# Building a Successful Enterprise App (and the pitfalls for getting it wrong)
Author:  Pal Sinha, Barnali 
Author URL: https://financedigest.com/author/pal-sinha-barnali
Published: 2022-03-17
Category: BUSINESS
Category URL: https://financedigest.com/category/business
Meta Title: Why Your Business Needs a Custom App Now
Meta Description: Discover why businesses need to invest in app development to stay ahead of the curve, meet customer demands and boost productivity. Learn more now.
URL: https://financedigest.com/building-a-successful-enterprise-app-and-the-pitfalls-for-getting-it-wronghtml

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_By_ **_Stefan Spendrup,_** _Vice-President of Sales Northern and Western Europe at SOTI_

First it was a fax machine, then a website, now an app. It starts with the early adopters but, before long, every business needs to have one. If yours doesn’t, then you risk [falling behind](https://www.financedigest.com/behind-ftxs-fall-battling-billionaires-and-a-failed-bid-to-save-crypto.html "Behind FTX’s fall, battling billionaires and a failed bid to save crypto") and, in all probability, you may already have. [App usage has seen rapid growth](https://www.financedigest.com/innovative-apps-to-foster-the-growth-of-ecg-device-market.html "Innovative apps to foster the growth of ECG Device Market") over the last decade. The iOS App Store [launched in 2008 with just over 500 apps](https://appleinsider.com/articles/08/07/10/apples_app_store_launches_with_more_than_500_apps) and today, 2.2 million different apps are available. Android users have an even bigger selection to choose from with [access to around 3.5 million](https://www.statista.com/statistics/276623/number-of-apps-available-in-leading-app-stores/).

It’s perhaps unsurprising given the recent world events that app installations [increased 17.3% year-on-year](https://www.businessofapps.com/news/business-app-downloads-jumped-132-last-year/#:~:text=app%20installs%20climbed%2017.3%25%20year-on-year%20in%202020%20to%2028.4%20billion%20while%20user%20spend%20rose%20to%20%2414.8%20billion.) in 2020, and downloads of business apps such as Teams and Zoom rose 132% in Europe last year. During the pandemic, apps became essential for B2B [companies to conduct their business](https://www.financedigest.com/keeping-an-eye-on-company-purse-strings-where-do-businesses-go-wrong.html "Keeping an eye on company purse strings – where do businesses go wrong?"), both for internal employees and with customer interaction. Many already app-savvy businesses also grew in popularity during the pandemic such as Uber, Deliveroo, Just Eat, and [Delivery Hero](https://soti.net/resources/customer-stories/delivery-hero/?utm_source=pr&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=2021-08-building-a-successful-enterprise-app-byline&utm_content=article).

It’s not just businesses either. The UK government had to quickly plan, develop and release its NHS COVID app in an incredibly short space of time to respond to the humanitarian and [economic crisis](https://www.financedigest.com/new-pm-rishi-sunak-pledges-to-lead-britain-out-of-economic-crisis.html "New PM Rishi Sunak pledges to lead Britain out of economic crisis"). The [app has had to protect millions](https://www.financedigest.com/ride-hailing-app-cabify-raises-110-million-for-expansion-in-latam-spain.html "Ride-hailing app Cabify raises 0 million for expansion in LatAm, Spain") of users across the country while keeping the economy moving. It was subsequently announced recently that the government has updated it to ‘ping’ fewer people, as the app’s sensitivity was causing millions of people to self-isolate, having a detrimental impact on [business operations and demonstrating the pitfalls associated with app](https://www.financedigest.com/why-mobile-apps-are-crucial-for-a-successful-business.html "Why Mobile Apps are Crucial for a Successful Business") rollouts that are managed correctly.

The [demand and necessity for app development](https://www.soti.net/products/soti-snap/?utm_source=pr&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=2021-08-building-a-successful-enterprise-app-byline&utm_content=article) have created a perfect storm, with fast development of apps becoming increasingly important, while the stakes for getting it right ever higher. Within enterprises, many [businesses now rely on mobile technology to drive the success](https://www.financedigest.com/tips-on-how-startups-can-turn-their-business-into-a-success.html "Tips on how startups can turn their business into a success") of their company, and mobile apps are playing a leading role. Companies are creating [mobile versions of enterprise](https://www.financedigest.com/managing-mobility-in-the-enterprise-must-have-consideration.html "Managing mobility in the enterprise must have consideration") solutions to customize their workflows and respond to market demands; however, they are getting bogged down by rising development costs and productivity interruptions.

Developing a custom application for a business can take as long as five months and [cost hundreds of thousands of pounds](https://www.financedigest.com/commonenergy-mistakes-costing-homeowners-hundreds-of-pounds-each-year.html "Commonenergy mistakes costing homeowners hundreds of pounds each year"). Yet in the end, businesses can end up with a clunky, slow and possibly non-functioning app that will cause [workforce inefficiencies across](https://www.financedigest.com/tech-awakening-needed-across-uk-workforce.html "Tech awakening needed across UK workforce") the organisation. Getting it wrong clearly costs [companies more than just the time](https://www.financedigest.com/oxford-bus-company-outsources-for-the-first-time.html "Oxford Bus Company Outsources for the First Time") and money invested. They risk a frustrated workforce and customers, productivity loss and [falling behind](https://www.financedigest.com/finance-execs-must-understand-ai-or-risk-falling-behind.html "Finance execs must understand AI or risk falling behind") their competitors.

Because of these reasons, today’s businesses only have a few apps and are starved for custom line-of-business (LOB) [applications to streamline their important workflows](https://www.financedigest.com/smartr365-launches-mortgage-kanban-workflow-tool-smooth-mortgage-application-tracking-brokers.html "Smartr365 launches ‘MortgageKanban’ workflow tool to smooth mortgage application tracking for brokers"). This discrepancy, the difference between how many apps a business wants, and what they are able to deliver is often referred to as the “App Gap.”

To avoid such a scenario, [businesses need to find a way](https://www.financedigest.com/5-simple-ways-in-which-your-business-can-save-water.html "5 simple ways in which your business can save water") to develop apps quickly while ensuring these will meet the requirements for the desired functionalities, a user-friendly design, data security and possible future updates. Building apps in-house can cause strain on IT departments as they are tasked with a complex objective, often without having experience in building a robust workable application that is [critical for the running of the company](https://www.financedigest.com/mitigating-supply-chain-risks-five-critical-tips-financial-services-companies.html "Mitigating supply chain risks – five critical tips for financial services companies"). On the other hand, freelance app [developers will not have the necessary understanding of the business](https://www.financedigest.com/reasons-to-hire-a-web-developer-for-your-business-website.html "Reasons to Hire a Web Developer for Your Business Website") requirements.

An organisation’s app is now a flagship touchpoint that heavily influences the perception that both [employees and customers have towards a business](https://www.financedigest.com/why-investing-in-employee-health-can-be-good-for-business.html "Why investing in employee health can be good for business"). An app isn’t just a tool, it’s integral to the [success of a company](https://www.financedigest.com/setsquared-companys-maths-system-adds-up-to-pitch-perfect-palace-success.html "SETsquared company’s maths system adds up to pitch-perfect palace success").

The solution is for companies to focus on their core competencies and empower their IT departments to build the apps their colleagues need by using a reliable cross-platform, [rapid app development solution](https://www.soti.net/products/soti-snap/?utm_source=pr&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=2021-08-building-a-successful-enterprise-app-byline&utm_content=article). This eliminates the need for coding and provides a quick, simple and affordable [way of meeting the demand for new apps](https://www.financedigest.com/make-way-for-the-rise-of-the-finance-super-apps-consolidation-of-financial-digitisation-tools-platforms.html "Make way for the rise of the Finance Super Apps – Consolidation of Financial Digitisation Tools & Platforms") within the organisation. With the ability to drag and drop key app components onto a blank canvas virtually any [employee can become an app designer](https://www.financedigest.com/how-a-strategic-office-design-can-affect-the-wellbeing-and-productivity-of-employees.html "How a strategic office design can affect the wellbeing and productivity of employees").

With the right tool, businesses can prototype, iterate and deploy apps in minutes or hours — not days or weeks. In addition, a well-engineered app maker will [simplify operations by enabling easy app distribution to the company’s](https://www.financedigest.com/company-registration-in-china-simplified.html "Company Registration in China Simplified") iOS and Android devices and support data exports to a wide variety of backend systems.

Organisations that achieve business mobility and integrate [operations with their IoT infrastructure will inevitably overtake those that spend months and hundreds of thousands of pounds developing a custom](https://www.financedigest.com/lumen-research-expand-us-operations-with-key-sales-and-customer-success-hires.html "Lumen Research expand US operations with key sales and customer success hires") application that’s difficult to modify or one which is only partially integrated to the IoT architecture. To keep up with today’s mobility demands, speed, flexibility and adaptability are key. For those who are yet to [build an app strategy into their business plan](https://www.financedigest.com/best-guide-to-build-a-personal-financial-plan.html "Best Guide to Build a Personal Financial Plan"), there’s still time, but not much of it.


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