Apps and m-commerce: Using DIY app services
Posted: Thu 19th Apr 2012
Creating a custom app for your business requires a good deal of technical knowledge or the cash to employ a professional app builder. But if you're happy with an app that simply allows potential customers to access some or all of your website or blog on their mobile device, there are easier solutions. In the final extract from The Small Business Guide to Apps, David Howell looks at DIY app services.
Hiring an App designer may have been your initial thought, writes Dave (left), but it is possible today to go down the DIY route. The learning curve for app development can be quite steep especially if you have no background in software development. If you've never even coded a web page with HTML, then learning X Code for Apple App development could seem like an impossible task.
Hiring an app designer may have been your initial thought, but it is possible today to go down the DIY route. The learning curve for app development can be quite steep, especially if you have no background in software development. If you've never even coded a web page with HTML, then learning X Code for Apple App development could seem like an impossible task. The good news is that the complex nature of learning the coding language for app development has created an entire industry whose aim is to give you simple tools that often completely hide the underlying code that your app uses with a simple point and click interface that you use to create your App from ready-made components. Think of this DIY approach to app development as being a bit like using Lego. You choose the coding blocks you want to create your new app and simply snap them together. The market has of course expanded rapidly over the last few years. Some of the services your business could evaluate include:
The vast majority of the DIY app creation services only take existing content on your blog or website and turn this into an app. If your company has greater ambitions with the app it wants to create, outsourcing the design of your app would be a much more efficient solution. As with all DIY approaches, you are limited to the features and functions that these services and software platforms can offer. However, if you're looking to convert existing content to an app, these services can help you avoid the learning curve and the expense of developing your app from scratch.
More from The Small Business Guide to Apps
Ask Dave about apps
Dave is answering your questions about apps and small businesses in our Community. If there's anything you'd like to know, go ahead - ask a question!
Buy the book
You can buy Dave's Small Business Guide to Apps as an eBook for the special offer price of just £4.25. Photo credit: Baldiri
You might also like…
