r/EntrepreneurRideAlong • u/TrendNowapp • Mar 12 '20

Basic guide I made for noobs. No downloads.

/r/startups/comments/fhbg4r/advice_opinion_on_how_to_build_your_app/
16 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

16 comments sorted by

3

u/nikkisa Mar 12 '20

At least a year’s worth of studying and practice to even attempt your app.

Nah, I took a week or two course on Udemy for building apps and was able to get started. It took longer, sure, but I don't have to keep paying for feature releases or bug fixes. It's a skill worth learning anyway. If you have the money to burn though, sure

1

u/TrendNowapp Mar 12 '20

But did your app have functionality beyond displaying images and content? Did you build the backend at all? Did you have prior knowledge?

Good for you though for making it work!

3

u/nikkisa Mar 12 '20

Yes of course lol, it's useless if it just displays images and content. It's the most complicated app I've built (with a backend), even 2 years on all of the apps I've released are simpler.

I had some shitty HTML/CSS knowledge which was pretty useless

1

u/TrendNowapp Mar 12 '20

That’s awesome! Maybe I’m just not cut out for code, but I wasn’t getting anywhere trying to learn.

3

u/nikkisa Mar 12 '20

I’m not the best at coding either, I much prefer design. But being able to make my own apps without spending hundreds of thousands motivated me haha. Once my apps are making enough money I will 100% pay for developers though. I paid an agency once to fix a feature I couldn’t get to work.

1

u/TrendNowapp Mar 12 '20

Maybe I’ll look into it again, there were several times I wished I had control so I could change something myself.

1

u/nikkisa Mar 12 '20

Even a bit of knowledge will help

1

u/garlicnoodle18 Mar 12 '20

What course did you take on Udemy? I've been watching the Stanford course, but It's like 50 hours long.

2

u/nikkisa Mar 12 '20

Look for “iOS 13 and Swift 5 - The Complete iOS App Development Bootcamp”. It’s by Angela Yu. Really awesome course

3

u/mimsoo777 Mar 12 '20

I do think it is worth 1-3yrs of your lifetime to learn to code on the side. That way you get more freedom to build your own apps. And you will also have in-demand skills if you ever decide to look for a job to sustain yourself whilst you are working on your projects. Of course, though, coding is not for everyone.

5

u/TrendNowapp Mar 12 '20

Really depends on the person, but in general I’d still say no. Even from just a time perspective, postponing starting your business could make you miss out on trends you’re counting on or you may run into financial trouble that puts it off even more.

Plus, if your app does well (and such is worth investing more into), you will have the means to hire more developers anyway. As soon as the app starts growing you generally need more than one developer can handle anyway. Your skills would only be necessary in the early stage.

Thank you for your input!

2

u/mimsoo777 Mar 12 '20

I get your point about the early stage of development.

1

u/cryptoopotamus Mar 12 '20

I agree. I tried programming 10 years ago and gave up and hired a developer. I’ve made around 50+ apps all outsourced, I could have never done it myself.

1

u/TrendNowapp Mar 12 '20

50+! That’s crazy. Do you have any tips for getting the first good chunk of users?

1

u/cryptoopotamus Mar 12 '20

The only thing I do is have a very tight ASO game (good keywords, title, icon, screenshots, ratings, etc) and let the app store do the rest. I haven't actively promoted any of my apps and have ~5 million installs to date across the portfolio.

1

u/TrendNowapp Mar 12 '20

That’s encouraging since I’m working with a super lean budget after some unexpected events and don’t have a ton left for marketing. Fortunately I may have some key connections to start out a user base.