How to convert website to mobile app [+ 5 Brands That Did It]

Your clients will find it simpler to learn about and utilize your services or products if you have a mobile app for your website. The shopping or browsing experience is more convenient with a mobile app. To make your mobile app more original and enjoyable, consider adding UX. The UX is the primary differentiator that makes mobile apps stand out from the competition. An asset is any program or website that is simple to use, gives value to your company, and is easy to navigate.

You may convert website to mobile app in a variety of ways. I advise using mobile consulting and development services. A consultation service will save you a ton of time.

Making a mobile app will be quicker and simpler because the company is experienced in offering these services. Your requests will all be taken into account promptly.

But what should you know before you begin developing your mobile application? Let’s look at the most crucial factors you should take into account when creating a mobile version of your website.

How to Convert a Website into Mobile App

1. Determine if you need a mobile app.

If you’ve got this far, chances are you’re moving towards app development. However, we should note that not every website requires a mobile app. If your website is already mobile-friendly, you may not need an app to improve your customer experience. In that case, a mobile app just may be extra work that might not pay off if more users simply prefer your website.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself to see if a mobile app makes sense for your business. The more “no’s” you have, the more likely it is your company would benefit from having a mobile app.

• Is my website mobile responsive?
• Can I easily make my website mobile-friendly?
• Can my website do everything that my app does?
• Are most customers visiting my site on a desktop browser?
• Does my website rank well on search engines?
• Do my competitors offer a mobile app?

2. Create a list of required features for your app.

Before you dive headfirst into app development, it’s important to consider what features you’ll include on your mobile app. Not only does this give you an idea of what you’ll need to build, but it will help you calculate costs and stay within budget.

After all, it’s easy to get carried away thinking about all the possible functions your app can perform. However, by coming up with a vetted list of features, you’ll create an attainable vision for your app and ensure every one of its features is useful to your target audience — rather than just being a flashy extra.

3. Hire a development team.

To develop a high-quality app, you’ll need to work with a qualified and experienced development team. These days, there are two options — hire an in-house team or cooperate with a reliable vendor.

Both variants have pros and cons. For example, an in-house team tends to be more expensive. You’ll need to pay for things like rent, hardware, software, taxes, vacations, and more. However, in-house development allows you to control the development process completely and create an app that’s tailored to your exact specifications.

Outsourcing tends to be the cheaper option since you can hire developers from various places and each one will likely have a unique rate. The downside of this is that you can’t oversee every aspect of development and you have to trust that you’ve hired the right people to do the job.

Fortunately, one way to account for this is to create a recurring meeting schedule between you and your developers. This will help keep your project on track and will allow you to make changes during the development process. That way, you aren’t handed an app that looks nothing like your original blueprint after waiting for weeks or even months for your developers to build it.

4. Estimate app development costs.

Once you have your feature list and development team ready to go, it’s time to start crunching numbers. A good rule of thumb is, the more complex your app is, the more expensive it’s going to be to develop. In fact, one study found that a “simple app” costs anywhere between $38,000 and $91,000 to develop.

There are a lot of factors to consider when thinking about mobile app development costs. The number of features you want to add, how long it will take to develop the app, who you’re working with, etc. All of these elements are in play when it comes to pricing and you should think about them before building your app. If you find yourself over budget, a good place to start is by revisiting your feature list to see which features are essential and which ones you can wait until later to add.

5. Create a user-friendly UX design.

Aside from the basic functionality of your app, your UX design is the most important factor to prioritize when building your interface. After all, what’s the point of developing a mobile app if it’s not as responsive as your website?

If you can’t make your mobile app more mobile-friendly than your website, then you may want to consider investing more in your website’s design than building a brand new app.

If you’re looking for tips to improve user experience, check out this complete guide to UX design.

6. Test your app.

Like with any landing page, social media post, or email campaign, you should test your app before submitting it to the app store. This will allow you to fine-tune your app’s features and fix any glitches or flaws before your users discover them.

Not only will this help you retain users who might have deleted your app after experiencing these issues, but it will also save your support team time from having to respond to customers who are having problems with your mobile app. Even if you can’t fix all of the flaws before pushing it live, at least you’ll be aware of potential issues and can prep your service team before they’re exposed to these types of inquiries.

7. Submit your app to the App Store.

Once your app is ready to go, the final step is to submit it to the App Store. Both Android’s App Store and Apple’s App Store take about the same amount of time to review your submission — each taking about three days total to approve your app. After your app is approved, it should be available for download in the respective app store.

List the Features You Want in Mobile App

While turning any website into a mobile app, it is important to have a clear idea of the features you want. Your website may have a ton of features. But when turning it into a mobile app, you might want to narrow down the features. You have to make your app as user-friendly as you can. Making the app easy to use in the beginning will attract more of your customers to the mobile app. A mobile app should be concise, consistent, and have easy to understand the menu. Other than this you need to pay attention to the UX, navigation, hamburger menu, and notifications for the app. Having a list that is customized as per your business for these topics will give you a clear picture. After that, you can now decide how you want to make the app prototype.

Make a Mobile App Prototype

Now, you have to decide if you wish to use consulting services to make the app. You can also opt for DIY websites to make mobile app prototype. The advantages of using consulting services are endless. You will not have to look after about every detail of the app. They will help you with design layouts that suit best for your business. They will help you design the app keeping your consumer base in mind. Since they are used to this, any changes in the app layout or troubleshooting bugs will be taken care of. 

You can find a ton of DIY websites on the internet that will help you make a mobile app on your own. Using a DIY site will cut the cost of making a mobile app significantly. But you won’t be able to make any changes to the templates on the site. The biggest drawback of this is that your mobile app may not be targeted to your audience. Another factor that makes using consulting services a better option is time constraints. For a DIY website, you will need to browse and finalize every single detail. After getting the prototype ready, the next step is to test it out.

Test the Mobile App Prototype

After having a prototype of your app, make sure you try out the mobile app. You will get to know how user-friendly the app is. You will know if there are any bugs in navigation or notification, so you can fix them. You will need to test the app for a few days or even weeks. The timeline will depend on how complex your app is. If you are opting for an app that is set up for simple functionality, there won’t be much to worry about. Testing your mobile app before releasing it on any app store is a crucial step. It might seem boring or time-consuming. But testing the mobile app will help you to eliminate any errors that may have gone unnoticed. Once you have your prototype ready, you need to submit it to the app store.

Submit Your Mobile App Application to App Store

After you have made a mobile app for your website, you can launch the app on App Store or Google Play Store. You will have to submit your mobile application for the respective stores. You need to submit all the necessary information along with the application. App Store and Google Play Store both have different requirements. Once you have submitted your application, it might take anywhere from 3-5 days for your app to be available for download. If there are no issues with your application, your customers will be able to download the app from App Store and Google Play Store. 

Submitting your application will be the last step in making a mobile app for your website. Once you have your app on the App Store and Google Play Store your work is over for now. You can start working through the orders received from your mobile app or any queries related to your business. You can review your app now and then to make sure it is up-to-date with the changing demands of consumers. You can always revamp your mobile app by adding features and options for your business. You can also connect your mobile app and website. This will help retain the information for your customers on both platforms.

Variables to Consider When Converting Websites to Mobile Apps

There are a bunch of tools that help convert websites into mobile apps (iOS or Android). However, such services can’t guarantee a great user experience. That’s why it’s better to develop a native app from scratch rather than converting your site using a third-party tool.

With that in mind, it’s important to note that app development requires preparation and time. If you haven’t designed an app, you might not know what it takes to build one from scratch. Here are a few variables you should consider before developing your app:

Development Cost

Apps are different from websites in the sense that you can’t use a low-cost builder tool like a content management system to make them. You’ll likely need a developer or development team in your ring.

Native app development can cost a lot. However, it’s better to invest some money at the start of the process and get a good result right away, rather than paying a service over and over again to create the interface you’re looking for.

We’ll talk more about pricing in the next section, but when you’re paying thousands of dollars to build an app, you’ll want to get an idea of the total cost of the project before committing to app development.

Screen Size

The mobile market is full of unique devices, including multiple types of smartphones and tablets. So, when creating a UI/UX design, you should consider different screen sizes and ensure that all images, charts, and buttons look great on various devices.

Pro Tip: to avoid problems, you should cooperate with an experienced and skilled UI/UX designer.

Search Presence

Typically, people will search for your website more than they’ll search for your mobile app. While Google will help by adding “app packs” to search results, you can also add a popup on your website to tell users about your mobile app. This will encourage people to download your app, especially if your site isn’t responsive on mobile.

With all of our bases covered, let’s put our plan into action and discuss how you can convert your website into a mobile app.