When you decide to jump in the world of creating apps for smartphones, the first thing that comes to your mind is having a creative idea for your app that will stand apart from all the similar theme-based apps out there. But what if I will tell you that to create a successful idea you don’t need a fresh innovative idea, you can achieve success on the back of an already prevailing app idea in the market. I’m sure that after reading all the entrepreneurs out there must have taken a leap of joy as this piece of information would save them multiple hours of mind exercise.
This piece of useful information has not been plucked out of thin air as we have live examples across the globe that will back what we have shared. We will jump on to them in a while but first we need to help out some of the people out there who are looking to live their dream of creating a mobile app that will reach the skies of success.
To give a word of motivation for these dreamers out there, we have revert back to the fact that google was not the first search engine. Facebook that took the world by storm within hours of its launching was not the first social network site. Instagram that is the primary photos sharing app in the present times was not the first of its kind. Innovators who are looking to create a masterful music streaming app should not back down from the project thinking that there are already dozens of music apps present in the arena. All this advice was shared because creating a successful app requires far more than just an app idea. Virtues such as execution, vision and perseverance are required to reach the top and stay there for a while in this mode of business.
These above examples would have assured you that creating a successful app on the back of an already existing app idea is possible and has been done before and can be done again. So let us dive right in to the most examples and their journey from the start.
Today as we have large numbers of omnipresent nature of search engines at our disposal, it is pretty hard for us to believe that there was a time when all the web pages used to be individually indexed and they had to be searched by their web address. It is hard to believe but this is a fact, web first got accessible in 1990 but the first search engine was launched in 1993. And if you are guessing that this first one was Google then your guess is totally wrong as Google was launched in 1998. What’s even more interesting is that before google 20 search engines were launched. Among these were Alta Vista, Web Crawler and of course Yahoo! and AOL.
If being the first one to share the idea with the world was taken as a yardstick of success than any of the early search engines would have been the success story today instead of the late entrant Google. The story of Google changed when pages on the web exploded and counterparts of Google could not keep up the task on hand. Google managed to weather the storm through its ranking system that was far more comprehensive and brought better search results on comparison to other search engines.
Let alone being the first of its kind, it was even the idea of Mark Zuckerberg if you decide to believe the Winklevoss brothers. When Facebook entered the market, it has competition from already established social network sites such as Orkut, Friendster, MySpace but Facebook took little time in creating a monopoly and becoming a world phenomenon.
Clearly Facebook did not have the first-mover advantage and in spite of this, it managed to turn the world upside down on the back of not just one thing but with years of evolving. Facebook has some of the best eye-catching features that has helped it stay at the top of the chart for such long years. A modern minimalistic design, news feed that is addictively engaging, easy accessibility, superb photo sharing capabilities and the Facebook API that allows it to get connected with all types of websites around the world. These features have made Facebook omnipresent and also the easiest one-click sign in over a wide range of entertainment, shopping and various other types of websites.
Instagram primarily is recognised as a photo sharing app but you will ask how Instagram is special as we already had Facebook and Hipstamatic to help us perform this task. Yes, we already had these photo sharing apps before the introduction of Instagram but Instagram has become a phenomenon over these years because it is doing its work better than its counterparts.
Services such as Flickr were one of the most celebrated photography across the globe, Hipstamatic had established itself as a top-notch photography app along with becoming Apple’s app of the year, Facebook and Twitter had achieved gigantic fame but all this changed after the entry of Instagram. Instagram stood apart from others by making the entire process simpler than before.
It fully supported the mobile-first revolution and along with that made whole process of clicking, editing, uploading and sharing a lot more easy and quick. On top of all this, it kept the design remarkably sleek, simple & modern which made all the smartphone owners a photographer in their own sense.
Also, Read: How to Create a Mobile App like Instagram?
As users started sharing photos via Instagram, it gathered a lot of likes which encouraged them share even more. As this gathered pace, through a combination of social approval and visual appeal Instagram attracted more and more users with the passing of time. And this sums up the journey of Instagram in rising up to fame over the years despite not being an app based on ground breaking idea.
Points to be Noted
By now, you must have realised that in order to create a successful app you don’t need simply need to rely on magnificent idea. All you need is enough conviction and innovation in your mind to take an old idea and add a new flavour to it. All you need to do is create a totally different experience to the users then the experience they are accustomed to through other apps.
As you have watched all the apps unfolded you have a plus point as you can decide to use their strengths and minus their weaknesses combined with latest trends to create an app that will lure a lot of audience. You can produce an app with an approach that has not been touched before as you don’t have to deal with the burden of incumbency.
Some of the key points that will provide you an edge over your rivals
1. Work on an attractive design
Keep it simple. This is a phrase that you must have heard a lot in your lifetime. We have mentioned it here because you need to work on this phrase in order to lure more ad customers to your app. design of an app is the game changer and we have the prime example of Instagram in front of us. The less users have to work on your app, the better it is for your success story. Try to get done with all unnecessary clicks. All the buttons that matter should be within the thumb’ reach.
2. Find the pain of customers
As you are working an idea that has already been utilized before, you are left with a great advantage. The advantage is that you are aware of the expectations of the users and know the market beforehand. You have a complete knowledge of what users are provided with and what they require going in to the future.
All the apps that you are looking to emulate, does not completely satisfy the users. All you need to do is closely work and figure out all the pain point that the customers are experiencing. Now, your task after this is to iron out all the pains that users experience in order to attract them towards your app.
3. Look out for a New Monetization Strategy
Most common complaint of the users trying their hand at these apps is the in-app advertising. This monetization strategy annoys all the customers out there and if you can somehow find some other monetization strategy to get rid of this strategy then you will automatically attract a large number of users.
4. Look to target a New Market
After launching the app, you don’t immediately need to go global. Instead try to capture a strong niche market by offering the users something they really value. This will certainly help you create a loyal market in a short space of time. After you have passed this stage, look to latch on to the world stage by adding new features and evolving with time.
Conclusion
The bottom line that can generated after going through all the lines written above is that you don’t have to think too much about the app ideas that are already prevailing in the market, you need to have trust in your app and application above anything. If you are having an instinct that your app will do wonders then do not let fears of already circulating idea hold you back. Go through the points, do your research and get ready to meet the world head on.
