App Development FAQs

Definitions vary widely, but to us, an app is anything that functions outside of the publication of content and information. Apps usually provide interactive functionality to the end user. Examples of an app include communication tools, quizzes, or anything that runs as a dedicated application on a mobile device.

The time to develop an app really varies, and depends on the number of features, platforms and devices. If it’s a mobile application, it’s quite difficult to develop in less than a month because of the logistics involved with getting approval to the app stores. Some application life cycles last for years (if not decades!), so that certainly impacts the development time. For even the most complex applications, we usually recommend a 3-6 month development cycle per release. We subscribe heavily to the MVP (Minimum Viable Product) philosophy, which suggests you’re better off getting a minimal product out and start getting customer feedback, rather than waiting years to launch to find out you missed the window or built the wrong product.

The cost of building an app varies widely. Do you want a web-based application or a native mobile app? A native app is built in the platform language (Swift for iOS, Kotlin for Android); a cross-platform app can be built once with a framework like React Native or Flutter. Cost depends on the feature set, the platforms, and how much custom design and integration work is involved. We will give you a firm number after we understand your goals.

Our design team has years of experience designing mobile apps and can help with branding, colors, and everything necessary to make sure your app looks good and performs well.

You should always expect your app developer to be there for the long haul. If not, that implies maybe they don’t care about your app’s success, or they’re afraid to engage in supporting your app because of inherent problems with the design. We provide services for support , including a recurring retainer model that ensures your app is always up to date with the latest updates on any dependencies, OS updates, etc.

A native app is an app that runs locally on your device, whether it’s a laptop, tablet, or mobile device. A web-based app is an app that is accessed via a web browser.

Charging for you app is a part of your marketing strategy for the app. If you partner with us, we can help you answer those questions. In some cases, an app can be used as a marketing tool for other products and services within a brand (for example, Opentable providing a free mobile app to make reservations easier for users). In other cases, you might be building an app like a grocery shopping list where your main revenue generation is through the purchase of the app.

Increasing the number of app downloads you have depends on the app, but app stores have provisions for marketing your app, or turn to social media or ask websites to review your app. For example, if you create a shopping list app, grocery shopping or couponing sites may like to take a look at your app and write a review for you and send it to their customers.

For most apps there is no functional difference between iPhone and Android, though each platform has its own language (Swift for iOS, Kotlin for Android). In some cases building in the native language is preferable, particularly for advanced device-specific features. In others we build for both platforms at once with a cross-platform framework like React Native or Flutter.

No. When we build with a cross-platform framework like React Native or Flutter, you essentially build the app once and it runs on both iPhone and Android. There is some extra overhead in testing and publishing to both stores, but not a second full build.

Caffeine was founded in 2013 as a web development and app development agency. That said, members of our development team have been coding long before that, and a few of our developers have over 20 years of experience.

We build all of our websites and make updates to websites on a what is known as a “staging site” which allows you to see progress and test things privately. A staging site is a clone of your live website and is used to test themes, functionality, plugins, etc….long before the public can see changes!

Every website is unique, and quoting a flat price without understanding your goals would be misleading. We will give you a firm estimate after an initial conversation about scope, pages, and functionality.

We can build an online store for your ecommerce business.

We can make updates to your existing site in the vast majority of cases. If for some odd chance this isn’t possible, we will work with you to devise a plan of attack to make your updates or fix your bugs.

We build most sites in WordPress, but we stay neutral and use the best tool for the job. We have worked with Drupal, Magento, Shopify, Python/Django, Laravel, and modern JavaScript frameworks like React, among others.

You may be most familiar with WordPress as a blog, but it is also a Content Management System that can be used to create and manage digital content (a website). In fact, we build most websites in WordPress.

We have a talented team of designers that can assist and/or guide the styling of your website. We make sure your website truly represents your brand and that the vibe matches your expectations.

Without understanding your goals it would be difficult to pinpoint an exact time frame for building your website. It all depends on the goals, functionality and features you have in mind for your site.

CSS (Cascading Style Sheets): How your website looks…all the fun stuff: colors, fonts and layout! CMS (Content Management Software): The program or software used to create and manage digital content….so WordPress for example! DNS (Domain Name Servers): The internet’s directory of domain names associated IP addresses….basically the internet’s phonebook!

Our clients are located both locally and throughout the US, and in a few rare cases, other parts of the world like Europe and Australia. We have the tools to work with clients anywhere in the world, but also enjoy meeting local clients for a cup of coffee.

Yes, we offer a basic website audit tool for anyone to use. It will check for mobile friendliness, Social Media Friendliness, SEO Analysis & Speed/Performance.

This is completely at the mercy of Google, but usually it can take anywhere from a couple of days to a month until your site shows up in a Google search. If your website represents a brand with a physical address, you can show up even sooner by creating a local listings entry in Google, Bing, etc.

A prototype is a representation of your final app project. In this case it is a set of designs that are interconnected with hotspots. A hotspot is an area of a graphic that activates a function when selected. There is no coding or structure to the interconnected screens.

Wireframes are a non-stylized (black and white) layout of the major components of a screen. Wireframes typically show general screen layout and placeholder copy & images are often used.

Mockups are also referred to as designs. These are the final stylized screens used for your project. The mockups should closely match your fully-built website or app.

A style guide is a list of the colors, fonts, font types, button styles and other design elements used for your particular app or website. This document is necessary in keeping the branding of your app consistent across multiple medium (For example: website pages or app screens, emails, print material, business cards).

Personas are people profiles of your different users of your app. Creating personas will help you and your investors to understand users behaviors.

A user story is written from the point of view of the different users of your app and how they interact with each of the features presents on a screen. Requirements are a set of rules and processes that define how your app functions and is displayed.

A prototype can take as little as a week or as long as a couple of months to assemble. Our basic prototype offering falls in the 3-6 week range.

Prototype cost depends on the number of screens, the number of interactive paths, the platforms, and how much branding is applied. We will scope it with you and give you a firm number before any work starts.

Costs differ from project to project, but in most cases a large share of your prototype investment carries into the full build, since the prototype becomes the design spec. And if the prototype surfaces a fundamental flaw in the idea, it can save you far more than it cost.

If you need more screens for your app we can accomodate that request for an additional fee.

Your app will be provided as a URL link. You are free to share that through email, documents or any other method that fits your needs.

A developer can take your prototype along with user stories (or requirements) and create your fully functional app. You may need a designer to help with additional screens not included in your prototype.

When you contract with a third party to fulfill a task instead of hiring an individual, that’s Staff Augmentation! Caffeine Interactive has successfully helped multiple companies in a crunch when their hiring was not producing the candidates (nor the quality of work) they needed.

The number of Caffeine Interactive employees assigned to your Staff Augmentation needs will vary based on the project you define and the timeline for which you need results. Caffeine Interactive is flexible and will provide the right number to move your project forward.

The cost to use Caffeine Interactive for Staff Augmentation is dependent on your project need and timeline. Stating a flat price would not be fair to your unique needs.

Caffeine Interactive knows how valuable your unique ideas are to your business. Therefore NDA’s are available for peace of mind and confidentiality.

Hiring is an art and when you find the good ones you make sure to keep the relationship strong so everyone at Caffeine Interactive feels valued and thrives.

Yes, Caffeine Interactive offers product planning as we have a team of Business Analysts and Product Managers available. Strong requirements gathering and product roadmaps are key components of the vast majority of our project base.

Clear, transparent communication is a core value of Caffeine Interactive. Depending on the project, Caffeine Interactive is available for video calls, traditional calls, and emails, and has a support ticketing system. The frequency of calls is up to you!

Caffeine Interactive has experience working with companies across many industries including real estate, telecommunications, semiconductor, automotive, e-commerce, non-profit, insurance, medical, education, and the list goes on.

Caffeine Interactive is flexible and will find a way to work with you using a combination of your processes and tools and ours to maintain our internal standards.

QA is an important part of all projects and Caffeine Interactive’s team includes QA analysts.