Mobile app design – what to keep in mind

The design of mobile applications can – and, in fact, must – be divided into several stages. Each of these requires certain specific actions.

Mobile app design – it all starts with an idea

This is your part of the whole process. You’ve got an idea for an innovative app that’s bound to change the world. Great. Before you start putting together a project team, check whether someone else has already created such a solution. It’s quite possible.

Generally speaking, your idea will come up against reality as early as the first meeting with a potential mobile app developer. It is also at this stage that a preliminary quote for the project is usually provided.

By ‘facing reality’, we mean analysing the competition. Looking at similar products. Examining the solutions used in them. All with the aim of creating a better product.

Mobile app design – UI and UX

Two concepts that have revolutionised the market – both in the realm of web applications and mobile apps. User Interface and User Experience. Both of these go beyond simply the design of your app. They represent a much broader context for the product. They involve studying user behaviour and tailoring functionality to their needs (and thus personalising the product).

It involves designing mobile apps in such a way that they are intuitive for users. And this, of course, will be followed – amongst other things – by the popularity of such a product. When it comes to the person responsible for the UI, what is really needed is someone who possesses more than just a sense of aesthetics. A UI Designer must understand who the app is aimed at. They must propose solutions that meet the needs of a specific user group.

A native app or a cross-platform app?

It’s up to you. A native app is designed for a specific operating system. This is usually Android or iOS. One of the main advantages of this approach is that such a mobile app has direct access to the device’s system-level components. In this case, it is also easier to design the mobile app’s UI. And, as a result, this leads to a higher quality user experience.

Why should you choose the second option? Firstly, building a cross-platform application means a single codebase that works on both of the systems mentioned. This solution saves you time and money. However, if your app is to have any non-standard functionality, development will take longer. It all depends on whether it is to be a product.

Designing a cross-platform mobile app involves using different technologies and frameworks to those used for native apps. Among the most popular solutions are Flutter and React.

How much does a mobile app cost?

This is a question to which we cannot give you a definitive answer here. In fact, no one can. Because it depends on many factors. The simplest way to find out how much it will cost to design a mobile app is to ask us for a quote for your idea.

However, the factors mentioned earlier include, amongst others, what is known as product quality and the technology used. As we mentioned above, they also include the type of application and its architecture (native, cross-platform).