The idea of building your own mobile applications is fairly new, and while we have been living it day in and day out for years, we realize that to the uninitiated, it sounds like a daunting undertaking. But the fact of the matter is, given the right plan and tools, anyone can build their own app.

Here are few hints to get you started. If you can follow some of these simple guidelines, you will be well on your way to creating great mobile apps!

Have a Plan

A major key to building your own mobile application is to have a basic plan. Adjustments can always be made during the development process, but you should have an idea of the basic goals of the application. The key elements to the plan are the who, what, where, why, and how of the application.

• Who: Will this be an application for your own business? Maybe for your own private use? Will other groups find it useful and would you want to share it with them? Do you plan on charging others for use?
• What: What functionality will the application have? Will you have to enter data? If so, what data? Will it pull data from across the web? If so, from where? Will the app be temporary, for a specific purpose or event, or will it have on-going everyday use?
• Where: Will you publish it publicly on an application store, or will you just make it available to a select few? Which operating system will you use? Will it be a native application (operating directly with the end device camera or GPS) or a web-based application?
• Why: Perhaps most importantly, what value will the app have for improving your business? Will it help you better engage your best customers for more sales? Will it build your brand? Will it help your travelling employees be more productive?
• How: How will the application get the information it needs to complete the tasks? Will you need geo-location information? Will you need to access a centralized database? Will you need specific date from an Internet source? Will you need to use the device camera?

Once you have a basic profile of your new app, what next?

The Right Tool for the Right Job

Your success in building your new mobile application depends heavily on the tools with which you work. We truly believe in the MobiFlex platform and feel we have developed the essential tool for self-service mobile application building. However, in the interest of objectivity, let’s look at the qualities we thought were crucial to application building as we built the MobiFlex platform.

• Visual, graphics-based interface: Software coding is hard and wrought with possible pitfalls for non-engineers. A graphical, drag and drop interface is a much easier way to initiate, organize and activate functionality. As computer users, most of us are familiar with dragging and dropping icons, while few of us know how to build those icons (or the related functionality) using code.
• Flexibility: If you plan on developing one specific application in one specific environment, you may be able to get away with a platform that only lets you work one way. But take it from us, this stuff can be addictive. Once you make one application, we are pretty sure you will want to do another, with more functionality, of course. With that in mind, look for a development platform that will allow for flexibility in functions, flexibility in operating environments and flexibility in distribution options. The more possibilities, the more your apps will be able to do.
• Testing: an often overlooked function but you should be able to test your new apps for free. Let’s face it, the first version is rarely perfect, and it shouldn’t cost money to go back and add features your users identify or to fix bugs.

We will be discussing many of these topics in greater detail in the weeks and months ahead, as well as including feedback and lessons learned from folks who have built their own apps. So stay tuned, and keep rethinking your mobile apps.