There are 3.5 billion people using social media globally, and there is no sign social use will slow down in the future. That’s 45 percent of the world on some type of social media channel. Last year alone over 366 million people hopped on social. Statistics like these are a pretty clear indicator for potential success when it comes to deploying a social media app.
The idea of creating a social media app is one thing, actually developing the app and deploying it is something entirely different. And if you want your app to be competitive among the many other social apps out there, you’ll need to deploy the right features.
Ideal App Features To Employ For App Deployment Success
When it comes to app development, it is vital to give users a little of what they love in a social media app, as well as some new features. This ensures users will have a comfortable look and feel, but also find your social media app unique. Here are a few features to consider:
- Make user profiles customizable, like page color, image filters, nicknames, large “about me” descriptions, interests, and much more.
- Have a friend finder tool that allows users to find and invite friends on your social media app.
- Employ cross-social compatibility, giving your users the ability to share to other social apps while using yours.
- Have a direct messaging feature, because users want to be social, but also want to send private messages.
These features can be helpful in making your app deployment a success, as well as create a long user lifetime for the app. With features out of the way, let’s get down to the nitty gritty of app development.
Important App Development Steps To Follow
1. Develop your social media app development plan
Planning makes perfect, not practice. Developing a plan for your social media app is critical to a successful build and deployment. You need to get a few things in writing to begin crafting your app plan, such as the type of social app you want, the types of apps available you want to draw from, features, colors, fonts, logos, sign in and sign up process, in-app ads, and more. Having all this information at the forefront will help streamline the following app development steps.
2. Get a prototype up and running to test
After you have a strong plan, you need to start implementing your plan in the form of a prototype. A prototype is a must in order to test your social media app, get feedback, and make changes before moving to actual app development. Remember, it is better to spend more time in prototyping and planning than development, because app development is expensive.
3. It’s time to develop your social media app
When you have diligently worked out all the kinks in the prototype stage, it is development time. Now the aim should be efficiency. Paying app developers can be pricey, so time wasted is money lost. Be sure you are 100 percent ready for development before beginning.
Now there are two app development parts; Frontend app development and Backend app development. Frontend app development is all about the end user. It is what the people see after downloading the app for Android or iOS. Backend app development is as the name suggests, everything like coding, server setup, and more that is done behind the scenes.
4. Lastly, it’s app deployment time
Once development is good to go, it’s time for app deployment. Now this may seem like a simple step, but there are still many components that go into it. You need to think about deployment on launch, as well as bug fixes and future app updates to ensure your social media app is performing flawlessly. Otherwise users will abandon your app and delete it.
For instance, you can use an automated app deployment solutions that build containerized apps for fast deployment, like Docker. In fact, you can easily employ private docker registry for developers and really streamline current and future app deployments.
Are You Ready For Fast Social Media App Deployment?
The above four steps are not the be-all, end-all for app development. They can, however, serve as a quick guide to building your social media app fast and efficiently. From defining features and developing a plan to prototyping and deployment, creating a social media app is an exciting and rewarding process. You just need to ensure an efficient, productive, and cost-effective build. What are your app development tips?
image credit: Social Media App via 13_Phunkod/shutterstock