Apps are a great tool for your business. They make your business more accessible, they can help build loyalty between you and your customers, and they can offer unique features that you can’t give your audience anywhere else.

But, building an app is a lot of work. The success or failure of an app depends on a lot more than whether you have a good idea. Design, functionality, and innovation are all keys to success. If you try to build an app yourself without any prior experience, you’re probably not going to get the best return on your investment.

There are some cheap alternatives to doing it yourself, but they won’t give you the innovative features or design that a professional could give you. Some websites may get you started with a template or some simple features. These options are fine, but they certainly are not going to give you the best results.

Because of the complexity involved with quality app development, businesses who don’t have any in-house talent will often outsource the project.

I know outsourcing seems like a dirty word to some. They imagine underpaid overseas workers that deliver patched together, subpar projects. This is not always the case. Outsourcing doesn’t mean bad work or even overseas work. Outsourcing just means that a business brings in a third-party to help with or take over a project.

Many businesses outsource work to local app developers or marketing agencies right in the U.S.

Freelancers overseas can also offer an expert opinion for very specific skills that are hard to find. Just because the talent comes from overseas does not mean that it is poor quality.

If done right, outsourcing can provide your business with experienced workers that create quality products.

So, how can you make sure that you’re outsourcing your app development the right way?

According to Digital Authority Partners, the first thing you should do is decide what purpose your app will serve. This is the groundwork for the entire development process. It will inform who you hire and help you discern what your budget should be. It will also influence the design and marketing decisions.

In order to be successful, you need to have a clear vision for your app before doing anything else.

The next thing that you should do is set a budget. There are a few things to keep in mind in regards to a budget. Know that the talent you hire should eat up most of your budget. Also, keep in mind that the budget to build the app typically does not include maintenance or marketing done after the app is launched. For just the development, you can expect to spend between $140,000-$210,000.

Your budget will be heavily influenced by the team you build. Because the majority of your investment is going into hiring your team, make sure that you choose that team wisely. Depending on your needs, you could choose to hire a couple of freelancers to assist an in-house team or you could hand the entire project over to an agency or specialized firm.

Mike Scanlin, a venture capitalist, says he saved half a million dollars by hiring freelancers overseas. His business was based near Silicon Valley, where specialized skills come at a high price. But, he was able to find workers who were just as skilled for a fraction of the price.

If you’re uncomfortable hiring overseas, you could take a cue from the businesses based in expensive areas of the U.S. that are outsourcing work to small, more remote cities still on American soil. For businesses based out of cities like New York or Los Angeles, it offers a more affordable option than local work without sending work overseas. If cutting costs is your bottom line, freelancers may be the right decision for you.

If there is no one in-house that has experience with app development, freelancers probably are not a good idea. You’ll end up hiring an entire team of people scattered all over the world and you alone have to maintain communication with them.

Managing a team of freelancers is practically another job in itself. If you need to maintain “business as usual” while your app is in development, you’re better off paying for a firm that you know can handle it on their own and get it done right.

While 59% of businesses who outsource work say that they do it to save money, 57% say that they do it so that they can remain focused on their work. This is one area where a firm or agency can make all the difference.

Specialized firms offer peace of mind. They have developed apps before, probably a lot of them. They know what they’re doing and they will have samples that they can show you. You can stay focused on our business and your regular responsibilities because you know they can take care of the app development themselves.

With the time that you would have spent developing the app or supervising freelancers, you can focus on other important things, like how you will market the app. There were 2.1 billion apps on google play in the first quarter of 2019 and 1.8 billion in the app store. A good marketing strategy is very important to the success of your app.

By the end of development, you have invested a significant amount of money. Launching your app without a solid marketing campaign would seriously hurt your return on investment. You’ve gone through all the work to create this product. Don’t blow it with a bad marketing campaign.

If you are thinking of creating an app for your business, the key piece of advice is this: Make sure that it is worth your time and money. If you don’t want to spend money, don’t have any experience, or are just going to make an app because that’s what everyone else is doing, don’t waste your time.

It is anticipated that there will be 258.2 billion app downloads worldwide in 2022. If you’re going to be successful, you need to stand out. If you’re going to stand out, you need an expert team that has your back.