Do you have an amazing iOS app idea but do not know how to bring it to life? Well, your first step is to find the right team.
The team will determine the delivery time, budget, how well your app will turn out, and whether it corresponds to what you wanted in the first place. A good team also means stress-free communication and project implementation overall. Therefore, it does make sense to gain knowledge about development teams and where to find them.
In this guide, we will discover the state of iOS app development in 2021, where to find the perfect team for your iOS app project, and what factors to keep in mind while reviewing candidates.
In the end, you will be able to find the perfect collaboration option for you and how to hire tech professionals not by gut feeling only. So let’s start the journey to better navigation in development teams right now!
iOS App Development In 2021: What You Need To Keep In Mind?
In 2020, Apple App Store’s revenue reached $72,3 billion, which is around $17 billion more than last year. This market shows steady growth each year so it makes sense to invest in a strong iOS app that will help you reach great audiences and revenues.
Tech Required
In order to build an iOS app, you need Xcode which can be used as a code editor and a debugging tool. You can also preview the app in the tool. It is free to download but it works only with Mac computers.
There are two main programming languages in iOS app development: Objective-C and Swift. They are supported by Apple and work very well in the native environment. You may use other languages as well but they require way more effort.
Objective-C is based on C so it is easy to pick up if you know the syntax, structure, and functionality of C. There are 4,1% of developers who know and use this language. However, it was overshadowed by Swift and is now less popular among both companies and iOS developers.
Swift is a language that was introduced not that long ago and it aims at avoiding the major issues of all the other programming languages. It is way easier to pick up for beginners, there is no complex syntax involved, and you actually need less time for development. There are 5,9% of developers who prefer this language.
Before The Start
Before starting the app development, there are a lot of questions to consider beforehand. It will help you to both avoid flop in the end and stretch your budget and timeline significantly. With iOS app development, those are things to keep in mind:
iOS Version
It is quite difficult to create an app that supports all iOS versions. Furthermore, it is much more time, effort, and budget spent. If you try to focus on older versions, your app is likely to become outdated and irrelevant very fast. We recommend iOS 14, the latest version of the system. At the moment, it has a 90% adoption rate so you are unlikely to run into problems with audience reach. At the same time, you will be closer to the next update and further from becoming obsolete.
Device
Even though iOS is supported by fewer devices than Android, the variety of screen sizes is still there. You may focus on devices for iPhone only or for Mac only. However, universal development is more trendy and useful. Just do not forget to negotiate on the choice with the future team.
Native Feel
Apple has a very distinctive design. Try to echo that design in-app icon, starting screen, navigation design, calendar display, scrolling options, etc. It will take less time for iOS users to understand your app as well.
Find more about iOS app development in our guide!
Finding a Perfect Team For Building Your iOS App
So where do you find all these talented developers who can implement the latest trends, help you accomplish your goals with their coding skills, and give suggestions for more optimized development? You have 4 options to choose from!
In this section, you will see all the good and bad of every option to make a choice that fits your company the best.
Classic Freelancers
Classic freelancers are found on special freelance websites, they work on a project basis and tend to prefer remote options.
Pros
- They are more affordable: You do not have to worry about salary and benefits to keep mobile developers engaged. You just pay for the job done: freelancers do not expect anything else. They are mostly motivated by inner factors like income, novelty, and complexity of projects, etc.
- A bigger talent pool: Freelancers work remotely from any part of the world. It means that you have the whole world to choose from! You may sometimes find experts that you would otherwise never find in your country. Moreover, you may hire freelancers outside of the EU and US who deliver the same quality of coding but have much lower pay rates.
- Many projects behind: Freelancers change projects much more often than their office colleagues. Therefore, they know how to hop on the project quicker and may have a lot of useful background knowledge. They may suggest improvements to your plan and optimize the development.
- Flexible team size: It is much easier to hire or fire the developers when needed since freelancers are ready to short commitments. It comes in handy when you need to get more help with meeting the tight deadline or when, after the development phase is over, you realize that you do not need that many employees for maintenance. However, you will have to hire freelancers on an hourly basis since freelancers who have fixed prices for the project need to stay till the end to get their paycheck.
Cons
- Control: First of all, you will be the one who has to manage the freelancer and it may take some time and energy. Secondly, you have, in fact, very low control over the freelancers. If they decide to just ghost you midway, you will not be able to contact them as you would in the office or open legal discussion.
- Lying: Some freelancers can overexaggerate their skills, websites do not screen their skills usually. You may either understand it at the beginning which is a good thing or at the very end. In the second case, you will receive poor quality code, absence of testing, broken features, etc.
- Lack of communication: If you decide to hire a freelance developer outside of your country, you are likely to hit the language and cultural barrier. It is difficult to communicate complex ideas or communicate overall due to differences in time zones.
If you find that option attractive, you can find freelancers on such websites as Upwork, Freelancer, Fiverr, UpStack, etc.
In-House Team
Onsite teams are among the most popular options for development. It has existed as long as technology exists and is considered to be traditional and trustworthy.
Here is the list of pros and cons of hiring an in-house team.
Pros
- Better dedication: In-house developers do not work for the sake of money. Their main goal is not finishing the project and moving on. They are likely to work for the common goal, company values, ongoing progress, and their team members. They are genuinely interested in the quality of results and are more loyal to the company.
- Safety: You know how these people look, you have all the needed information, signed contracts, physical presence. If they disappeared with your money, you know how to find them, you may also open a legal dispute. You will also know that private company information and project details will not get stolen or disclosed.
- Top-notch collaboration: You do not have time zone differences or language barriers and you may quickly meet up in the office to discuss the project rather than emailing back and forth about a video call. Teams also collaborate way easier in one room and may bring more ideas.
Cons
- Expensive: In-house development is more expensive while you have to provide benefits, find an office, and pay the average pay rate in your country.
- Slow and expensive recruitment: In-house teams require more dedication on your side as well: you cannot easily hire and fire team members. You need to see how well the candidate fits in the team and the company, check their skills, conduct interviews, and build relationships. In-house employees are a long commitment and you have to find someone who you and the other members really like.
- Small talent pool: You are limited to the people who are available in your area.
Classical App Development Companies
Hiring a classical iOS app development company is like hiring a turn-key event agency: they have their employees ready at all times, they work on a project basis, they offer all experts related to the field and you do not have to worry about anything. Still, this kind of engagement has its ups and downs as well.
Pros
- Cost-effective: Compared to in-house development, every other option is cost-effective. Once again, you do not have to deal with paying for benefits, office, and training. An iOS development company outside of your country will have lower pay rates as well.
- Quick recruitment: In fact, there is no recruitment. An iPhone app development company already has its employees: their skills and ability to work in the team are already tested. The company just needs to figure out who will work with your project.
- Pool of experts: You will get not only developers but a project manager as well. It will be much easier to manage the development project and understand where you are standing. You will need to contact just one person to get to know all the details or give out tasks. In the meantime, you can focus on other more important business goals.
Cons
- Limited talent pool: You will have to choose among the employees of the company only and they may not always have whom you need.
Hybrid Model
A hybrid model is the best of all worlds: you get all the perks of a classical app development company but the team is created from scratch in order to find the best fit for the project. The main benefits of a custom iOS app development company are:
Pros
- Cost-effective: You still work with the team on a project and remote basis. No need for office, benefits, or training.
- Wide talent pool: Since the iPhone application development company puts together a team from scratch, you can choose employees that have experience in your industry-specific and have all the tech skills you need. The administration and project managers will be chosen based on your criteria as well.
- Variety of projects behind: Developers and PMs will quickly onboard and offer industry-specific advice based on their vast previous experience. It will reduce the time spent on the project and ensure a better quality of results.
This type does not have any cons since it was designed to eliminate the cons from all the other engagement models.
Factors to Consider While Choosing an iOS App Development Company
If you have decided upon a cost-effective and effortless collaboration model, you need to learn how to find an iOS app development company. Otherwise, you may run into a low-effort and low-quality company that will turn a great idea into a financial disaster.
Here is a list of factors that will help you choose the best option on the market.
Expertise in Your Industry
The best option is to choose a company that knows how apps in your industry should work and look. They will offer better advice and need less time to develop an app.
In order to find out whether the company has developed industry-specific apps and how they turned out, take a look at their case studies and reviews on other websites. When you have few options left, you can also contact their previous clients to learn more about their quality and working style.
Find Cost-Effective Regions
Cost-effective in this case does not mean the cheapest. There are countries with really low pay rates but they offer not the best quality as well. We would recommend Central and Eastern Europe: they have the best quality/cost ratio.
Company Culture Fit
It is important to choose a company that you are really comfortable with. Review not only your tech requirements but personal skills and goals as well. Also, consider the culture of the country where the company of your choice is from.
Business Support
Make sure that the company will focus not only on the development of the product but on the business side as well. It is important that they are not trying to milk money from unnecessary features or too many tests.
Development Is Not Only About Developers
Make sure that the company also offers great designers, project managers, testers, scrum masters, etc. Such a complex model will allow you to get the best results and a high-quality user experience. You as a business owner will also experience fewer troubles while working with a skilled PM and have an opportunity to focus on other crucial parts of the business.
Conclusion
iOS app development requires a great team of developers, PMs, testers if you want to create a product that matters. Companies have 4 options for hiring the teams: freelancers (great talent pool but risky), in-house team (top-notch collaboration but the most expensive), classic app development companies (no recruitment but limited talent pool), hybrid model (great talent pool, cost-effective, full teams).
Looking for experts to develop your iOS app? Reach out to us. Ideamotive has dozens of iOS mobile app development experts in our talent network to support you at every stage of the process, from business validation and ideation to design, development, and release. We work with the hybrid model which combines the best of all worlds: we will provide business expertise, and build a product team from scratch composed of experts perfectly matched with your technology, industry, company culture, and team dynamics.
