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Android App Development:

How to Build a Great
Mobile Product
Shopping, organizing, scheduling, banking, working, and simply having
fun, it’s often a mobile app that solves, bringing convenience galore.
All right, so how come such a shattering number of apps fails?
That’s easy — because they don’t solve anything for their target
audience. Indeed, it’s the failure to research the market that’s the top
reason why mobile applications flop on app stores.
Whether we’re talking about iOS or Android app development, the
principle is the same:
Do your research and battle test your app idea with potential users.
Only then will you be able to use the application as a vehicle for
business growth.
In this article, I’ll take you through the basic steps you need to take to
make your Android development project successful.
Start with an In-
Depth Idea
Validation and
Analysis
A business analysis of your idea is the most
important part of the app creation process.
I can’t stress this enough but validating
your idea before investing money in its
ti ill h l h th
creation will help you approach the process
with the necessary level of confidence
backed by data.
Here, you have to consider concepts such
as:
Unique value proposition — how is your
o er di erent from everything out there?
Target audience — who are your preferred
users?

Reach channels — how will you reach

your users with your mobile product?
Revenue channels — how will you
monetize your product? (e.g., in-app
sales, advertising, paid features)
A key phase during idea validation is a
detailed analysis of your competitors.
Looking at how your competitors solve for
their audiences will help you build a better
strategy for your product — you’ll know
what worked for them and what has
drawn negative feedback.
Similarly important is determining if your
product is lucrative. To do this, think about
how your competitor’s growth looks like.
Have they developed a sizable customer
base? Are they out looking for specialists to
expand their business even more?
In essence, you validate your idea to learn
if the product will pick up on the market
and give you sustainable growth
opportunities.
Use tools such as lean canvas for a deeper
dive into your product analysis.
Idea validation is the rst step in the lifecycle of
your product.

Need help building your app?

Contact us

Create Stunning,
Engaging, and
Simple UI and UX
Be it an internal application for employees,
a customer-facing app, or a game, the
design is important across all app types.
Positive user experience comes from both
how the app looks like and how it works.
That said, when creating designs, make
sure the designer understands the
project and knows your target audience.
The colors, typography, pictures,
animations — all have to be aligned to
reflect the needs and preferences of your
users.
If you’re releasing your app into a highly
competitive market with many similar apps,
the design of the interface can make or
break a deal.
For example, users might love the
functionalities offered by your competitor.
But if that product has a poor interface and
usability, consumers would just as well
leave the application in search for a better
solution.
To be a viable alternative, however, your
product needs seamless UI and UX.
So, regardless of application type, keep
your design smart, intuitive, and clean. A
cluttered interface is a sure-fire way to
make your users wrinkle their noses.

Keeping a clean and intuitive design will make

your application more attractive.

Choose the Right

Technology for
Development
The right technology stack for your Android
application is essential to equip your
product with desired functionalities and
ensure easy maintenance and support.
Mobile apps can be built using a variety of
tools, technologies, and programming
languages.
Here’s the rundown of the basics to help
you navigate the world of Android app
development.

What Language Is Used in

Android App Development?
Programming languages used in native
Android app development are Java and
Kotlin.
Once the gold standard in native Android
development, Java is a well-known
programming language with a vast library of
tools. It’s an established and reliable
language that’s been in use for over 25
years.
Even though twice younger, Kotlin is a
lightweight, clean, and stable programming
language for native Android applications
(it’s actually Google’s officially supported
and recommended language).
Interestingly, Kotlin was built to address
Java’s shortcomings when it comes to
Android API and developing Android apps.

What Software Do I Need to

Build an App?
For native Android applications, you need
an IDE, Android SDK, plugins, and libraries.
IDE — an application can be written in the
good ol’ notepad, but using an integrated
development environment (IDE) speeds up
the whole process. An IDE has many tools
that streamline application development.
Android Studio is the most popular IDE.
Android SDK — contains documentation,
frameworks, libraries, and debuggers that
are necessary for development.
Plugins and libraries — these are used to
automate multiple tasks and expand or
customize the development environment.
This tech stack is used in native Android
This tech stack is used in native Android
applications. But your options don’t end
here.
Depending on your goal and your target
audience, you can consider cross-platform
app development to create an application
for iOS and Android using a single
codebase.

Cross-Platform App
Development
Cross-platform app development for iOS
and Android is useful when your target
users are scattered over the two operating
systems. Delivering your product for the
two platforms significantly improves your
reach.
With cross-platform, your product uses a
single codebase that you can reuse to
create the app for iOS and Android (with
their specific design modifications to
maintain user familiarity).
Code reuse in cross-platform development
helps you decrease time-to-market. You
can reuse up to 90% of code across iOS
and Android. Plus, the business logic of the
app can also be reused for a desktop
version of your product.
Currently there’s a plethora of tools and
Currently, there s a plethora of tools and
frameworks for cross-platform
development, so we’ll list out the two most
popular ones.
React Native
React Native is a JavaScript framework for
building mobile applications with a native
feel. React Native is great for building
cross-platform apps that run on Android
and iOS.

Flutter
Flutter is a UI toolkit with a whole set of
building blocks necessary to develop a
cross-platform mobile application. Just like
React Native, Flutter lets devs build fast
apps with a native look across mobile
operating systems.
Bonus: Developers can also look to Kotlin
Multiplatform Mobile to develop the
business logic and share the codebase
between iOS and Android. It’s a relatively
new solution, but one that’s quickly gaining
ground among developers.

What Language Is Used for

the Backend of a Mobile
Application?

Android apps can have backends written in many

di erent languages.

You can write the backend of a cross-

platform application in Node.js, Ruby on
Rails, or Python as well as Java or Kotlin.
Rails, or Python as well as Java or Kotlin.
The backend runs remotely on a server
instead of a user’s phone, so it can be
written in whatever language serves the
app’s purpose best.
Consulting with a software agency will help
you determine the most effective
technology stack for your mobile app.

Why Develop an
Android App?
There are many reasons why you should
consider building an Android mobile app.
Let’s go over some of them.

Easy to Build Connected

Devices
Google provides a comprehensive set of
tools for building the internet of things (IoT)
connected devices. With Android apps in
TVs, cars, and wearables, you can easily
build a whole interconnected ecosystem.

Hassle-Free Application
Submission to Google Play
Google Play isn’t as rigorous in its
submission guidelines as the App Store.
Your app can enter the market faster than
on iOS, where apps undergo in-depth
evaluation. It’s not unusual to have your
application appear in the Google Play store
on the same day of being submitted.
Easier submission to Google Play is
especially beneficial when creating proof
of concepts or prototypes to check the
market demand before full-fledged
development.
The App Store is known for stricter review
guidelines. This means your application can
be rejected due to bugs, security issues, or
performance. What you end up with is a
longer time-to-market caused by fixes.

Android’s Crushing Market

Share
Globally, Android owns 84.8% of market
share against 15.2% claimed by iOS. In the
US, however, the situation is more evened
out, with iOS holding almost 60% of market
share. Similarly, iOS reigns the market in
Japan and the UK.
To put it in perspective, there are roughly
3.5 billion smartphone users globally. And
while not all fit your ideal target audience
profile, Android’s dominant market share
still means your product can reach a
greater number of consumers if you
release the application on that operating
system first.
That said, an Android app is almost a
necessity for most businesses. Of course,
whether your company actually needs an
Android app largely depends on your
business model. That’s why a thorough idea
validation and product strategy are critical
elements of every digital product’s life
cycle.
Why Are Android Devices So Popular?

Android phones and Android developers are both

in high demand.
The variety of devices across all price
ranges is the reason why Android app
development is so popular. Consumers in
developed and developing countries can
easily buy an Android phone. Apple’s mobile
phones aren’t this affordable.
There are also many Google Play store
alternatives, which gives users access to a
larger pool of applications.

What to Keep in
Mind during
Android
Application
Development?
Consider System Versions
and Multiple Devices
The Android ecosystem is fragmented —
there are numerous devices and system
versions to account for. You need to decide
on how many system versions and devices
your application will support very early in
the project, as it’s an overhead to add
support for different phones and system
versions later.
Android’s vast fragmentation might also
make it difficult to introduce new features
to all users at the same time.
What does that mean?
Support for many phones and system
versions equals longer time-to-market —
differences between each release can be
substantial and call for targeted
development.
Because of that, application testing
should be the foundation of your product
— when you release an app that’s supposed
to support many phones and system
versions, you have to ensure it works the
same everywhere with every update.
Consider this, there are many, many new
phones released every year, rocking
different screen sizes and hardware.
And then you’ve got all those foldable
phones like Samsung Galaxy Fold or other
rollable phones showcased at CES 2021.
That said, mobile app layouts can be
estimated but rarely defined specifically.
Tests will help you check if your app runs
well on all screen sizes.

Think about Revenue

Android apps rule in the number of
downloads. But the difference in spending
among iOS and Android users is staggering.
In 2020 alone, mobile consumer spending
hit an estimated $106 billion, with iOS
snagging $69 billion of that amount,
according to a SensorTower report.

In-app consumer spending. Source: Gadgets

Now
Whether that’s because there are more paid
apps on iOS and more free apps on Android
hardly matters. The fact is that,
statistically releasing an app on iOS can
 statistically, releasing an app on iOS can
bring you more revenue.
These numbers don't mean you should
eschew releasing your application on
Android. Quite the contrary, it only suggests
that going for Android and iOS both can be
a good approach.
Cross-platform development will let your
product enter both markets at a lower
cost compared to building two native
apps for each platform.
But keep in mind that complex applications
— ones that rely on a lot of hardware or
system functionalities — need bridges to
leverage platform-specific features. For
that to happen, developers need to write
bridges natively.
Of course, when you’re on a tight budget,
develop an MVP for only one platform and
see how it goes from there. In that case,
start with the mobile platform that’s
preferred by your target audience.

Do App Developers Pay

Android?
Another upside of native Android apps is
the low publication cost. To publish an app
on Android, a Google developer has to pay a
one-time fee of $25. There are no extra fees
charged, but Google takes 30% of the
revenue that paid apps generate.
In contrast, an Apple developer account
costs $99 annually ($299 for an enterprise
account). The company also takes a 30%
commission from subscriptions and in-app
purchases.

January 15, 2021 Native Android

Maja Nowak Application or
 pp
Cross-Platform
Digital
Product
Marketer
Development?
A mobile app is a great way to increase your
revenue source and pursue different
business models. Both native Android and
Article content cross-platform are viable options and
where the choice boils down to your current
business needs and future projections.
• Create UI/UX
A native Android application will give you
• Choose the Right Tech excellent performance and full access to
for Development
advanced functionalities.
• Why Develop an Stay up to date
Android App? Cross-platform mobile application with news on
• What to Keep in Mind development is the answer to releasing a business &
during Development? product for iOS and Android while technology
• Native or Cross- keeping the cost relatively low (compared
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Development?

Work with an experienced partner with a portfolio of

successful releases
How to Build a Great Mobile Product
Contact us

Maja Nowak
Digital Product Marketer
Maja oversees content production at
nomtek. Restlessly creative, she has over
nine years of experience as a content writer.
Maja loves cats, long-distance running, and
orbiting the Earth during meditation
sessions.
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