Cross-Platform App Development Mistakes to Avoid

Have you ever downloaded an app that was awesome on one device, but seemed defective on another? Perhaps the buttons didn’t fit, or the features were delayed just enough for you to give up.

This is precisely the experience that cross-platform app developers strive to avoid. Unfortunately, this can happen, and the time, money, and trust lost only make the experience more unfortunate.

If you are going to hire a mobile app development company in Boston or embark on an app project you will want to pay attention to common pitfalls and problems that exist. No matter how reputable a mobile app development company is, mistakes can happen if they get in a hurry or overlook the details.

Let’s explore things to look for before your app goes live.

1. Ignoring Platform Guidelines

Each platform has its own design guidelines and standards of behavior. For example, iOS customers expect smooth animations and a clean UI, while Android customers expect flexible layouts and easy navigation. A common mistake developers make is creating one design for both platforms and hoping that it works on both.

While cross-platform frameworks can provide a nice shortcut with one code base to maintain, it doesn’t mean that it has one experience for both platforms. Often, you will see an awkward application when a mobile application development company forgets iOS Human Interface Guidelines or Google’s Material Design principles.

An easy solution is to adapt the UI of the mobile application for either platform and to reuse the logic below the UI. Example: it is one person, but they are dressed in a different style depending on the weather.

2. Overlooking Performance Optimization

Cross-platform apps are amazing, but it can be beastly heavy without optimization. If your app takes forever to load, has unresponsive screens, and failing battery life, your users will leave faster than you’d expect.

Your mobile app development company in Boston should test your app using real devices instead of simulators. Testing in the wild means testing to catch things like gestures that don’t respond and animations that freeze on an older phone. Performance tuning should be built into the development process from the start.

Developers often lean on plugins too much. Plugins add bulk, so it only makes sense to remove the unnecessary fat from your app early, using libraries that you actually need. The smoother your app performs, the longer users will stay engaged with your app.

3. Not Testing Enough on Real Devices

While emulators are helpful for initial stages, they will never replicate what will actually happen with the app when it has been installed on a mobile device. For example, screen resolutions, accessing the camera, push notifications, and intermittent network conditions will all act differently.

One thing that a mobile app development company often encounters is an indeterminate layout. What appears beautiful on a Pixel phone may look sloppy on an iPhone. This is why real device testing is a must-have, not an option.

If your team decides to skip that to move faster, you can bet they will spend twice the amount of time chasing down bugs. Testing devices ensures that the user sees the same experience on whatever phone or tablet they are using.

4. Forgetting Offline Functionality

Numerous cross-platform apps are completely reliant on an internet connection. What happens when users lose their internet connection? If the app stops working as soon as the Wi-Fi drops, you’re just as likely to lose engagement.

Smart apps cache small amounts of data locally so people can still be browsing, taking notes, or checking updates, even when not connected to the internet. A good mobile app development company in Boston will always design for offline access in the planning stages.

When users see that the app is still working smoothly, they’re more likely to depend on it more in daily life.

5. Ignoring Native Features

Cross-platform development platforms such as Flutter, React Native, and Xamarin provide developers the ability to share code, but they will never be able to replace the advantages you would get from accessing a specific device’s capabilities from the native layer.

For example, all of the camera functionality, fingerprint sensors, or GPS implementations will work better whenever a mobile developer gets access to them via the native APIs.

If the mobile app development company shrinks the amount of native functionality you are using via a third-party wrapper (or, alternatively, a frame), then you may be sacrificing some of those performance advantages.

Thus, you ideally would want to strike a balance of using shared code and pieces of code, whenever possible, but be sure to access native modules when time, speed, responsiveness, or security matter.

A solid cross-platform application doesn’t always have to feel like a compromise, it can still look and perform just as nicely as a native application when it’s built well!

6. Not Planning for App Updates

Creating the app is just the beginning. Many teams neglect to plan for maintenance, i.e. fixing and or improving the app to respond to the changing needs of customers, fixes in performance requirements from Apple or Google, and or releasing features they promised. Both Apple and Google first fix them randomly, and if your app jams up, just like that it’s gone.

An experienced mobile app development company in Boston will have part of the project a maintenance plan, which might look like performing regular tests, fixing bugs, updating the OS when required, and dropping updates (which all users will appreciate).

Always think of maintenance like this: if you purchased a car and never changed oil, it will probably run for the first while, but it will break down too. Frequent updates indicate that you, the business owner cares about your customers and moreover shows them that you are keeping the app fresh and relevant.

Frequent updates are good for visibility too in the app store, as updated apps often rank better/ hire in searches.

7. Weak User Experience and Design

A cross-platform app should always feel like the real deal. Still, a lot of apps do not provide you that level of consistency in design and usage. The buttons might be tiny, animations may lag, and the text can sometimes be out of the center. These small details are more important than a lot of people think — from your end or your users’ end.

When you engage with a mobile app development agency, make sure they provide you the right people on the project team, particularly UI/UX designers. A polished, consistent UI says a lot about your credibility. Ultimately, the design of your app is your first impression, and you hardly ever get a second opportunity to make a first impression.

8. Ignoring Security

Security is the last thing you think about when it comes to cross-platform development. There certainly are a number of different frameworks that depend on open-source libraries.  Open-source libraries can be an open invitation for frequent updates, thus creating vulnerabilities.  When it is time to develop your app, don’t toss encryption, APIs, and user authentication out into the wind. It should be mandatory to include this in your build.

A solid mobile app development company in Boston knows that security is vital from day one. For starters, they will engage in implementing encryption methods, using secure coding strategies, testing for threats prior to launching, and then of course, testing again for security issues.

The last thing you want to feel or experience is that you are on the edge of a security breach by cutting corners or skipping some major processes. Eventually, your app may experience data leaks, or even worse, users may distrust your brand forever, especially with the increased use of apps for payment and personal information.  Remember: One breach could lead to the end of your brand’s credibility.

9. Poor Communication Between Teams

Sometimes, the issue is not a technical one it is a human one. Miscommunication between designers, developers, and testers can result in completely false expectations. A button that is supposed to open a page might instead reload the application.

This is why selecting a mobile app development company with a communication plan makes a huge difference. Weekly check-ins, task board, and reporting openly are methods to keep all parties focused on the same goal and/or measure project success. Using collaboration tools such as Slack or Trello can also help keep an emphasis on everyone’s role during the project.

An app project can be a success when all parties understand what the initial goal was, not just their role in the goal.

10. Launching Without a Strategy

Even if the build is perfect, the outcome of an app launch can quickly fail due to a poorly executed launch plan. You need a plan for marketing, gathering client feedback, and scaling. The most successful apps begin to map and plan their path to growth before the developers have even stopped coding.

A trusted mobile app development company in Boston will assist with their experience and analytics setup, user feedback tools, and marketing integrations to ensure that your app has a successful launch from day one.

Even the best apps can quickly become irrelevant if you do not have a plan in place. Your launch plan should be as intentional as the design of your app itself.

Final Thoughts

Creating a cross-platform application is exciting, but it comes with challenges that must be taken seriously. The trick is to brainstorm and plan for those little things that turn into great big challenges down the road. With testing, optimization, and a user-focused design, you will be able to deliver an app that runs well on each platform.

If you have a project in mind coming up, finding the perfect mobile app development company in Boston will matter. Try to go with a mobile app development company that will focus on performace, security, and user experience just as much as you will.

At the end of the day, app developement success isn’t simply about writing code, but also creating an experience that is absolutely loved by users each and every time they “tap” that icon.