If you own a smartphone, then you have no doubt downloaded a seemingly infinite number of apps to help you with one task or another. Maybe you need to find directions to the nearest supermarket, or perhaps you wanted to find a fun game for your children to play in the car. Whatever the motivation, mobile apps are present in our daily lives and are one of the biggest revolutions of the past few years. Mobile apps have become so common and easy to make that even small businesses now offer mobile apps that provide their customers with information about products, services, locations and more. If you thought apps were just for the big names in the business, think again – we’ll walk you through how simple it can be to build and release an app in 2014.

What You Need to Know First

Before you begin the actual building of your app, you first need to know a few things. For starters, who are you trying to reach with your app? There must be a target audience, as this is who the app will cater to primarily. Next, you need to be aware of the message that you wish to convey through deployment of the app. Most apps strive to be successful, but pinging users with information should be done alongside a greater goal of persuading these people that your brand cares more about them and their interests than the competition. Finally, you need to decide which specific actions you want the users of your app to be able to engage in through its use.

Build It Yourself or Pay Someone?

This is where you’ll need to weigh the pros and cons of app building in order to make a decision. Most app developers can provide exceptional apps that do whatever a business or brand needs, but the catch is that these developers usually charge an arm and a leg to build them. Smaller businesses may be able to get by with a rather basic app, which can often be built with free or low-cost utilities and tools. These solutions can be used by just about anyone, but are subject to more bugs and less sophistication than one built by a professional developer. In the end, it will be about a balance of money, time and detail needed in the app.

Tools to Use/Platforms to Consider

The most popular platforms for app development are Android and Apple, which comprises the vast majority of mobile user market share. Another platform with some popularity is Windows. You’ll have to decide whether you want to invest in one, two, three or more versions of your app in order to reach as many people as possible. Once you’ve made this decision, you’ll then be able to easily decide between a set of tools like AppBuilder or AdMob, or whether you want to enlist the services of a professional app builder to get the job done. After your app is built, all that is left is to upload/add it to the app stores of the respective platforms to start pinging users, and you’re ready to go!