There are a lot of reasons why startups fail and succeed. And one of the reasons why they succeed is having a clear strategy from the very beginning of the development process. In this article, we decided to tell you how to write a comprehensive strategy for your application creation and marketing, step by step.
Article Breakdown
Start From Describing and Validating Your Idea
Any application begins with a unique idea. So, you should start crafting your app development and promotion strategy by clearly describing yours. For example, you may use the following template to write down your idea as clearly as possible:
My name is XYZ, and I feel frustrated when something happens. I decided to solve this problem somehow, and I’m going to develop my app for this.
What is more, your idea should not be only described in your strategy; it should be validated as well. Validating your idea means checking its real potential on the market you are going to enter. To validate yours, you may use the main research tools in economic science. For example:
- Use SWOT to clearly find out the pros and cons of your idea and the risks of making it a reality.
- Use the focus group interviews to determine what your potential users really think about your future solution and what features they want to get.
Research the Market and Write Down the Results
The next step in your strategy development and writing is market research. Proceed with economic methodologies to do it. For example:
- Use PEST to comprehensively research the market you are going to enter and the economic situation of a particular region as a whole.
- Use the Five Forces Model to find out more about your competitors, the paying power of your potential customers, and the risks for your idea to be substituted with an analogue.
Carefully write down the results, and pay special attention to the risks you have found. Reasonably evaluate the possibility of each risk becoming true and outline some steps you will be able to instantly take if there is a risk to your solution.
P.S. describing and reasonably evaluating all the risks is especially important in the current time of economic changes. So, you shouldn’t miss this section. What is more, you should develop response strategies (you investors would like to see them in your paper).
By the way, compiling a white paper is a must if you want to get funded quickly. This document should be as clear and comprehensive as possible, so you may Best Writers Online on the Writing Judge essay writing service reviews platform and ask him for help with white paper writing.
Make a list of the essential features.
Now, you need to describe the list of essential features. They are important for your strategy development for two reasons.
- The essential features are needed to develop an MVP, and MVP is needed to save your money but test the demo version of your app on the real users, getting firsthand feedback from them.
- The number and complexity of the features you need to develop for MVP will directly affect your development budget and the time needed. However, having a clear list of functions you need to create will help you and your vendor make more accurate time and money estimates, which should be reflected in your strategy.
Outline the Technologies You Will Need
Once you are ready with the essential features, you must outline the technologies you need for your application development.
The first question you need to answer and write down in your strategy is the operating system your application will support. Take a look at your target audience, find out what OS they use in major parts, and develop a native solution for this OS. Also, you may create a cross-platform one of the OS usage shares that is almost equal.
With a clear decision on the operating system, you may start choosing and comparing the technologies you need to create your solution. The choice of the technologies directly affects the budget and timeframe too, so at this stage, it makes sense to get in touch with the development vendor and ask for a consultation on the technology stack choice.
Set Your Clear Goals in Writing
Your strategy should always be powered by clear goals tied to specific deadlines. Setting goals for your business will help you find the strategic ways of achieving them. What is more, these goals should be written down and tied to specific numbers and deadlines.
For example:
- launch a full-fledged app by 30 Dec 2020
- get the first 10 thousand subscribers by January 30, 2021
- reach the sales level of $xxxxx per month by 30 April 2021
And so on.
Decide on the First Marketing Campaigns
Your first ideas regarding the promotion of your application should be reflecting your strategy as well. To find the best places for marketing campaigns to launch, get back to your target audience once more and answer the following questions:
- What social media do they use? (Use the social platforms for target ad launches.).
- What other non-competitive apps do they use? (Get in touch with the owners of their apps to place your ads inside them.)
- Are they ready to share their contact data with you? (Come up with an effective lead magnet on your website to motivate them to share their emails.).
Keep in mind that marketing strategies are always unique and specific, so use the ideas described above as little hints.
Indicate Your Budget and Timeframe
So, with all the data described above before your eyes, it becomes easier for you to identify the clear amount and time estimates you need to realize your project. Write these figures down and use them as your ultimate goals. However, keep in mind that the initial estimates may change with the flexible approach to development. That is why you should always validate every feature you are going to additionally develop and invest in.
READ: Everything You Need To Know About Effective Data Management
Conclusion
So, writing down a strategy for your application development and promotion is not so difficult. The most difficult part is researching and making the right decision that will form the basis of your strategy. So, feel free to use all the research methodologies available, validate each of your hypotheses, and only then invest real money in your solution development.