and learning to code.
Learn to Code Yourself
Certainly the most rewarding option out of the bunch is to learn how to build your app yourself.
Learning to code is an incredibly useful and powerful skill in this day and age, as pretty much every tech success story of the past decade has come out of a game-changing app. Ever heard of Uber? Or Spotify? Maybe Instagram? These were all crazy ideas that combined with coding talent to become multi-billion dollar enterprises.
Learning to code takes some time and patience, but the rewards far outweigh the costs. There are several different coding languages to learn, including Java, Python and Swift. Each offer their own unique advantages and uses, and a good coding course will give you an introduction to each of them.
Cestar College offers a comprehensive Mobile App Development course that gives anyone looking to get into app development a holistic overview of the tech landscape. The course
covers all the basics of Swift programing, coding with Objective-C, and development for iOS and Android devices.
The program also builds upon this knowledge with advanced mobile app coding, game development programming and mobile web application coding.
Cestar College also offers a specific Swift course over four days that covers everything you need to know about this important coding language for Apple products. With billions of Apple products around the world relying on this coding, learning how to manipulate it can make you a hot commodity in the app development world.
Are you looking to take the next step in your career and learn mobile app development? Contact us today to learn more!
