The travel app market has been growing significantly in recent years. This is because travel apps can help people make the most out of their trip experience. Travel apps can even enhance the travel experience by acting as planners and personal assistants for people. A travel planner app can work wonders for your trip plans, itinerary, budget planning, and more.
Creating a travel planner app is not an easy task though. You need to have a good plan in place to develop an app that will work for you. This article provides detailed information on how to build the perfect travel app and what are some points you should keep in mind.
What are the Features of a Good Travel App?
Before you get started with app development, it is important that you develop a list of requirements. What kind of features are the users looking for in an app? What kind of information do they require? A travel planner app should have both offline and online functionalities, and it should be user-friendly and highly interactive.
Travel Guides
It is important that travel apps have travel guides because this will provide users with directions and information about the place they are visiting. Offline travel guides are very useful for times when there is no network connectivity and you need to access the guide info when traveling between towns or in places where internet connectivity is limited.
Travel Planners
A travel planner helps users manage and organize travel information. It provides users with travel guides, maps, travel tips and other travel related functionalities to help them have an efficient and enjoyable trip experience.
Travel Itineraries
Itineraries are travel plans that list out a travel plan and travel information. A travel planner app should help users create an itinerary by providing them with an easy function to mark out the route and places one needs to go.
Travel Budget Planning
A travel budget tool can help users plan travel budgets. It is useful to have planners with the ability to measure travel expenses from day one so that expenses can be controlled throughout the trip.
Travel Companions
This is one of the most important features for travel planner apps. A travel companion provides users with real-time travel updates and also sends alerts regarding travel delays, cancellations and other travel related information.
How to Market a Travel App?
Marketing is another important aspect that needs to be considered when you are developing apps. Marketing a travel app can be challenging, but there are many different methods that can help you get the word out about your app including:
– Press Releases
– Social Media
– Bloggers & Travel Sites
– Advertising on travel sites and travel blogs
– Email Marketing
– Online Communities
– Search Engine Optimization
The more time you spend marketing your app, the better results you will have in terms of awareness and number downloads.
Travel Bloggers
Partnering with travel bloggers can be a great way to market your travel app. Look for travel bloggers who travel to the same places as your app covers (if the app is location-specific). You can partner with travel bloggers by providing them with travel information and tips that they can post on their blog.
Travel Sites
Partnering with travel websites is another important travel app marketing function. These travel sites receive thousands of visitors daily, and so it can be a great way to market your app. The travel website you partner with should have a large user base that matches the primary users of your travel app.
Online Communities
Online communities are another marketing avenue that you should consider. Online travel communities include travel forums, groups, discussion boards and other user-generated travel information. Using these tools to market your app can be very useful as the online community will drive a large number of downloads if they have a positive experience with your travel app.
Social Media
Another effective method in order to market travel apps is through social media. Social media marketing can help you spread the word faster about your app and encourage downloads and other engagement activity on your app.
Search Engine Optimization
Using search engine optimization to market your app can help you gain more visibility on the web. You can also utilize app store optimization practices to make your app rank better in the app stores.
Developing Your Travel App
Now that you know some of the different ways to promote travel apps, you just might be ready to start developing your own travel app. When you do have an idea for a travel app, remember that planning is key. Planning can help you create the best app possible, while mitigating any associated risks.
Choosing a Topic for Your Travel App
One of the first things you’ll need to do is choose a topic for your app. You might want to consider developing applications around topics such as vacation travel, travel planning, travel guides etc.
Opinions are divided on the best way to go about choosing a topic for your app. Most people agree that you should start with your own personal interests and try to choose something that you’re passionate about, that way you can create something that is truly unique. Either that, or you can bring to life an extension of an idea that stems from an already popular travel app.
Planning Your Travel App
The next thing you’ll need to do, after choosing a topic for your travel app is create a plan for it. Good planning will help you figure out how much time and money it will cost to create the app.
It will also help you determine whether the travel app has potential for making money.
You should start by creating a list of all the features that your app will have, and next to these features include time estimates for each feature and the cost associated with it. You can then use this information to estimate how much time it would take to develop the app and how much it would cost.
Creating a Wireframe for Your App
Another helpful tip when planning your app is to create a wireframe of it. A wireframe can help you make sure that all elements of your app are in place, and that the app is in line with your overall goals.
You can use various software programs to create a wireframe for your app. A few of the more popular ones include Sketch and Invision.
Once you have chosen a software program to use, the next step is to actually create the wireframe.
Developing Your App
When developing your app, there are several things to keep in mind:
- Be consistent throughout your app in terms of design
- Make sure that everything is properly labeled
- Make sure you accurately describe your app
- Be wary of any links that are included in your travel app; make sure they go to the right place
Driving Traffic to Your App
The final step in creating an app is driving traffic to it once it’s up and running.
There are several different ways to drive traffic to your app. You can use a travel app advertising network, or you can use social media marketing to get the word out.
You may also want to consider paying for online ads, such as Adwords, in order to increase visibility for your travel app.
Cost to Develop a Travel App
As you prepare to get your app developed, there are a few things to keep in mind. You need to consider the cost of the actual development — this includes design, programming and testing.
In addition, once you have developed a working version of your app, there will be ongoing costs associated with hosting the app.
There is no set timeline for this, since some people plan apps and develop them in just a short time period, while others take much longer.
The average cost to developing a travel app is anywhere from $5,000 to $10,000.
Now that we covered everything you need to know before developing a travel app, it’s time to begin. Set a budget and get started — your million dollar travel app is waiting!
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