How To Brainstorm The Perfect App Idea
Step 1: Use A Dedicated Brainstorming Tool
Before you start brainstorming your app, you and your team need to have a central place where you can add any ideas, follow through on inspiration or notate crucial parts of your journey.
When inspiration strikes, having a dedicated place to note down your thoughts and get feedback from your team is a great way to ensure nothing gets forgotten or misplaced. There are several ways you can do this, but one of the best is to use a dedicated online brainstorming tool, such as:
- Coggle
This mind map tool is a great way to track your thoughts and share ideas. You can opt for a free personal membership, or make the most out of a paid upgrade for professional work.
For a collaborative space to brainstorm, try Google Docs. On this free platform, you can work together in real-time to create documents, edit work and add imagery – the perfect setting to inspire your most creative ideas!
Step 2: Focus On Your Customer Needs
Now that your team is ready to go, it’s time to think about your app idea. To effectively approach this, focus primarily on the needs of your customers. Complete some market research and based on your results, consider the type of app that they will benefit from:
What do your customers say they want?
What are they currently receiving from your business that could be delivered in a better way?
By thinking of your app as the solution to a problem, you can bring your customers the very best idea that is unique to their circumstances.
If your business is in its early stages, you might be having difficulty completing market research. A reliable way to check whether a problem exists to warrant an app in the first place, is to use a keyword checker tool, like the Google Adwords Keyword Planner. This excellent resource can tell you exactly how many search engine users are searching for specific keywords. If you have an app idea, try to input a theme-specific term to see how popular it is.
Step 3: Research Your Competition
Next on the agenda is researching your competition. When your team comes up with an idea, try to find relevant and close competition, to work out what they’re doing right now. This way, you can consider if there is anything that your business could do better. If you have any existing customers who have moved from their company to yours, this is a great opportunity – try to speak with them to assess what it was that drew them to you, and how you might be able to capitalize on this within your app.
Another area of research should involve funding opportunities. If you find a close competitor of your app idea, you can use sites like Crunchbase to find out if they received investor funding. This will show you whether there is a high level of interest in your app idea, so that when you separate it from the competition, you’ll know you have a solid foundation to build on.
Step 4: Understand Your Business Goals
While your customer should always be your top priority when brainstorming ideas for your app, another good place of inspiration can be your business goals. Some key questions to consider include:
- What Is Your Brand Vision?
Having a clear vision for your brand is not only great for investors, but it can also act as a springboard for your app development. What kind of app can you create to support your vision?
- What Are Your Long-Term Goals?
Thinking about your long-term goals allows you to consider app features or functionality that you previously might have missed, to work them into the bigger picture.
- What Is Your Financial Plan?
Your new app should eventually serve as a tool to support your financial goals. When brainstorming, consider the different elements you could include that can drive profitable growth.
Step 5: Think Outside The Box
If you’re still struggling to come up with unique app ideas, then it might be time to think a little outside the box. Creativity can strike in the most unexpected circumstances, so taking the time to come away from the app store might be all you need to fall into some inspiration.
When brainstorming app ideas, turn off your device and encourage your team to get into the great outdoors – walking meetings make this effortless and allow for maximum productivity.
By getting creative and taking a less traditional route, you can set yourself up to foster a unique app idea that is the perfect fit for your brand.
