Pros and Cons of Developing Your Own App

To develop your app in-house or to outsource. That is a question.

You want a mobile app. Nay, you need a mobile app. We don’t need to go too deep into the reasons why — because people would rather do business with you over their shiny new phones than Yahoo search you over a 56k modem. Remember Yahoo? A moment of silent remembrance, please.

Now, it’s time. You’ve decided you need to develop an app. One of the first questions you will ask, after “What will my app do that echoes through the halls of eternity long after the reign of Google?” — right after that question, obviously, you will most likely ask, “Well who’s gonna build the thing?”

Will you develop in-house or will you outsource?

Benefits of in-house? There are many. You oversee every development step from the beginning. You can recruit and hire your own team. There is transparency. In short: it’s your baby.

Any potential downside? First, you oversee every development step from the beginning. That’s a lot of code. Hiring and training a development team is a large startup cost — it could prove problematic if time is an issue and your boss is demanding you up your Q1 numbers and it’s already Q3, buddy. Also, don’t forget to add in extra costs like software licenses and certificates.

Benefits of outsourcing? Costs less than training a development team, unless you snap up some high school wiz kid Doogie Howser type. It’s a possibility, and but you might not want you business plan to depend on that. Doogies don’t grow on trees. Meanwhile, the cost and delivery of the project are fixed up front. Simply place your order and await delivery. Finally, you don’t go to a Chinese restaurant and order pizza. You order the Chinese food (also known as “food” if you are located in China). Similarly, this is the expertise app developers bring. This is what they are good at. This is what they do.

Downsides of outsourcing? Lack of transparency. Some developers may even call in a third-party offshore developer and contract some of the work for pennies on the dollar, because NAFTA made them do it. Similarly, you may hire an offshore agency out of the box to save some bucks up front, which might sacrifice quality in addition to easily-scheduled conference calls. Fact: it’s always 4 a.m. in Singapore. Moreover, you have less control over your developer than you would have over your own in-house team. Finally, you might get billed hourly. Like a law firm. And there’s no need to bring lawyers into this, is there?

If you’re feeling adventurous, there’s a third option. Download some app development software and make it yourself! There’s a ton of free app maker templates out there, and some of them are pretty good. That’s how we originally got into making apps at Appstem. Tinkering. Having a little fun. Seeing what this iPhone thing can do. Years later, we still love making apps. That’s what we do.

You see e-commerce numbers flying off the charts on iTunes that gives you music, movies, restaurant reviews, and angry birds and you already know why. You think back to last record company “Hey, maybe it’s time we look into these compact discs. There could be a future in these.”

Not wanting to be like the last record company, you google mobile app development. A question quickly arises: Will you build your app in-house or outsource? In this day and age, building the app yourself is not out of the question. There are numerous tools available.

In-House App Development Advantages:

It brings in transparency in operations during the development process. You can choose for quality developers at affordable prices. It offers total control over the development project. Lots of options are made available while selecting the latest technology.

In-House App Development Disadvantages:

Starting costs are very high, especially to set up infrastructure. Certificates and licenses that are necessary for buying app codes and software tools are obtained after paying exorbitant fee. There is risk of running additional costs, if your developers get stuck mid-way and external consultants have to be roped in.

If you are still on the fence about developing an app, please contact us today!