While addressing each of two viewpoints are important for the success of your future app, there is a universal question that you need to answer to evaluate your app idea.
Is it personally interesting?
By answering this question you are killing two rabbits with one stone:
#1 Fundraising opportunity
If you have an e-commerce idea and you share it with a biotechnology venture firm you’re not likely to get a good response. You should be aware whether your audience is professionally or personally interested in what you’re doing.
#2 Motivation
Getting into details you will also reveal whether your own motivation is strong enough to endure all the problems and pitfalls of app development that lie ahead. Making a survey by yourself and overcoming negative responses of potential client are the best ways to test your strength and persistence.
Is it big?
Most startups fail and that means the investors take immense risk when they put capital to work in startups. The successful ones have to more than compensate for the ones that aren’t successful.
You’ve probably heard people talking about “billion-dollar opportunities”. Well, very few businesses become worth billion dollars. But the question when you’re articulating your idea is are you going after an opportunity that might be worth a billion dollars.
Isn’t the format you choose - “mobile app” is too restricting to the growth of your idea? Maybe you need to focus on the web application in order to pursue the opportunity? Or you can rethink the monetization model?
Think about how to make money from an app. Or find alternative ways of how to make money off a free app. And you should definitely calculate how much money your app can make.
Is it disruptive?
For any given business there is a way of doing business. There is a standard way of product being delivered or compiled. The question for you to ask yourself is - Are you upsetting the applecart?
Nowadays, too many entrepreneurs are going into mobile development thinking “mobility” will make their idea disruptive and extraordinary. That’s why you should ask yourself, are your app will rethink the way something is done in a positive manner.
There are too many industry-related mobile apps that try to be different. Some of them really can benefit from going mobile, but there is an even bigger number of industries that will stay the same even by going mobile.
Is it timely?
If you came up with the most compelling idea to deliver video before broadband connectivity was pervasive, no matter how compelling your content was, it’s not likely you would have met with a great deal of success.
It’s important when you articulate your idea to understand how the infrastructure, connectivity and technological advancement make your opportunity timely. It even more important if you’re going for the territory of the existing tech giants and industry leaders.
Don’t think you’re the first one to come up with such an idea. Big companies have probably tried it and failed. Ask yourself, why this application does not exist yet. The answer might not please you, but at least you’ll be prepared for the worth.
Bottom Line
These five questions focus on the scope, the inherent scale of the industry your app will belong. But the also focus on whether your audience is appropriate for you. And if you are not answering this question in a way that says “it a big opportunity”, then you either have to rethink the ide or rethink who you’re going to sell it.
We always encourage our customers to make a weighted decision before starting mobile development. Double-check your idea, find it’s weak point and ask for advice if needed. We’ve been in this business for 7 years, don’t hesitate to get a professional view from the outside.
