Principles for developing mobile applications
From large-scale industries to small-scale businesses and start-ups, everyone has joined the stampede to start their long-term presence in the minds of users.
One of the easiest forms of accessibility goes through the domain of mobile application development.
In recent years, the ecosystem of mobile applications has experienced a great leap. The number of mobile users is also increasing every day. Therefore, the easiest way for businesses to reach potential customers goes down the path of mobile app development.
What do the statistics say about the use of mobile applications?
The number of mobile apps downloaded worldwide in 2017 was 178.1 billion.
The number of apps available on the Google Play Store as of March 2017 was 2.8 million.
As of March 2017, the number of apps available on the Apple App Store was 2.2 million.
These significantly large numbers speak to us about the importance of mobile apps today.
Best Design Principles for Developing Mobile Apps
Keep your user interface simple
Gone are the days of using bright and flashy backgrounds. Nowadays, mobile app users prefer simple UI design through which they can get their task done easily and in fewer steps.
The simple design helps you get your messages across clearly to your customers.
Limited main actions on a single page
Users prefer the app where you don’t need to think twice to perform any action. Therefore, a designer should not complicate the application page by completing different actions on a single screen.
An app with simple functionality that is likely to stick with mobile users for the longest time.
easy navigation
Whether it’s a single platform app or a cross-platform mobile app, an easy-to-navigate mobile app is a must for everyone. Try to develop a mobile app where users hardly have to think to move through your mobile app.
This is how you can make your app navigable:
Add different types of essential menus on the screen.
Avoid using too much scrolling, vertically or horizontally.
A mobile user should also not zoom too much.
Make the best choice for colors
A mobile app perfectly mixed with colors not only fascinates the users but also leads to a higher conversion rate.
The following are the tips to use a correct color combination:
Avoid using too much brightness or contrast.
Use soothing colors that do not harm the eyes of the users.
Use the color of the buttons according to the functions they perform. For ex. you can choose the green color for the button that says “yes” or “continue” and the red color for the one that says “no” or “exit”.
Is your app suitable for different resolutions and screen sizes?
The number of mobile apps downloaded worldwide in 2018 increased to 205.4 billion, and the number is estimated to increase to 258.2 billion by 2022.
There is a constant increase in mobile app users and each user has a unique demand. And the company has to deal with each one.
Here comes in the image, an important factor that plays a vital role in the success of any application, the different sizes of mobile applications.
A mobile app designer needs to design apps that can be compatible with different dimensions and sizes of different mobiles of different brands or single brand.
A designer should optimize the screen size of the app for as many screens as possible.
Test, Update and Update
Development and design go hand in hand, and both processes are continuous. Once the design is complete, you should continually test your designs. The more you test your app, the closer you get to making your designs flawless.
You should also check for updates at a regular time interval. It will give something new to its users. Just make sure you don’t update to the extent that it irritates them.
As the saying goes, change is the only constant and so is the app design process. With the rapidly evolving technology, there is a huge scope for developers to design new patterns and update the mobile app design, which will bring something new and novel to the users.