It is no longer as easy to hit on a good app idea as it was even 3-4 years ago. Both iTunes as well as Google Play Store has literally hundreds of mobile apps belonging to the same category/genre – and it is nothing short of a challenge to think up a concept that is unique, and has chances to be actually transformed into an application. That’s precisely why it is important to ensure that when you actually get an idea (and hey, it can come to you at any time, at any place, when you are doing anything!), you validate it properly. In other words, you need to thoroughly check whether your idea is indeed viable, and has the legs to be transformed into a successful mobile app. Over here, we guide you on how to validate your app idea:

Similar apps will exist – That’s at least very likely. There are 1.6 million apps in Play Store, another 1.5 million at the App Store – and chances are pretty low that your idea ( which you probably consider to be really ‘unique’ ) hasn’t already been thought up, worked upon, and released by mobile app developers. Do not lose heart by this though. Check the apps that are similar to the one you wish to build, list down their features, and go through the user-reviews they have got. Try to find out how you can improve on the existing applications and whether there is a gap that needs to be plugged.

Estimate search volumes – It’s all very well to come across an app idea that seems nice enough to you – but will the general public, the people who use smartphone applications regularly, be interested in it? The only way to get an objective answer to this is by estimating the expected search volume that your app would generate. There are handy tools like Google Keyword Planner , where you can type the nature of your app and/or other words related to your idea. If you find there is enough interest in your concept, hire a good app development company to work on your project. In contrast, if search volumes appear thin, it would be advisable to give that idea a miss and try thinking up another one.

Get the opinions of others – There is no better judge of your app idea than actual people – who are likely to download and use your application. Share the broad details of your concept with people you know and trust ( don’t just talk to anyone, for violation of intellectual property rights might be an issue ). Attend conferences and seminars organized by local mobile app entrepreneurs, network with developers, and ask whether they feel your idea is indeed working on or not. These people have years of experience in the Android/iPhone app development industry – and they can easily identify a good app idea when they see ( or hear! ) one. General people, on the other hand, can tell you whether your idea seems interesting enough.

Making apps for a niche market – When you are just starting out, it is always better to make a mobile app that has a broad target audience ( a nice roleplaying game, for instance ). However, it is neither impossible nor a sacrifice on revenue, if your app idea is designed to cater to a relatively small sector of the overall market ( a ‘niche’ market ). Medical apps for doctors, counselling apps for lawyers, fitness apps for professional sportsmen – all of these are examples of such ‘ niche applications ’. What you need to do in such cases is to ensure that your app idea is such that it would indeed bring in focused traffic and generate very high conversion rates. It is certainly possible to make money on mobile apps, even without a huge search volume!

Will your app be ‘good-to-have’ or a ‘must-have’? – Always go for the latter. There is no harm in conceptualizing a fancy app idea – which, when developed and released, will be an interesting inclusion in the app stores. However, analysts and app developers agree that such ‘ good-to-have ’ apps often fail to motivate general smartphone users to download them. Instead, your idea should be about creating a ‘ must-have ’ app – an app that would solve a particular, important, regular need of users. People should be convinced that having your app on their personal devices would indeed be handy.