Every day, the mobile app development industry is reaching new heights. By the end of 2026, the mobile industry will generate $233 billion in revenue annually. The future of this industry looks promising, which is why the demand for custom Android app development is higher than ever.

Some businesses want to create the next TikTok or Zoom-like app to meet consumer demands. On the other hand, some companies want to develop apps for enterprises to make them more cost-effective and increase efficiency.

Difference between Consumer and Enterprise Apps:

Suppose your firm is interested in developing a mobile solution. In that case, it is valuable for you to learn the process behind creating a custom Android app. In this blog, we will take you through all the steps that include the design of a mobile app.

7 Steps of Mobile Application Development:

This guide is a starter pack for individuals with a technical background, but if you have specialized experience, this guide will polish your knowledge. The creation of a custom Android app consists of seven steps.

• Strategy Development
• Analysis and Planning
• UI/UX Design
• App Development
• Application Testing
• Deployment
• Support and Performance Monitoring

Without any further ado, let’s dive deep into each of the above seven steps to get comprehensive knowledge of creating custom Android app development.

Step 1: Strategy Development

The first step of the process starts with the planning of a strategy. This step further consists of four pillars: objectives, competitors, platform, and monetization. 

Objectives:

It doesn’t matter if you are creating a mobile app or an enterprise app; the first thing you need to do is identify your objectives. You can locate your goals by answering the following questions:

• My application is a solution to what problem?
• Who are the target users of my mobile application?
• What are the results I want my app to achieve?

You may have an initial idea about your app, so you should have given more thought to these questions, but these questions will solve your app’s what and why questions. It’s good practice to know your objectives. It will help you in the future to look back on your calls.

Research your Competitors:

The next step in your strategy planning is to research your potential competitors. You have to thoroughly research the available apps that serve the same purpose as yours. You have to look into the app’s analytics, how it performs in the market, how many installations it has, and customer feedback. This detailed analysis will help you learn from the mistakes of the earlier developers of the app. Hence, your app has the potential to surpass the earlier applications serving the same purpose. Researching your competitors will show you how to differentiate your application from the already available applications in the market.

Platform Selection:

The selection of the platform is the next step in your strategy development phase. The platform selection will help you choose the forum you are building your app for. You will get the idea that your App will be a fit for Android solutions, that your app is a better pick for iOS apps, or, on a better note, that your App will be a cross-platform application that will work on both platforms.

Monetization:

If you are building a consumer application, the last step of your strategy development will be choosing the monetization method. This means that you will make direct revenue from the investment you have put into the creation of your custom Android app development, but there are various methods of monetization, which include 

• In-app advertising 
• In-app purchases                                                                                                                                     
• Subscription models 
• Affiliate marketing and the 
• Paid apps

The monetization method strictly depends on the goal and the type of application you are creating; for example, if you are making an entertainment app that will serve the purpose of movies, etc., then the subscription model is best for your app. On the other hand, if you decide to create a gaming app, then in-app purchases and subscription methods will generate revenue.

Step 2: Analysis and Planning

Analysis and planning are the second steps in creating your custom Android mobile application. After the first step, you know how this step will go. This step consists of the following sub-steps, which are described below:

Functional and Non-functional requirements: You have to be very specific with the features of your application. For instance, if you are creating a custom app for a restaurant, it needs sign-in and login features, a menu list with their prices, delivery options, a credit card payment facility, etc.; these are the functional requirements of your application. Non-functional requirements include the optimization and speed of your application.

Product Roadmap: 

In this step, you’ll break down the end goal of your app into smaller ones. Before releasing your Minimum Viable Product, you can identify your application’s success and failure points.

Step 3: UI/UX Design

This is the most important step of your custom Android app development, which will help you retain your users. Your app design should be attractive and engaging, with seamless navigation. The method of the app further consists of the following parts:

Information Architecture and Workflow: 

You should develop the architecture of your application, including which parts should be displayed and how they will look. Based on this, you’ll create the workflow of your application and how users will interact with it.

Wireframes:

Next, you’ll create your application’s digital diagram, a wireframe. This will give you a visual idea of your app’s functionality. 

Style Guides:

Style guides keep your company’s branding in one place and are important to the design strategy of your application. This document contains information about the

• Font style
• Color Palette
• Positioning and Spacing Guides
• Buttons
• Widgets

Mockups:

Mockups are your application’s final render based on your style guides for the wireframes. Make sure that your design is consistent and coherent.

Prototypes:

This is the final step in the custom Android app development UI/UX design process. Prototypes will give you an idea of how the application will work once it goes live. This is a time-consuming approach, and sometimes companies overlook it, but prototypes hold significance.

Step 4: App Development

The design phase is complete now; let’s move on to the development phase, which consists of the front and back ends.

Back-end Development:

Back-end development involves your app’s performance, which consists of a database and server-side objects. You should now select the appropriate programming language for your app and start coding. In addition to this, your database engines and hosting will be set. The backend determines the scalability of your application.

Front-end Development:

The front end is the part of your application that your users interact with the most. The front end consists of three approaches.

• Platform-specific: These applications are platform-specific, meaning the code cannot be used between Android and iOS platforms. This approach is costly, but optimizing your application will be worth it.
• Cross-Platform: These applications are compatible with many platforms, and the code can be reused between platforms. This approach is cost-effective.
• Hybrid: This approach is used for the application, which will be run on different platforms, but you don’t have time for a cross-platform system.

Step 5: Mobile App Testing:

By now, you are done with the app development process for your application. Now it’s time to test its usability before deployment. The application will undergo five testing phases.

• Functionality: In this, testers will test the functionality of the application and how the feature works
• Performance: The next step is to test the application’s performance. This tests the responsiveness of the app and how many concurrent users it can handle at a time. 
• Security: In the next phase, the testers will test the data privacy concerns if you have an enterprise application like Health Care or banking.
• Compatibility: The testers will check the platform and device compatibility of the application. 
• Review: The next and final process is to get an extended review before deploying. This means that you should test your application with actual users by creating a focus group or doing it during the beta launch of your application. You should get as much feedback as possible from the actual users and make amendments according to it.

Step 6: Deployment

Your application is finally ready for the deployment phase. Consider the different platforms based on the platform of your application. The deployment process is quite simple. You have to submit multiple forms for the Google Play Store, Apple’s App Store, or private distribution. Both app stores will submit your application and go through the review process.

Step 7: Support and Performance Monitoring

The work starts here once your application is live and users download it. You need to wait sometime and then start getting your application’s analytics. Following are some factors you should consider to analyze your application’s performance:

• App downloads
• Active users
• Average visit time
• Retention rate
• Churn
• Conversions
• Customer Lifetime Value
• Ratings
• Reviews

Also, keep an eye on bugs and customer reviews and constantly update your application.

Conclusion:

You now possess the expertise to craft custom Android applications, paving the way for advanced development. If you’re contemplating implementation, the moment is ripe for your company to seize the opportunity. The Fictive Studios team is thrilled to guide you in realizing your application’s vision.