Mobile apps swiftly take over mobile websites due to more streamlined design and intuitiveness. But how to deliver an app to your brand fans if you don’t know how to code and want to save up on development? Zero-code apps are the solution! In this guide, you will learn everything about no-code app builders up to the point of publishing an app that doesn’t have a single line of code.
Why Your Business Needs an App
Tailoring an app for your business target audience has the following benefits compared to websites:
- Leveraged brand awareness – once you publish your app on the App Store and Google Play, you expose your brand to a large new audience that is more willing to download your app than using the website. Studies show that average users spend 63% of their daily digital media time in apps and only 7% on smartphone websites, so you can expect significantly higher brand awareness after launching an app.
- Fast performance – apps are built specifically for operating systems and do all the processing using device hardware, which lets them perform significantly faster than mobile websites or progressive web apps;
- Offline access – once the app is downloaded, many of its contents can be accessed offline for higher convenience. Internet connection will be needed to make minor updates, which reduces mobile traffic consumption.
- Easy to navigate – unlike websites, which are usually different from each other, most apps are somewhat unified and let users navigate familiarly.
- Higher user trust – for many users, a brand that has an app deserves higher trust than a brand that insists mobile users on using its cumbersome website. In this regard, an app can even boost user retention.
How to Create an App
Below we covered all the steps you need to make to create and publish your own apps for iOS and Android.
1. Choose App Building Software
Several years ago, it was simply impossible to create an app without hiring an experienced coder, but today the market offers a lot of zero-code developments environments. Flipabit free apps maker is one of them. Using this software, you can create and publish cross-platform apps for free by transforming templates into high-quality user experiences. Such software offers all app elements and pre-coded blocks, which you can simply drag and drop to make things work.
2. Choose a Template or Start Blank
Using an app builder, you can start an app from the ground up or choose a template that is similar to what you need and customize it with features and branded elements. Templates make it a lot easier to start as they offer pre-tailored experiences that are similar to what your competitors and category leaders already have. These templates have already been extensively tested and can help you skip a large pile of interface updates right away. Many businesses have similar needs, so it’s a great idea to build upon others’ experiences.
3. Brand Your App and Add Content
App builders make changing colors, text, logos, and form fields as simple as using Microsoft Word. Use content created specifically for your app to make it look unique and catchy. Besides, you can embed HTML elements and payment system templates to provide users with more interactivity and generate sales right from the app.
4. Test the App
Before the world sees your app, it’s necessary to conduct several cycles of testing. You should focus on the following:
- Correctness of text elements – spelling, grammar, punctuation, and stylistic in your app must be spotless, so take a while to review every section for mistakes.
- Image quality – It may happen that not all images in the app are of the right resolution. This can ruin the user experience, so ensure all the images are of high quality.
- Stability – run the app on several devices to ensure it doesn’t crash and fix all the issues that may cause malfunction.
5. Publish to App Stores
The publishing process is a bit different for iOS and Android. If you want to submit your app for iOS users, you need to do the following:
- Create an account in Apple Developer Program;
- Edit the product page by adding app description and images;
- Set pricing and regions you want the app to be available in;
- Enter privacy settings of the app;
- Publish the app for review and makes fixes if needed.
To submit an app on Google Play, you need to follow these steps:
- Register in Google Play Developer Console;
- Set up a Google merchant account if needed;
- Select “Create Application” to add your app to the console;
- Enter product details to setup store listing;
- Upload APK file of your app;
- Request app rating evaluation;
- Set app pricing or mark your app as free
- Publish the app.
6. Monitor User Activity
Once your app is live on the App Store and Google Play, you need to market it, gather user feedback, and analyze app metrics to understand how successful it is. It can be necessary to edit keywords in metadata to boost your app’s position in-app store listings, change media elements to make the app more attractive, and ensure all the elements within the app work correctly. For example, you may notice that many users fill some form fields incorrectly all the time.
This can mean that the form field is not viewed properly, or it has a vague description that needs to be fixed. You may also notice that some sections of the app are not used as frequently as needed and require redesigning. In this regard, constant tracking is even more important than the development process as it will reveal how your app is perceived in real-life conditions.
Democratic App Building
With zero-code app builders, the industry becomes more democratic than ever. Now you can create unique apps not only without coding but even for free! Follow our instructions, take a while to think out the concept of your app, and head to success. What will your app be for, by the way?