In modern realities, almost every company strives to acquire its application. However, developing mobile applications or software requires a lot of investment. And this becomes a huge problem for small and start-up businesses.
The development of a website, business software, or mobile application is not a product but a service. Each new project is carried out according to the client’s needs. Therefore, there is no fixed cost. And the more complex the task, the greater the variation in prices and terms — different teams have their methods and approaches to the process. Sometimes well-known companies inflate the price, which makes developing an app for a small business something incomprehensible. So, how to save on business software and mobile app development?
Of course, you will still have to allocate a certain share of the budget for such a task, but several rules can help you save on development without losing the quality of the final product and the speed of its creation. Let’s figure out what you can save on and what should never be excluded from the process.
Tip #1. Hire a professional team
No matter how strange it may sound now, hiring professional developers will help save you money and time. The fact is that the market is full of various contractors, and finding really decent and responsible specialists sometimes becomes a difficult task.
Famous companies inflate prices for the brand, and such companies usually have longer lead times due to the large number of orders. Hiring an amateur freelancer is also not an option, as one person may simply not be able to cope with the task. And you won’t get the desired result and will have to look for a new contractor.
The ideal solution would be to hire a small team of developers such as Jazzteam, who are ready to tackle your project on a turnkey basis, with a guarantee of deadlines and a good portfolio. You will be sure that specialists are working specifically on your project and that they have expertise and experience in this sphere.
Tip #2. Choose the functions you need
Make a list of the main features and sections that your application or software should include. You will draw up a detailed technical specification with the team you hire later, but you just need to describe what you expect from this software or application at the very beginning.
The goal of creating any business product is to make users’ lives easier and allow them to solve various problems with a couple of clicks. An application overloaded with a bunch of complex functions, each of which takes a long time to understand, is a guaranteed failed idea, which, among other things, will take a lot of extra money. Don’t waste your budget on introducing additional features, focus on the necessary functions only.
Tip #3. Eliminate bugs
Many people believe that bugs should be identified only after development is complete. This is not true — bug fixes need to be done regularly during the development process itself. It’s good if your tester is on the team of developers you hire. But to perform this task, it’s best to hire a third-party tester specialist. The monetary cost of such services may be significantly lower than the cost of serious “repair” of the product, and will also save a lot of time.
Tip #4. Choose cross-platform development
Developing business software or a mobile application for only one platform is a grave mistake in modern conditions. Today, people use different devices for the same tasks. Cross-platform application development allows you to create one product for different platforms, thereby saving both budget and time. You won’t need to order separate development for each OS if you immediately give preference to cross-platform.
Tip #5. Save with simplicity
Simple, elegant design is a surefire way to reduce development costs. A UI that is overloaded with various elements will lead to unnecessary costs, bore users, and may also make the interface unclear.
What can’t be excluded from development?
5 things you should never skimp on:
- testing;
- competence and experience of the contractor;
- adaptation for mobile devices:
- load speed optimization;
- setting up metrics to track user behavior.
Wrapping Up
Saving on business software development in 2024 is quite possible. Follow our tips, choose your contractor carefully, and don’t skimp on crucial aspects of your product development.