What You Need

Step 2. What You Need

App Vision

• Can you summarise what the app needs to do in a sentence or two?
• Have you got a list of features you want your app to include?
• What app sales model fits with your requirements? (App Sales Models)
• Will your app have additional features in future to keep consumers engaged?

App Content (Pictures, Text, Video, Audio)

• What format is the content in?
• Do you have a content management system?
• Is the content in digital format and/or hosted on the internet already?
• Do you have the rights to use the content?
• Does the content in your app need to be updated over time, fixed, dynamic?

How will you finance your project? 

• Do you have a sponsorship opportunity to help finance the app?
• Do you want to keep ownership of your idea and maintain intellectual property?
• Do you want us to consider sharing your development cost in exchange for a shared risk in the project?
• Do you want us to pay you for your idea and take the development risk and intellectual property on board?

Know your consumer

• Remember they are on the move and have limited time, don't just put your entire website on an app, think about what your customers really need.
• What type of consumer is going to be using your app? (e.g. Age, Job, Sex, Geographical Location)
• What situation is your consumer likely to be in when using your app? (e.g. On the tube, at home on tablet device)
• Do you already know the specific users? (e.g. Are your app consumers existing customers)
• What type of device do your customers have? (e.g. iPhone, iPad, Android Phone or Tablet, Blackberry)
• How will your consumer know that you have an app once released?
• What languages does your consumer speak?

Know your competition

• What other apps are in the market with a similar to concept to yours?
• Do competitors in your traditional market have apps already?
• What weaknesses have been identified from competitor app feedback?
• Who are your competitors that are most likely to bring apps to market in the next 6 months?

Ask yourself why

• What do you hope to achieve through releasing this app? (e.g. Increased subscribers, brand awareness, list building)
• Can these hopes be measured once the app is released?
• What factors will constitute an effective app release for you?