Just like the cost of building a house, there are a plethora of factors that go into the cost of building an App. We also need to understand your App idea and goals in order to accurately price our services to build and optionally help you market the App. We will need to know:

– What is your estimated budget?
– Who is the audience for your App?
– What features will the App have?
– Are there similar Apps that attempt to satisfy similar objectives of your target audience?
– Which platforms are you looking to develop your App for (iPhone, iPad, Android, etc.)?
– Does your app need to work with other services? For example, does it pull data from web sources, does it need to work with a website, is there a commerce/merchant account component, etc.
– Do you created any materials us such as a business plan, written summary of your App, flowcharts, artwork/logos, mockups of screenshots, etc.? At this early stage of discussions we do not suggest you send us these pieces of information, but we would like to understand how far along you are in the conception and design of your App.
– How many people do you believe will be using the app initially, after the first 6 months, after the first year, etc.

These are just a few questions that need answers before determining the cost of an App. The APP Company offers Apps that start as low as $1,000-5,000 using proprietary technologies we have built and can repurpose for your brand and then we have custom Apps that will cost anywhere from $20,000 to over $100,000 that involve several months or years worth of custom programming and features. In our experience any good custom App will cost a minimum of $30,000, but perhaps your App can be developed on one of our existing platforms, and if so, the cost can be considerably cheaper and the time to market will be greatly reduced.

We find it helpful if you can point to one or more apps that are available on the app/play stores and explain to us how your app will be similar to these. For example, you might say: “My app will be similar to Facebook, but focus on the farming community and will include resources and content sharing important to farmers.” You can also say, my app is a cross between “product X” and “product Y”. It’s also helpful for us to price an app and give you a development timeline if you can supply us with sketches, mockups or wireframes. A great online service for producing these is http://moqups.com.

Just like knowing the cost of an app’s development is depedent upon many factors, so does the timeline. The same questions need answered to determine what all is involved in turning your concept into a reality. Basic projects can be completed in as short as 1-2 weeks while more complex projects can take a couple months to over a year. Understanding exactly what you are looking for and having examples or sketches to reference, make the process of providing a price and timeline much easier and makes the entire process more efficient.

When it comes to monetizing an app, there are a variety of methods.

– Charging users to download the app
– In- app purchases (features, bonuses, incentives inside of the app)
– Advertising
– Subscription-based access
– Service-based business
-Selling of products or services

Deciding the best ways to monetize an app depends on the app itself. For example, if you are creating a game, the most popular choice of monetization is allowing users to download the app for free, but offer boosts in the game as in-app purchases. If you are creating a content-based app, you may charge users a monthly subsctipion to access premium content and/or include advertising inside of the app.

Many developers choose the “freemium” model where they offer the app for free and then charge for premium features in the app. Another “freemium” strategy is to offer all features for free, but some or all of the features are only available for a limited time.

We receive dozens of inquiries each week. Most people submitting ideas to us believe that their idea is completely new and unique. The reality is that most ideas are not new and either are very similar to exisitng apps in the marketplace or are slight variations of existing ideas. We cannot sign an NDA prior to engaging with you, but we do appreciate your situation and concerns. We have been successful in this industry because of many factors, but we are most proud of our integrity and reputation with partners, media and customers. If you are concerned that your idea is completely unique and must be protected, then we would suggest that you not disclose the full idea to us up front. You can tell us the audience for your App, give us names of Apps in the marketplace that are attempting to address a similar need, and relate aspects of the idea that are not completely unique to your App. Once we establish a relationship and decide it is mutually beneficial for our teams to move further down the road together, we will be open to signing an NDA.

So in summary, it is our policy not to sign an NDA upon initial inquiry before we determine if there is a fit between our two teams, but once we have established a relationship and desire to explore working together, sure we would be open to signing an NDA.

Standing out and building a user base in the app world requires a strong and effective marketing plan. With millions of apps on the market for both iOS and Android, launching your app on the App Store and Google Play Store is just half of the process. Your app needs to be put in front of the eyes of your ideal users given the reality of them finding it on the App Store randomly is like winning the lottery. The APP Company provides a variety of marketing services for apps we build and clients who had apps build by other companies or methods. We use a variety of tested and proven platforms that we have had much success with including, but not limited to:

– Social Media
– Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin Ads
– SEO
– YouTube
– In-App Advertising
– PR/Media Relations

Let us work with you to bring your app to the masses and scale at an alarmingly fast rate.