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- B.A.M. is an online pitch management platform which streamlines the process of connecting you with qualified app developers, ensuring you are connected with the right developers for the right projects.
- B.A.M. is a simple five step online wizard, written in marketer’s language that will help ensure you answer the critical questions up front.
- With B.A.M., you can quickly and easily ensure you are creating a brief that connects you with the best app developers possible, who are then invited to pitch for the project. Responses are limited to the best three available developers, all vetted and reviewed by the Exicon team.
- Don’t worry if you don’t know all the answers, the key to a successful app development project is having a lively dialogue with your agency and developer!
- Depending on the app's expected level of complexity or likely budget, our developer network will respond with one page summaries, design mockups, and when appropriate, even demo prototypes.
- The B.A.M. platform works on a per project fee basis, with volume discounts available to our agency partner network. Full use of the B.A.M. platform is billed at the higher of 10% of the total development budget, or $2,995 per project, with a minimum of three qualified developers guaranteed to respond to your brief.
- Below is a quick breakdown of expected budgets versus example app features, based on estimated project budgets from across our global developer network.
- Basic: Optimize current website for mobile. $500 - 20,000
- Intermediate: Tap into key handset features to provide services. $20,000 - 100,000
Advanced: Integrate with existing loyalty programs, mobile commerce, logistics, etc. $100,000+
There are a number of options out there when it comes to getting that data you need to make this decision, however we strongly recommend you accept your agency or Exicon’s assistance in determining the right platform.
The primary sources for data on which handsets and platforms are relevant for your consumers will be the OEM’s (handset makers) and the operators.
It is important to remember that it’s in everyone’s interests to provide accurate numbers to best ensure a successful app for your brand.
This can vary greatly, depending on the complexity of the app. A very simple widget style app, with limited functionality can certainly be created within a matter of days, however the typical branded app will require much greater customization, and can take anywhere from one to three months.
There are cases where development time can take longer, particularly for “connected” apps that require integration with your brand’s existing legacy systems. Examples would include loyalty programs, logistics, or mobile commerce integration. Your developer would be able to estimate the development time.
We've pulled together estimated project budgets from across our global developer network, and really, outside of the most basic of app examples, you should be expecting a budget range of at least US$30,000, with complex, 'connected' apps going into six figures territory.
If you consider the costs involved in creating a complex website, an app is essentially a more complicated project, with similar long-term value to your brand.
Exicon can reference you to a number of clear examples of value being provided by branded apps in the past. A great example would be the Zippo case study, which delivered a US$5 CPM despite an approximate development budget of US$100,000.
When first creating your app’s concept, bear in mind your end goals for the app itself. How will it integrate with your overall marketing efforts, what role will in play in providing value to your consumers and yourself moving forward? Are you simply looking for a high download number, a high level of engagement, driving traffic to your retail locations, or supporting other ongoing marketing efforts? Ideally, you would be creating an app that serves all of the above purposes in the long run, however it is best to maintain focus on 1 or 2 key objectives for your first project.
Exicon is constantly working to provide the latest competitive research on branded apps globally through the App Directory. Here you can search across over 650 consumer brands globally, checking to see how your competitors’ apps are fairing, and how your own projects stack up.
The short answer is effectively everything. There are really no real limits to what you can track within your app; it simply requires your developer inserting the right code into the app during development.
Exicon will be offering a free limited tracking solution, allowing you to view many basic statistics for your app, ranging from downloads, to usage, time of the day the app is used, to even the particular features within the app that are most popular.
This comes down to a couple key elements. Fundamentally, the idea behind the app must make sense – in that it must either entertain or provide enough value that your consumers will find it worth downloading.
The second core issue will surround how effectively you integrate and promote your app across all of your marketing efforts. Think of it like your website – you provide a call to action across all of your collateral to send consumers there, correct? It’s the same with your app – you have to support and promote it, you don’t simply create it, upload it to the app store, and wait for success.
The BAM Wizard will help ensure you provide as much detail as possible about your brand, your target consumers, and your upcoming marketing plan as possible - while keeping the concept behind the app, the intended platforms, and particular features as open ended as possible. This will allow our developers to come to you with creative ideas that you may not have already considered.
It entirely depends on the platforms in question. The core development time involved in porting an app from one platform to another is really around the front-end work (what you see on the app) and not typically the back-end work (what makes it all tick). Going from iOS to Android is typically not very difficult, but does require additional budget. Going from Symbian to RIM or to iOS can be much more complex however.
It depends on how extensive you expect the updates to be – this would be a question best had with your agency and developer for the project when scoping the project. They will assist in determining a reasonable level of service and headcount for ongoing app updates and upgrades. Realistically however, you should expect this to be within 10% of your total development budget, barring major revisions or additional functionality for the app.
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