Are you looking for the best mobile app development brief template for documenting your app idea? If yes, then this is for you.
Whether you are an individual seeking advanced knowledge, or a business looking to improve your app development brief document skills, this blog will offer you a step-by-step guide to the right path.
You can learn about how an idea can become an app here.
What is a Mobile App Development Brief?
Every idea begins with a mental image before being represented in written form which is in actual sense, just a brief. For a mobile development brief, the process is the same and it aims at creating a concise format of your idea but in a well-documented form.
Why is a Mobile App Development Brief Important?
A mobile app development brief has a purpose, which is to compile all the important information about the development project. It gives clarity on things like goals, and ambitions and serves as a roadmap for a successful mobile app development process.
The purpose of the mobile app development brief is also to serve as a solid foundation, offering strong support towards the success of the app development. To this end, every professional mobile app development company should know the nitty-gritty of creating reliable app development briefs for the project’s success.
Extensively, mobile app development briefs offer strong backgrounds and road maps, leading to the successful creation of mobile apps. For example, it outlines all the requirements for all stages of mobile app development.
App development brief also offers great assistance in identifying useful tools as well as in selecting the best for the project.
Why Do You Need a Mobile App Development Brief Template?
At Prometteur, we do have several standard mobile app development brief templates which we use for executing development projects.
Our templates are very unique as we have worked on several different projects over the years, encompassing small and large business app development solutions so we do have a reliable experience, and knowledge of brands, visions and goals.
We reflect on these things, check for similarities and differences in projects and inject our experiences into managing mobile app development projects and coming out with the best solutions.
A mobile app development brief template is important because it offers the following advantages;
- Improved communication and collaboration between business stakeholders and developers. With an app development brief template, everyone on the team has clarity, sees the goal of the project and knows the best tools and technologies to use.
Everyone on the project also knows the communication channels, their roles, timelines and set deadlines.
- Reduced risk of misunderstandings and project scope creep. When you have clear communications, you will not have issues arising from misunderstandings, especially on the scope of the project.
Since all team members can access the app development brief, they all have a reference point to seek clarity on the project scope. This is very helpful for the client, the app development team, the project manager and the goal of the project.
Using a mobile app development brief template also offers an opportunity for a clearer understanding of project goals and expectations as well as it increases the likelihood of a successful project outcome.
5 Common Challenges in Creating a Mobile App Development Brief
· Defining the App’s Core Purpose and Features
Business do have difficulties in giving their mobile app brief the expected clarity, especially as regards the following; the main goals, the features, the functions, the targeted users, etc.
This is challenging issue as it may affect the flow of work and even the final result of the solution in terms of effectiveness.
Sometimes, they cannot get precise enough to be adequately clear. In some cases, they over-flog their brief with too many details which leads to scope creep.
· Prioritizing Features and Functionality
Many times, they may not have the right resources to enable them to prioritise the features and functionalities of the mobile app solution in the brief. for example, they may use an inferior or badly prepared mobile app development brief template.
This may lead to misleading information and unclear details about how their app should function. At least, the best brief templates will serve as a tool for practising must-have features against the nice-to-have features.
· Aligning Stakeholders’ Expectations
The best app development briefs carry all stakeholders along. This includes the executives, product managers, developers, customers, etc. It is a powerful mobile app development document that brings everyone together and puts them on the same page.
This includes the business goals, visions, purpose of the app, budget and timeline.
However, this is not easy to achieve and continues to be a serious challenge in creating useful app development briefs.
· Accounting for Technical Considerations
Businesses may face challenges in identifying the best tools and technologies for their business app development.
They may also not know the best mobile app development approaches to adopt. Likewise, they may be lost as per the best mobile app development company to hire.
This can lead to other issues like security, performance, scalability and underperformance.
· Crafting a Comprehensive Yet Flexible Brief
The brief needs to provide comprehensive specifications while still allowing room for adjustments based on feedback, changing requirements, or unforeseen technical issues during development.
Benefits of Implementing a Mobile App Development Brief?
· It is the first step in any partnership with a software development team
It is one thing to have a good mobile app idea and it is another thing to lay the idea in a clear, structural form that offers strong support and partnership opportunities with the right teams. This is why mobile app briefs are important to implement.
They are like a starter pack, enabling improvement to your app development idea and offering strong support to see the idea come to life.
According to Holabrief, a mobile app development brief is a thought starter that kicks offer the materialisation of an app idea. It gives your mobile app development team important insights and clarity as well as the requirements for the success of the project.
· Offers solid foundation for the project
Aside from being the starter pack or the thought starter of an app idea, writing an app brief is akin to laying strong foundations for the app development lifecycle.
This is largely because it offers clarity and insights to the app development team, as well as the best tools and technologies for successfully executing the project.
Briefs are very important in any mobile app development project because they contribute immensely in the following ways;
- Satisfying all requirements for the app development success
- Satisfying the needs of the target audience
- Offer viable solutions to the business challenges
- Produce an app that helps in accomplishing the set goals of the business
· Offers insight into the app solution
When you write an app development brief, you create a mobile app development document that helps your development team learn more about the app solution. For example, they can look at the brief and be able to tell the following;
- The purpose of the mobile app solution
- How to build the app
- How users will interact with the app
- What will be the future use of the app
How Do You Write a Mobile App Development Brief, Step by Step?
You need to follow mobile app development brief best practices to get the required result of your app solution. Ensure it includes all the important details. Give it clarity and make sure it serves as a reliable tool for the app development team.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to create the best app development brief for a successful project.
Step 1: Give A Brief About Your Business
This should cover all the important details of your business and your business website (if any at this time).
Detail the major reasons you started the business, your short- and long-term goals and your vision. You may also want to provide your primary means of communication which could an email or any other preferred channel/platform.
Here is a list of other important things to include in your business brief;
- Business name
- Business goals
- Target customers
- Competitive advantages
- Business location and opening date
- Mission statement
- Products or services
- Business structure
Step 2: What Purposes Will the App Solution Serve?
This is the step where you detail the challenges your mobile app solution needs to solve. You will also need to include your business goals and how the app facilitates achieving the goals.
It is very important to make them straightforward and clearly understood by your mobile app development partner.
Also, include your target audience and how your mobile app solution will elevate their experience. Will it also promote engagement and loyalty? Detail how this should work too.
Here are some top common purposes of mobile app solutions;
- Offer Significant Value to Users
- Ensure an Intuitive User Experience
- Encourage Engagement and Retention
- Monetization and Sustainability
- Data Collection and Analysis
Step 3: Identify Your Competitors
In the third step of your mobile app development brief, ensure to acknowledge your competitors.
This will demonstrate how well you have studied and accessed your market. Also, include detailed information about their strengths and weaknesses. Make some references to their target customers too and their user behaviours or journey if you can.
What mobile apps do your top competitors use, and what are the features and functionalities? How different or similar do you want your app solution to be and why?
Feel free to make a list of all your preferred features and functionalities.
Here are some common steps for identifying your competitors;
- Market Research
- Solicit Customer Feedback
- Check Online Communities on Social Media or Community Forums
- Keyword Research
- Analyzing Google’s Search Engine Results Page
- Take a Look at Paid Data
Step 4: What stage of development is your product presently in?
When you write your app development brief, you must state clearly your current standing point. This is largely related to your product anyway.
You can ask yourself a question like; have been able to properly outline my app idea and am I ready with my wireframes? How about the prototypes?
Make these answers known to your mobile app development company and in clear terms. This will help them to create the best app solution for your business.
Step 5: What are Your Required App Features and Functionalities?
For us, we use mobile app development briefs that are very technical, enough to cover crucial aspects of your business and intentions. With this strategy, we can cover very strategic aspects of the functionalities of your mobile app solution.
In the end, this helps us to create the ideal app that caters for your needs through its functions.
We are just trying to let you know that knowing your app functionalities and clearly stating them form parts of the deciding factors for the best app development solutions.
You may even take this further by detailing how each function helps to solve certain challenges of your business. you may focus on both user problems and admin challenges.
You may simplify the chunk of work here by focusing only on the must-have features and functionalities. But ensure they rhyme with your business goals.
This is also where you may outline any need for mobile app monetisation features and functions.
Here are some reliable strategies for choosing your app functionalities;
Here are some key points on how to choose the right mobile app functionalities:
- Think from the user’s perspective
- Explore similar existing apps
- Prioritize must-have vs. nice-to-have features
- Account for security considerations
- Allowance for future scalability/upgrades
Step 6: Clearly Outline The User Navigation Patterns
This is a very important aspect of the mobile app development brief and it must be very straightforward and clearly understood by everyone on the mobile app development team.
User navigation details offer great and useful insights into some key components of user behaviours. For example, it helps in the understanding of areas like user registrations, log-ins, and in-app search queries.
Your team will also reference this step to understand the onboarding stage and how your users will interact with the app solution.
If you wish to make this excellent and even more helpful to your team, consider a definition of your user stories. This helps in identifying, verifying, validating and addressing a lot of challenges. For example, where are the most likely platforms that your targeted customers get found and redirected to businesses like yours?
Step 7 What are the Strategies for Content Creation?
Content is an important part of marketing and campaigns for boosting engagement and converting visitors to buyers. Therefore, ensure to include this in your mobile app development brief. Answer these questions;
- How will my content be created?
- Where will they be published?
- What are the goals of the content?
- Will the content be audio, written, video, images or a mix of these?
Importantly too, state clearly whether you will be outsourcing, using an in-house team or a combination of both for content creation.
Step 8: What is Your Platform Choice?
Don’t be tempted to start detailing so much about the technicalities of mobile app development. However, state clearly what your choice of platform is. Would you use an IOS Mobile App Solution or an Android mobile app framework for developing your app solution?
This step is very important in your mobile app development brief because it determines the mobile app development approach. Even if you are targeting users of both platforms, the app development approach will be different.
Your preferred platform, therefore, offers clarity and answers critical questions related to native app development, hybrid app development or cross-platform app development solutions.
Expert mobile app development companies will tell you that; For an app to achieve optimal usability and performance, native development is the ideal approach, as it leverages the full capabilities of the target platform. However, when the priority is rapid market entry with basic functionality, cross-platform app development presents the best choice, allowing you to launch your product swiftly across multiple platforms using a shared codebase.
Here are the steps in choosing the best app platform for your mobile app solution;
- Define Your Target Audience – Geography
- App Purpose and Functionality
- Development Cost and Resources (Budget)
- Market Share and Revenue Potential (ROI)
- Development Time
- Maintenance and Updates
- Cross-Platform Development
See our blog on Android vs IOS app development.
Step 9: Outline the Design and Final Outlook
Here is another importance of your mobile app development brief. it fosters the creation of a visually appealing mobile app solution that users enjoy.
This plays a huge role in the success of your mobile. When it comes out right and to the users’ delight, they will happily recommend your mobile app, and give it excellent ratings and search engine optimisations will be easier to achieve
Your job here is to properly outline the design process and how you want your ideas to come to life.
You may skeleton your features and functions to this effect. The colouring nature and navigation designs too. While you approach this step, ensure to have the user experience in mind. Create something that will be inclusive and satisfying to use.
Step 10: Budget Estimation and Deadlines
Your mobile app development brief also serves as a tool for determining the planned budget and estimated timeline for the completion of your app solution.
Here, you need to give a breakdown of your app solution and the corresponding cost of development. Remember, the more the features, the more the cost. Also, the more complex they are, the higher the price.
If you are, however, thinking of building an app for your start-up or small business, you may want to keep things simple to save cost. Simple designs and features are cheaper and are very user-friendly. Such app features and functionalities also enable growth from small status to becoming giants in the industry.
This indeed gives your mobile app development team a clearer picture of your app preference for UI/UX designs.
Key Elements of a Perfect Mobile App Development Brief Template
Let us discuss the most important features of a great mobile app development brief.
A. App Idea and Business Goals:
The app brief must outline critical details of the business idea and goals. The goals should be divided into; short- and long-term goals.
Also, the template must be able to outline, in clear terms, how the app solutions align with your overall business objectives.
B. Target Audience:
The best application development brief template includes clear details for its targeted audience. It emphasises their importance and clearly defines their preferences and user journey.
This part of the template also includes details covering their, demographics, psychographics, and user behaviours.
C. App Features and Functionality:
Do away with your app development brief template if it does not enable clarity for the app features and functionalities. With this, you will be able to clearly explain how to prioritize the features you want in your app.
With the app brief, you should be able to adequately distinguish between must-have and nice-to-have features. This is important for your mobile app development team as they consider user needs and how the features will address them.
D. User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX):
Oh yes, the UI/UX design is also crucial to have in the template. What are your ideas about these front-end elements in your app solution? You must be able to give enough details to serve as a guide or pointers to your app development partners.
Consider this part of the template as an opportunity for you to include specific UI/UX preferences for your app design.
E. Technical Considerations:
Your mobile app development brief template does not end with the UI/UX design as there are other technical areas to cover.
Therefore, the template should offer details on some more critical technical considerations.
This should, at least, include the platform (iOS, Android, or both), development stack, and any integrations with third-party services.
F. Project Timeline and Budget:
What is a project without a timeline? And who gives a timeline for a project without a budget?
Of course, it cannot be you. So make sure you use a mobile app development brief template with a section for the project timeline and budget in clear detail.
It should enable you to set clear and realistic timelines as well friendly budget for your app development. It should enable you to prioritise your needs to cut mobile app development costs and still get value from the app solution.
If your template does not serve as a viable tool for providing developers with a clear understanding of your expectations, dump it.
G. Success Metrics:
Your app brief template should also clearly state how your app development project success will be measured. This makes it a complete strategic tool for achieving great results.
It should offer you tools like key performance indicators (KPIs) such as numbers of downloads, user engagement, or conversions.
Bonus Section: Pro Tips for Writing an Effective Mobile App Development Brief
When you write an app brief, ensure you observe the following;
· Use clear and concise language
Your app development team may come from different linguistic backgrounds, keep this in mind and write in very clear terms.
Use simple sentences and avoid complex ones. Lay down your ideas in a general language to avoid misunderstandings and misconceptions.
Do not make the notes or details too long as they may become boring. Go straight to the point.
· Structure your brief logically
Ensure to properly structure your ideas. The flow should also be in tune; one idea should lead to the other.
Do your app development team the favour of giving them an enjoyable read too. This will make it easier for them to read along. Avoid making it boring too.
· Proofread carefully before submitting the brief
Do not be in a hurry to submit the idea. Take a chill pill and have a second and third look at your mobile app development brief. you can consult with other experts to scrutinise and edit for you.
Ensure you do not submit a brief that is full of errors.
IF YOU WILL LIKE TO GET A PROFESSIONAL GUIDANCE ON MOBILE APP DEVELOPMENT BREIF, WE ARE HERE FOR YOU. LET US DISCUSS.
