A beginners’ guide for app development dummies…just like me!
Well I didn’t think I’d be creating an app when I woke up this morning, but here I am all proud of myself for finishing version 1.0 of my very first mobile app!
Appy Pie is an online tool that lets you build a mobile app from start to finish on your computer browser. This was my first time using the tool, let alone hearing about. I have also never developed a mobile app before so the guide for dummies certainly applies to me as well. Let me take you through the steps:
- CLICK ME if you want to see this magical tool!
- So, let’s choose our platform. Hover and click over any of the five options — iOS, Android, Blackberry, Windows, or Fire OS by Amazon
- I’m going to choose Android for my case study as I am, you guessed it, an Android user. FUN FACT: Over 5 million Android apps have been created on Appy Pie by over 1 million clients from 126+ countries
- There’s over 30 categories of apps you can choose from. A category sorts your app in the right segment in the app store. Here’s where you also type in a name for your proposed app. Ps. 10 points to gryffindor if you saw my subliminal message!
- Let’s move on to the design stage once we’ve selected our category and added an app name
- My chosen category is Photography, as it relates to an existing Facebook page I am a moderator of. The name of the app, “Toronto Car Spotting”, if launched would be an extension of the #TORONTOCARSPOTTING” Facebook page. If you’re wondering why I haven’t used the same name, well that’s because I just learned that app names cannot have special characters, hence our beloved hashtag must be left behind *tears*
- You populate each of the five tabs with various information. Each tab will appear as a sub-category on the app’s homepage. More than pages can be added by clicking the plus button. Above you can see simultaneously how it will look on your device as you add in information — pretty cool huh?
- The tabs appear as illustrated below, each leading to the individual pages in which you have filled out information earlier. Very clean theme layout as you can see on the homepage, and it is one the many themes you can select to set the look for your app.
- On the technical side of things, you can customize your theme any number of ways you like. Appy Pie provides a user-friendly interface for experimenting, tweaking, and adjust the app’s form and function to your hearts content.
…and you’re done! Honestly it’s that easy. I was just as surprised to discover that the foundations of a mobile app can be built that easily. A large contributor to Appy Pie’s success is them giving users the power to lay out their vision how they exactly want it.
But the app is not launched into the app store just yet. Now is the time it will prompt you to create an account with basic name, email, and other information. To launch the app, here are the steps:
- Once you are happy with your end product, you must subscribe to one of the packages in order to take your app to the next step. There is one FREE subscription, but keep in mind it is very limited in terms of reach, analytics, and support. The other three packages range from $15 to $50 per month, and give you a greater list of features the higher you go up on the price bracket.
- After selecting the package right for you, you and Appy Pie will iron out the details for which platform to launch it on, Appy Pie answers your questions, and be the middleman with the selected platform to have your mobile app approved.
- Pending approval, let’s celebrate!