Mobile App Development Business Plan [Template]

The mobile app market is growing exponentially. With people using smartphones and tablets to access the internet more than ever, businesses of all sizes have realized the potential to develop their mobile apps. Yet, how do you ensure your app stands out with so much competition? The key is to create a comprehensive mobile app development business plan covering every aspect of the development process.

In this article, you’ll find the steps to make a good app development business plan, from understanding your target audience to budgeting for marketing efforts.

Here is what you need for an app development business plan:

Business and executive summary
SWOT analysis
Target market
Competitor analysis
Marketing strategy
Budget
Monetization plan

1. Business and Executive Summary

A business summary includes basic information about your company and your company’s history. Include your company’s goals and your past achievements. Also, you might write the names of the people who created the business plan and the name of the team members (developers) who are part of the app development process.

The executive summary is the most essential part of your mobile app development business plan. It should be a clear overview of your app. Your executive summary should include the following:

A description of your mobile app development business, including what you do and who your target market is
An overview of what your app’s goals are and what problem it would solve
An explanation of why you’re developing a mobile app and how it will benefit your target market

2. SWOT Analysis

A SWOT analysis helps you evaluate your mobile app development business’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This type of analysis can be beneficial when planning your business strategy. When conducting a SWOT analysis, you should consider the following:

Strengths: What are the strengths of your mobile app development business? Why you’re better than your competitors?

Weaknesses: What are the weaknesses of your mobile app development business? Why are your competitors better than you?

Opportunities: What opportunities are available to your mobile app development business? How can you capitalize on these opportunities?

Threats: What threats could your mobile app development business face? How can you mitigate these threats?

3. Target Market

Since the app development industry continuously grows, you need a plan to develop and market your apps. This process starts with identifying your target market. However, remember that not everyone is your target market. It’s important to be specific when defining who you want to reach with your app. Knowing your target market allows you to create content and ads that resonate with your audience.

There’re a few key things to consider when determining your target market for a mobile app:

Who is your app aimed at?
Is it a general consumer app or targeted at a specific demographic?
What problem does it solve for your users?
What are your user’s purchasing habits?
How much are they willing to spend on an app?
How would you reach your audience?

4. Competitor Analysis

Understanding your competition is important when starting a mobile app development business. There might be a lot of other apps that offer similar services, so you need to make sure you stand out. Analyze your competitors and see what they’re doing well and where they could improve. This will help you create a better business plan and marketing strategy.

A way to conduct a competitor analysis is to simply ask your customers what they think of your competition. This can be done through some surveys or by asking them directly. If you have access to customer data, you can also analyze it to see how loyal your customers are and whether they’ll recommend your product or services.

Once you gather information, you should analyze it and determine where your mobile app development business stands with your competition.

You can also use SWOT analysis to understand your competitors’ strengths, weaknesses, and threats.

5. Marketing Strategy

There is not only one marketing strategy that might fit your mobile app development. An essential thing is to consider your goals and objectives and tailor your marketing strategy to achieve those objectives. Some factors you’ll need to consider are:

Product – Here, you describe the product you will enter the market with and how that product will solve your buyer persona’s needs.

Value proposition – What will your app offer to the buyer persona? What are some unique features your app will provide to them?

Promotion strategy – How and where do you want to promote your app?

You could also include your budget plans for marketing. What budget do you have for marketing?

Once you’ve answered these questions, you can create a marketing strategy to accomplish your business objectives.

6. Budget

Assuming you have a detailed app development plan, your budget should be the next thing you think about. How much money do you need to get your app off the ground? Building an app might sometimes be expensive. When you build an app development business plan, consider these things when it comes to budget:

Development company – How much will your app cost? Here you can include development, design, and testing costs.

Submission cost – Before starting the development process, you must define where to submit your app. Then define the submission costs.

Marketing costs – Plan on how much you are willing to give for marketing your app, including all promotion methods like social media ads, landing page, app store optimization, or any other marketing strategy you decide for your app.

Maintenance costs – After the development, your job is not done. You should maintain your app to keep growing.

7. Monetization Plan

As you develop your mobile app, you’ll need to consider how to make money from it. There’re several ways to monetize a mobile app. One popular option is to offer in-app purchases. This could be anything from digital content like e-books or video courses to physical goods like clothes or decorations. If you choose this, you should set up a payment gateway and ensure your app complies with all the relevant laws and regulations.

Another option is to sell advertising space within your app. This works well if you have a large and engaged user base, as businesses will be willing to pay to access your audience. But be careful not to overdo it, as too much advertising can quickly turn users off.

You could also charge a subscription fee for access to your app. This is common for apps that offer premium content or features that users find valuable. If you go down this route, ensuring your content is high quality and worth the price tag is important.

Conclusion

These are some simple steps to create an app development business plan. An important thing to remember when creating a business plan is to make it simpler, clear, professional, and realistic.