5 Questions to Ask a Mobile App

Developer Before You Start

AUGUST 21, 2014 | JEREMY STEPHAN

When I’m talking with potential ArcTouch clients, they often share
mistakes they made when they first engaged with a previous mobile
app developer. Usually, they just didn’t ask the right questions.
With that in mind, here are five questions you should always ask
before you start a project with any mobile app design and
development company.
1. Will I own the code?
Some app development firms offer a discount rate if they retain the
rights to your app’s code during and after a project. There are a
couple of reasons why this is a terrible idea for any business:
• If you ever want to make a change to your app, your developer
can effectively hold you hostage, charge any rate they want for
fixes and schedule the work when it is convenient for them.
• You’d lose total ownership of that intellectual property, which
might be a problem for you down the road if your company is
looking for investors or wants to be acquired.
Everyone’s on a budget — but giving up ownership of the code is a
bad way to save a few bucks.
2. What product management process will you
use?
From strategy to design to development, we highly recommend any
mobile app developer use an Agile methodology on your project.
Traditional fixed project development processes with concrete
specifications locked in stone don’t provide the flexibility that you
need to maximize your budget and meet your business goals.
Agile process fosters collaboration between team members. You
should expect regular check-ins with your development team,
whether you’re involved in active project stand-ups or get separate
demos/updates from your project lead. And you should see
progress on a weekly basis, if not more frequently (ArcTouch
provides daily feedback on most projects).
Agile also gives you and your team the opportunity to be flexible
during design and development. With each short-term “sprint,” the
team will constantly test and iterate. Changes in the market, new
technologies that become available, or things you learn during
testing can be applied to the next iteration. Things move too fast
these days — you need a partner with a flexible product
management process to keep up.
Agile Resources
• Want to learn more about Agile? A good place to start is this
Wikipedia entry, which is loaded with links to online Agile
resources.
• See how ArcTouch founder Eric N. Shapiro was featured in
MIT Technology Review as a pioneer in Agile development at
a previous startup.
3. How will you estimate costs and schedule for
my project?
Every client we’ve ever worked with wants to know what their app is
going to cost and how long it’s going to take. But the clients we
have the most success with understand that getting an accurate
estimate doesn’t happen in a five-minute phone call.
Ideally, scoping a project starts with a collaborative discovery
session between you and your development firm. At ArcTouch, we
use 3-5 day strategy sessions to delve into the business opportunity
and understand the customer/user, then define the MVP (minimum
viable product) feature set that will deliver the greatest business
value. Once we have alignment with our partners on that MVP
feature set, we can more accurately scope the project for both time
and cost.
Even without having a formal strategy session, you’ll need
alignment with a firm on a detailed set of product requirements. The
more time you and a firm put into that upfront definition, the more
likely you’ll stay on budget and on schedule.
Be wary of any firms that offer low-ball bids after a brief phone call
— they may be desperate for new business, probably don’t
understand your needs and will deliver sub-par quality. Their hope
is to hook you early and make up the difference later. It will cost you
a lot more in the end if your app needs big changes — or worse, a
redo. We’ve inherited plenty of distressed projects from other app
developers that were in crisis because of this situation.
4. If I’m not happy with how a project is
progressing, can I get out of the contract?
Make sure you have the ability to get out of any agreement with a
development firm if you’re unhappy with the work you see or with
the project’s progress. At any point, you should be able to take
ownership of the work that’s been done — including any designs
and code — and move on.
5. Can I talk to 3 of your current customers?
Asking this question is just common sense for anyone vetting
different service providers. If a mobile app developer has a hard
time giving you three good references, it’s time to look elsewhere.