Small Business Mobile App Ideation Process for Appreneurs

According to research and statistics, 45% of users who download a company’s branded app conduct business with it more often. With more than 100 million smartphone owners in the U.S., unprecedented opportunities exist for businesses through mobile apps.

For example, mobile app users are 2.4 times more engaged than mobile web users. With internet access through phones exceeding access through desktops, each business, big or small, should be ready with a smart, deliberate mobile strategy.

A Flooded App Market Demands Great Ideas

Most appreneurs find it tough to come up with unique consumer app ideas. But because businesses are always looking for new and innovative ways to attract customers, appreneurs can take advantage of the small business app niche. Another reason for focusing on business apps is that it is easy to charge businesses if the value proposition is clear, but with consumer apps, people are getting harder and harder to sell apps to. Finally, consumer apps market is just saturated and its very tough to break into as a new developer. Business apps are still at a nascent stage and you have a better chance.

In an earlier post, we described the 11 best features for small business apps, and now want to expand on those ideas to take these features and turn them into great new small business apps.

Whether you need to conceptualize apps for clients or you want to develop the next big thing in small business, there are some basic steps you can take to inspire a great app idea:

Client Brief

App ideation begins when a client approaches an appreneur with a project proposal.

• Fully understand the project brief to be clear about the objectives and purposes.
• Flesh out the project details if the client doesn’t have a clear idea beyond meeting market demands or increasing sales.
• Gather and analyze all requirements to come up with the concept.

Market Research

• Research the target market, including the app’s consumers and all competitor apps.
• Pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of competing apps before you complete the conceptualization process.

Brainstorming Ideas

• Collect ideas and screen them for engagement, distinctiveness and feasibility.
• Focus your thinking on results and uniqueness to deliver required results.
• Assess, analyze and rework ideas to get the perfect app concept for your project’s requirements.

Collaboration

Once you have what you feel is the perfect idea, collaborate with others in the business to perfect it even further.

• The development, design and management teams should collaborate to come up with the best concept.
• Take ideas from people in every position in every department that works in areas related to the app. Technical skills or experience should not be the only criteria.

Test Innovation & Uniqueness

• Release an MVP to seek feedback from a trusted group of users to find out the innovated and distinctive value of the app.
• Quiz them about the concept and ways to improve upon it. This can help ensure the concept’s success.

Finalization

• Take MVP user feedback and go back to the drawing board. Make changes in the app to favor the concepts users strongly suggest while keeping the business’s objectives in mind.
• Tweak or rework the concept after taking an impartial look at it. Let the idea develop gradually before you act upon it, don’t make any rash decisions.
• Remove any rough edges and polish the concept to present to the developers and designers.

Once you go through the app ideation process a few times for small business apps, it becomes easier and easier. You start to identify ways to differentiate a new app from its competitors while meeting the company’s sales objectives and capturing audiences.

What has your experience with app ideation been like? Fun? Challenging?

Comment below and share your stories and insights with us.