The focus on mobile app projects is typically on launching, with little regard for what happens after launch. This isn’t surprising; launching a mobile app is very difficult, and the majority of a team’s effort will be spent on getting the product to market in the most efficient manner.
But what happens after launch? Mobile app development is not a one-and-done: success requires a broader product vision and a sustainable strategy. As I discussed in a recent article on mobile app budgeting, in order to have any chance at success, you need to have a plan in place that includes analytics to measure performance and iterate, a marketing plan in place to acquire users and drive engagement, and a broader mobile strategy that allows for continuous delivery and improvement.
The reality however, is most teams don’t have a plan in place to support their mobile app, both from a technical and business perspective. Without a mobile app strategy to sustain and improve the product after launch, there is nothing driving the direction of the product after it enters the market.
We’re going to look at the different post-launch approaches and provide recommendations on how to best address the challenges of sustained success after initial launch. Specifically, we will look at important considerations such as:
What will happen after we launch? What are we going to do post-launch to gain competitive advantage?
How will we handle maintenance, crashes, bugs, etc?
How will we measure and assess performance?
What about additional features or roadmap items?
How will we ensure continuous delivery and improvement to attract, retain, and engage users?
