Application development is a long and complex process that takes months and even years to complete. And, even after completion, an app needs to be debugged and updated regularly to keep it running smoothly. And, that too, without causing any interruptions to your app users.
While you can’t exactly cut out any of the steps in the process, you can surely streamline things a bit to make the process more efficient.
In this post, we have listed 7 of the most effective ways to streamline your application development process. These tips will help you reduce the time and effort spent on various tasks and make the process more efficient.
So, let’s dive in deep and take a look at the best ways to streamline the application development process.
1. Optimize Requirement Gathering and Prototyping
Requirement gathering and prototyping is one of the initial stages of any application development process. And, it takes up quite a lot of time, if done manually.
Therefore, a lot of app developers are moving away from gathering requirements on pen and paper and going digital.
There are many ways in which you can streamline your requirement gathering process. However, the easiest and most effective way is to use requirement management and simulation software.
This type of software can drastically reduce your requirement gathering time, as well as optimize the whole requirement management process. Some software, like iRise, also provides quick and effective prototyping to validate requirements.
Additionally, this type of software can also help improve the efficiency of your internal team’s communications, which can further reduce your app development time.
2. Build a Library of Frequently-Used Codes
One pro tip that expert developers can tell you is that you should maintain a library of all of your commonly-used codes. If you do this, then you don’t have to code and recode again and again.
It is simply more efficient to keep all of the frequently-used codes organized and at your disposal. So, the next time you need something similar, you don’t have to start from scratch again. As a developer, this is probably the single most useful tip to crank out an app quickly.
Maintaining a code library helps speed up the whole app development process and makes it more efficient.
And, if you want, you can also use some of the already-established common-code libraries for Android and other platforms.
For example, Store is a library that can be used for data storage, retrieval, and caching. And, LeakCanary is a library that can help you identify any memory leaks in your apps.
You can use these libraries for multiple apps and don’t need to do the coding for these every single time.
Also, be cognizant of the fact that you don’t use too much of this common code. And that you actually spend some time building the core code that is unique for each app. It should be a good balance and you should use these libraries only for commonly-used, repetitive codes.
So, set up these libraries for all routine and repetitive tasks that you need to perform for most apps. These will be the tasks where you can save time so that you focus better on the core code for any particular app.
3. Design an App Infrastructure
This also works in a similar way as maintaining a code library. It lays down a foundation for all future app development, thus speeding up the process.
You can design a basic infrastructure that you customize and build on while developing a variety of apps. This will save you the time and effort required to start from scratch every time you start developing an app.
This basic infrastructure would obviously need to be modified and customized for each app. However, it can still save you a lot of time, even months, if you have a basic infrastructure ready to use.
4. Select the Platforms and Limit to Just a Few
There are a lot of platforms for app development apart from the more popular Android and iOS. But that does not mean that you have to develop your app for all of them.
You can limit your application development to just a few platforms and that will save you a substantial amount of time and effort. For mobile apps, Android and Apple have a sort of duopoly and they cover a majority of the mobile users.
So, if you focus only on these two, you will not lose out on many users and will be able to launch your apps quicker.
5. Optimize the Testing Process
Testing your app and taking customer feedback to improve it is an essential part of the application development process. And, if you can optimize it, it will help streamline the whole process to make it more efficient.
The first thing that you can do to optimize it is to start testing from an early stage. This will help you remove all kinks right from the beginning.
Have well-established testing procedures that enable you to collect the right data and document it properly. You should have clear guidelines in place on how to conduct these tests, after researching the best testing methodologies and tools.
Use tools that can help you save time and manage the whole testing process efficiently.
6. Use Tools and Technologies to Automate Application Deployment
There are several useful tools in the market that can help you automate your application deployment and make the process faster. Tools like Docker and Kubernetes can help you quickly scale up without the need to increase your team size.
Moreover, these tools work across various platforms or infrastructure and can help you develop and deploy apps on different platforms.
These work well with containerized apps and can group app containers to form logical units that are much easier to manage. If you need clarity on exactly how these systems work, you can find several online resources. You can check out this Docker tutorial that can tell you everything you need to know before using it.
7. Build a Centralized Enterprise App Store
Enterprise app stores are centralized platforms where you can list all of your internal apps as well as approved third-party apps for your employees. This way, they can find a list of all approved apps that they can use to improve their work and productivity. And, more importantly, it will prevent them from downloading or using any apps that might not be safe for use.
This is a good way for companies to keep track of the apps that their employees use via company-owned or their own devices connected to the company network. This enhances security as well as makes it easier for your team to find the tools that they need.
Conclusion
Streamlining your application development process can help you save a lot of time, effort, and money. It will eliminate all unnecessary tasks and optimize routine tasks to improve your overall process efficiency.
The expert tips mentioned above are tried and tested ways of streamlining your application development process. Leverage these during your next app development and see the results for yourself.
If you know of any other ways to streamline the application development process, share them with us in the comments section.
