Marcus Richards
Creating a mobile app can be a big step in the right direction. Mobile apps are popular with consumers, and they can be a vital marketing tool. Having a dedicated mobile app can make it much easier for consumers to avail of your services.
However, unless you are an experienced app developer, you should not try to develop the app yourself. Developing an app requires unique expertise and years of experience, and it is still challenging to do it right.
Your self-developed app risks being full of bugs that you are unable to fix, and the entire project can run over budget.
Hence, your best option is to hire app development freelancers or an IT firm to create your app. But how do you hire the right app developers for your app? What are the aspects you need to consider? There are many places to hire app developers, but you need to keep the following aspects in mind while hiring them.
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Having the Right Experience
While hiring freelance app developers, you need to be careful about how much experience they have. There have been a few cases adding fake experience to resumes. You need to be cautious and ask for more proof or evidence of their experience.
Most freelance developers will have a long resume that lists several apps that they helped develop. You should ask them to show you the apps, and you should check how well these apps work.
You need to ask them questions about the exact role they had in developing these apps. It is better if you know enough about app development to check whether they have the experience they claim to have. Even if they say they worked on a great app, you need to ascertain their role in its creation.
What is even more important is to hire app developers who have the right experience. You do not want to hire a front-end developer to help you with your back-end development. The more relevant an app developers experience is to the job you have for them, the better it is.
Finally, you should ask them for a list of their past and present clients. If you can get referrals from any of the developer’s past clients, then that is a step in the right direction. If they have already worked for clients who are very similar to you, for example let’s say you are in the bluetooth low energy industry, then they can probably handle the work you have for them.
Can They Integrate Analytic Programs?
You need to be able to track the performance of your mobile app once it has been launched. Several programs can help you do that. The most used ones are Google Analytics and Facebook Share Dialog.
Your developer should have experience in connecting mobile apps to analytics programs. You need to ask them what kind of experience they have regarding analytics and if they have integrated apps with analytics before.
Remember that connecting an app to an analytics software does not take more than a few hours, so you don’t want to pay for an entire extra day to have your app connected.
Connecting your app to analytics programs is essential because you need to be able to track your progress. The analytics programs will help you judge which aspects of your app are working and which aren’t.
This knowledge will guide future app updates and redesigns. They will also inform you of any bugs related to your app.
Knowing how to integrate analytics programs is like a litmus test for app developers. Any app developer who is worth their salt should easily be able to do it.
Which Platforms Have They Worked On?
Before you look for developers for your app, you need to know which platforms you are targeting. The Android and iOS platforms are the most dominant in the market, with Android being the bigger of the two.
If you plan on releasing your app on only one platform, then it is best if you release it on Android. If you want to connect with an even wider audience, then select both or more.
However, you should know that the process of developing an app for Android and iOS are widely different. Hence, you may need to hire separate development teams or individuals for both.
The person you’re selecting to develop your Android app must have extensive experience in developing apps for Android. You may want to pay extra to hire someone who is an expert in their field rather than hiring someone new to the job.
This is because if you’re hiring a single app developer, then they need to know what they are doing. An experienced app developer can make all the difference in the quality of your app.
Outsourcing Your Apps Development
You need to know who will be working on your app before they do any work. Maybe the app developer you have hired regularly outsources aspects of the work to other developers. You need to ask the person you hire if they plan on outsourcing any part of the job.
Outsourcing is a regular occurrence in the app development world, so you need to plan for it. If you allow the development of your app to be outsourced, you need to know who the job is going to.
Do not enable any outsourcing to individuals or teams who do not seem to meet your development standards. You may want to personally interview them before you let them take on the job.
Documentation Regarding Your App
Your app developer needs to provide you with the required documentation to your app so that you can make changes to it when required. Every app needs to be maintained and updated; hence, you need to ask your app developer to help you with that.
If you are hiring an app developer to work for you full-time, then you do not need to worry about this scenario. However, if you are looking to hire freelancers, then you need to ask them to provide the necessary documentation and guidance.
You do not want to own an app that you can’t update or maintain. In addition to that, you should also hire product consultants to help you with the management.
Final Thoughts
Making an app for your company may be the most crucial step in your company’s growth. Hence, the decision to hire app developers is not one to be taken lightly. Ensure that you are entirely confident about the hands that are going to build your app.
