App development company: what is the difference to an app factory?

App development company: what is the difference to an app factory?

The importance of mobile devices is growing as they do previously unthinkable functions and even replace computers in terms of size of operations. In this sense, the importance of app development companies and app factories is increasing. However, few people understand the main differences between the two.

Generally speaking, app factories are online platforms that allow you to build the app, but within a specific range of features limited to the platform owner. The case of a mobile app development company, on the other hand, goes far beyond this. If you want to know more about the difference between an app development company and an app factory, just continue reading this article.

What is an app development company?

Mobile application development is gaining more and more prominence within the market, and every day it becomes more and more noticeable that they are starting to replace conventional business practices. 

Many believe this is happening because mobile applications have had a huge impact on our lives ever since they were created. It is hard to imagine life without them. There are many apps, including social media apps, gaming apps, business apps, health apps, and more. All of these have changed the way we communicate with each other.

It is impossible to deny that there has been an increase in the creation of apps that help business expand significantly. Although mobile technology is evolving, the core of mobile apps is less likely to change.

The term “app” is an abbreviation for appication, which refers to mobile software that can be installed on electronic devices such as smartphones, tablets, smart TVs, and other devices.

What does an app development company do?

To build this software, an app development company uses a specialized team that includes programmers, developers, data analysts, product managers, designers, and others. Put another way, all the features are being developed so that the application can provide the best possible user experience.

Applications are software products used on computers that are intended to help a person, a system, or a piece of equipment perform any task. They can be created in response to a specific request.

How to choose the best app development company?

You need to understand that there are several factors that can affect the final quality of your app. In this sense, knowing how to choose an excellent app development company is ideal for you to achieve a promising result for your company.

Staff training  

Of course, the final result of your app is directly related to the quality of the professionals who developed it. Therefore, check the qualification of the team to ensure that your app is of quality and can achieve good results. 

Compare the companies’ services

There are developers who end up reusing code from one application and another to reduce cost and development time. However, this strategy can result in a less customized platform, so it is important to determine if this is the case before hiring an app development company.

You need to evaluate how customizable each one is, as well as look at some completed projects that match your company’s requirements. Use at least one of the developed apps, if possible, to test the functionality and user experience of the tool and determine if it works as expected.

Monetization Strategy

Apps can generate revenue as well as serve as an important communication channel and source of solutions. A good app development company can guide a proper monetization strategy.

Anchors, freemium (the incompatibility of free and paid features), subscription, payper-download, presence of advertising, and paywalls are all features that can be used to monetize apps and generate revenue.

What is an app factory?

App factories are tools that allow you to create your own app in a matter of hours, using a friendly and often recognizable interface.  On the one hand, it sounds like a good idea, after all, they simplify your work and allow someone who knows nothing about programming to create their own app in a matter of minutes.

However, they can cause a number of problems. Since app factories use relatively simple resources, this can pose a challenge, especially in the long run. There is no need to develop truly customized solutions for your company’s needs, instead you can just adapt existing alternatives to your specific use case.

As such, an application factory is nothing more than a collaborative, self-sustaining enterprise platform that helps you create and manage applications from conception to decommissioning. It allows multiple project teams to build applications together and manage their lifecycle phases in a shared, regulated and controlled way, but with certain limitations.

How to choose the best app factory?

Just as you need to pay attention to some aspects when choosing the best app development company, you also need to choose the best app factory. Check out the main characteristics below.

Know the know-how of the app factory

Just as when hiring talent at a company, HR evaluates the candidate’s expertise and suitability for the position, it is crucial to follow the same steps when choosing an app factory. When considering your demand and the results you hope to achieve from the partnership, the experience of the vendor is crucial.

Look for references

One way to feel more confident when hiring is to seek references and recommendations. Start your search by using tips from your network of contacts, including suppliers, partners, customers, and personal contacts.

Probe the competition’s footsteps 

Another great tip is to follow the market movements to stay competitive, always one step ahead of the others and very well updated. From this, you can probe everything that competing companies are doing, to choose the best way to follow according to demand. 

Be cautious

Last but not least, always be careful when creating the service contract. Always try to be very careful when dealing with each clause. The unforeseen can happen at any time, so it is important that both parties are aware of what must be done in such circumstances. 

Therefore, be attentive to understand what are the areas of specific expertise of the factory, if it has previous projects with customers in the same area as you (and what were their feedbacks), in addition to knowing the main technical skills of the team that will be responsible for the software.

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Understand the difference between a development company and an app factory

An app development company understands programming and how to use it to get the most out of a mobile device or other device. In their business, these companies often work hand-in-hand with graphic designers and other app professionals to create the most attractive products for their customers. 

In other words, when working with an app developer, the procedure is very different from working with an app factory. This is because at an app factory, all you have to do is choose the content you want to include in your app from a list and set up a template to make it work. 

These software development companies are involved from the moment of conception to the launch of an app to ensure that their clients’ projects are successful, as a result they will guide you through all phases.

In most cases, app factories offer templates by category or classify their app types according to usage. You can find tools for developing mobile software for the general public, businesses and organizations, news agencies and blogs, etc.

Choose the best one for your needs

Now that you understand the difference between an app development company and an app factory, you may be wondering which one is best for your needs. So, to select the service that suits you best, you should understand a few things.

The first is that a typical application factory is a platform that creates applications in response to requests from start-ups or small companies that generally do not need that much technology, and therefore they generally do not need techniques to meet the necessary requirements. So, if an organization needs a serious, functional and trouble-free app, the best thing your business can do is to work with an app development company.

Why hire app development companies?

There are a few main reasons why you should contact an app development company that will be elucidated below.

Focus on your company’s goals

You can trust that the company will complete the task with full dedication and focus when you choose them to develop a mobile app. Instead of the in-house team, who will have more tasks than just app development on their priority list.

Therefore, it is a way to save time and still be more effective.  The role of app developers in the company is to create apps, so they will devote all their effort and time to finish the task. Since in-house IT staff will be focused on many different projects at the same time, no freelancer will be as committed as a company.

Hiring app development companies brings savings

If you want to save money, a good way to do this would be to choose a mobile app development company than a freelance developer or an in-house team.

This is because most companies offer flexible payment plans to accommodate all different types of clients, from startups to large corporations. Moreover, with a specialized company, you pay a set fee for the work done, not for the tools or software employed.

In addition, the peace of mind and trust you experience when working with a company is far greater than what a freelancer can offer. Not only will they pay higher taxes, but their lack of professionalism and fluctuating prices make them a constant source of concern.

By hiring app development companies, you get a personalized experience

Hiring an app development company means that you will have a team of people with the necessary skills to plan and develop your app. There will be experienced developers available to take on the project, whether it’s iOS or Android development.

If you hire the service of an app factory, for example, you will not have a personalized experience, because in them there is software development that covers a solution that the public has in common, in which countless people can enjoy these services. With an app development company, you can produce a specific app for your company, because in this case they can be customized for each client.

App development companies have state-of-the-art technology

Companies that specialize in app development are more up-to-date when it comes to access to state-of-the-art technology. To better serve its customers, the company must be up to date with trends and adopt the latest innovations in the market. 

If you choose to develop your company’s app in another way, you may not be able to enjoy this benefit, as a factory, for example, may not have the resources to keep up. With an app development company, however, you gain access to the latest technologies on the market.

A mobile application development company uses state-of-the-art technology to offer its customers the best possible experience. Developing digital products is their goal. They, therefore, have the latest technologies available. As a customer, you receive the benefit of your app being future-proof.

Why Hire an Application Factory?

Contributing to making it easy for companies to create an app is the main goal of an app factory. This is because apps can be used to make people’s lives easier. To enter a market, however, one must first understand its viability.

Conclusion 

Finally, we can conclude that developing an app for your company can really be something very advantageous, however, this can be done in two ways, either through an app factory, where you will have access to an online platform, to which anyone can have access to build your app the way you want, or through an app development company, where the process will be totally different. This is because, with an app development company, you will have a company totally dedicated to this, and you will be able to create your app from scratch, leaving it with the face of your company and bringing all your ideas to life. 

So, we can see that an app development company is something more advantageous, to get better results. However, it is always important to know well what an app development company offers before hiring its service, to ensure that you will make a good choice and achieve the results you so much crave for your company. 

To do this safely, you can contact Monitora. After all, our area of expertise at Monitora is helping companies become digital businesses through the use of methodology, procedures, and software.

In addition, we are responsible for taking care of all stages of the technology development process, including requirements engineering, software design, quality control, implementation, installation and maintenance, to enable all clients to keep focused on their business strategies.

Monitora has always aimed to ensure a high standard of delivery, we prioritize having the best professionals in our teams and continuously invest in training and qualification, thus providing highly specialized teams proficient in the most advanced technologies.

To learn more about how we can help your business develop its own application, visit our page and talk to a specialist!

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