Did you know that mobile apps in the Apple App Store tend to lose an average of 76 percent of their consumers after the first three months of use?This means that you will need to create a highly engaging experience that fills a need in the marketplace. To attract users, keep them engaged, and support a revenue model there are some steps you need to consider before writing your first line of code.
Identify the Need in the Marketplace
Are moms looking for apps that will help them identify and train with other local mothers interested in a running group? Is there an opportunity to capitalize on a fitness event garnering major consumer interest (i.e., the Olympics) and create an app to introduce new users to a particular sport?
Research the Competition
Next, you’ll need to find out if there is anyone out there already doing a great job at filling that specific need. Check out the apps - review them and determine what would make for a better user experience. You may find that they are lacking some features or make it difficult for users to understand. For example, Improved user navigation and/or an extra feature can be the difference between success and failure.
Review the Data Available
At this point, you can begin to determine what sources of information will be used in your app. You may decide to use some of the APIs from other apps found in your research or choose other APIs that are easier to integrate or have better information. This will give you an idea of what features you can offer within your app. If you decide to use the ACTIVE APIs to provide activity data, then you may also want to use Mapping APIs and Social APIs to allow users to locate and share their favorite events. Try searching ProgrammableWeb’s Directory of APIs to see what cool mash-ups you can create. There are new APIs being built every day.Now that you have done your research, you should have a pretty good idea of what the core functions of the app will be. Check out some of the lessons learned from other app developers using ACTIVE APIs via ACTIVE Access.
