How to choose the right mobile app development partner?

By Harikrishna Kundariya

We have seen what decisions you must make before you start looking for the partner. Let us now see what you should look for in the app development firms when you consider them for the job. Once you have a set of potential development partners with you, you need to check the websites to see more about them. What is the feeling you get when you see their sites?

 You can find many of their earlier assignments displayed on the website. Go through their work in detail. Note down what you like and what you don’t.

Check their contact details. See if they have an office in a nearshore location. Is there an easy way to communicate with them? If there is no contact number, then they could be outsourcing their work. They are not suitable for you.

The next thing to check is the variety of services they offer. Select a company that can give you end-to-end solutions. The company should know the features to choose a web host.

Otherwise, you will end up coordinating between the different people providing different services. Check their sites for reviews from earlier clients and samples of their work.

Test their work

You must test their work. What does the app feel? You must know whether the design is essential. Check how useful the UI is. Good designs are necessary for any app. No user will try your app if the model is good.

Whether you’re opting for enterprise application development or simple mobile app, you should always test the work of the provider.

The app must provide an excellent experience to the users. It is not about just looking good. The app must be easy to use. There must be smooth navigation between pages. The user must feel that the app is easy to use. The UI gives a good look, and that is needed for the user to try the app.

You should check whether the apps are portable. The design should be application-oriented rather than device-oriented. It will help the app to have the same look and feel across different platforms.

Communication

Communication can become a big problem if you engage an offshore company with a different language. Proper communication is crucial if you want them to do the work as per your requirement. Ensure that their developers can speak the language that you know. Talk to them a few times before you finalize the company.

Learn to manage and maintain

You cannot expect the app development team to come to your help every time you need to do something in the app. You must get a development partner who will teach you enough to manage your app and maintain it well. They should show you the management and maintenance of the app without charging anything extra.

The best way to ensure this is to hire a development partner who is using the current best practices. They should use modern languages and platforms. It will mean that you won’t have to learn something which you haven’t heard of before.

Client reference

Talking to their earlier clients is essential. It could give you a lot of information about the app development company. You can check the reviews. Select a few clients from that and talk to them. Select a partner who is getting good reviews form most of the past clients. There are indeed bound to be a couple of dissatisfied customers for every company.

Contact more than one company

There are many companies in the world. There is bound to be more than one company that meets your criteria. Meet with at least two or three of these companies. Nothing can give you the correct assessment like talking to these companies.

Be transparent

If your initial discussions go right, you should move for more detailed reviews. You could ask for a non-disclosure agreement before you start the complete study. It will be excellent protection for your idea. Start the conversation in detail once you get the NDA.

A detailed discussion of the project is essential for the development company to make the right assessment. Share your documentation with them.  It will help them come to the right decision.

They will tell you whether they will do the job or not. It will help to give you the right proposal if it’s going to do the work.

It makes sense to be completely transparent so that you don’t face ugly surprises after work begins. If you don’t open up entirely regarding your project, the company could quote a cost much lesser than real. It will bring about unwanted unpleasant in the future. There could be delays in completing the project or a huge cost overrun.

Agile methodology

It is better to engage with a company that uses the Agile Methodology For App Development. It will ensure that you get as much participation in the development process.

You will be able to get a complete view of the app as it develops. It will let you have a better idea of how your product is progressing.

Engagement model

It is essential to fix the right engagement model so that the cost will stay within reasonable limits of the estimate. There can be either a fixed price model or an hourly pay model. You can go with the fixed price model if the project has a fixed and predetermined goal. If the project is likely to change directions on the go, then it is better to go for the hourly model.

Code ownership

Discuss with regarding code ownership at the beginning itself. Find out whether he/she will be transferring complete ownership of the code to you. There are cases when companies don’t discuss this in the beginning, and the who matter takes an ugly turn when the development company refuses to hand over the rights of the code.

Discuss with regarding code ownership at the beginning itself. Find out whether they will be transferring complete ownership of the code to you. There were cases when companies did not discuss this in the beginning, and the who matter takes an ugly turn when the development company refuses to hand over the rights of the code.

Have clear milestones

Make definite plans about the timeline of the project. You should have clear milestones set. Discuss with the development company and ensure they understand the project roadmap. Get this across clearly. Once you have divided the project into stages and agreed on the milestones, get it all recorded and signed.

There may be development agencies that can complete the job quicker but may not be able to start your work for another three months. That won’t help you. It will delay the launch of your app losing valuable time in the market. It is better to choose a company that takes longer to build but can start immediately.

Support and maintenance

No app. It will require support and maintenance for a period until it is stable. There can be many bugs which appear time and again. As customers use the app, they could develop some problems. You will need the support of the development company at least for a year. It will ensure proper performance of your app.

Time zones

If you are offering the work to an offshore company, check their time zone. You must hand over the job to a company in a country that will have the maximum number of hours that overlap with your working time. If you choose otherwise, you will be spending many sleeping hours awake to communicate with them.

Costing

Unless you have unlimited resources, you should think about the costing. Check the costsof all the prospective companies. From their detailed costing, you will know which is more reasonable. Don’t go with the lowest because the company may not give you the quality that you require.

The cost will depend on the type of app you are developing. It will also depend on which country your development company is based. Many websites are giving you details about the hours of work required and the costing. Go through them before you finalize your development partner.

• Check the websites and credentials of the companies you want to employ.
• See if there are proper contact details including local telephone numbers
• Find out whether the development company can give you all the services you require.
• See their work and use the apps to see how they look and fell.
• The apps should have appealing looks while also being easy to use.
• They should offer the best user experience.
• The apps should have the same experience across different mobile platforms.
• The app development company should teach you enough to maintain and manage the app in the future.
• They should use best practices and modern platforms so that you don’t have to learn anything new.
• Get their client references and talk to a few of them. Check client reviews on their websites.
• Contact a few companies so that you can select the most suitable one.
• Communicate as much about your projects to them so that they give you a realistic proposal.
• Employ a development company following an agile methodology for better involvement in the process.
• Arrive at the most suitable engagement model.
• Have clear agreements concerning code ownership.
• Set a timeframe for completion. Have milestones for each stage of the project.
• It is better to hire a company who can start your work immediately even if they take longer to complete the project.
• The app development company should offer support and maintenance until the app stabilizes.
• Ensure that the time zone of your app development company doesn’t keep you awake too much.
• Get an idea about the costing. Check websites that offer you details about costing for different aspects of the app.
• The cost will vary with the complexity of the app and which country you choose your developers.

Conclusion

In today’s day and age, when the mobile app is ruling the roost in the IT world, it becomes essential to choose the right mobile app development firm.

Taking this idea into consideration, here we have tried to provide you with an in-depth guide on how to choose the right mobile app development partner.