Customizable DIY Apps Will be the Next Big Thing for Brands in 2017 Being capable of adapting to the changing market dynamics is what is needed by any brand to survive and succeed.

To say that the world today runs on mobile apps will not be an understatement. Think about it. Shopping, travel itineraries, financial transactions, entertainment, communications – tapping a few buttons on a mobile screen is all we need to do to accomplish most of our day-to-day functions. This is why a recent report by App Annie, a global business intelligence and analytics firm, has predicted the global mobile app industry to be worth more than $101 billion by 2020. But as almost all aspects of our lives continue to migrate onto a digital platform and businesses make mobility a key aspect of their operations, there is one trend that stands out amongst other mobile-based technologies – customizability.

Customizability: A major differentiator in today's fast-changing, dynamic business ecosystem

If you're wondering what makes customizability such a hot topic for brands, pay attention to the keywords above. Fast-changing, dynamic, constantly evolving – these are a few adjectives that have been used rather extensively to describe the global business ecosystem in the digital age. Being capable of adapting to the changing market dynamics is what is needed by any brand to survive and succeed.

The same holds true for mobile applications. No matter how much planning and research goes into developing apps, there is always a possibility that things might change somewhere down the line. Your users might demand different features, some new technology might come into the picture or you may need to pivot your business approach. If something like this happens and your app cannot be customized, you will need to start afresh with a brand new app. In such a scenario, investing more time and money in order to develop a new app which might get outdated in a year's time is probably not an idea you'll want to run with.

Customizability helps you ration for the possibilities that may not have been foreseen during the app development phase. Think of it as adding that extra bit of seam you asked for while getting your latest pair of trousers stitched. It allows you to make those frequent minor tweaks and not-so-frequent major overhauls that would have otherwise necessitated unnecessary expenditure of both time and money – two of the most important resources for any business.

What role do DIY platforms play in app customizability?

Gartner has predicted that the demand for mobile apps in 2017 could outstrip supply five-to-one. DIY app platforms are a relatively new development in the app market which came into existence as an innovative way of filling this demand-supply gap. They empower small-scale businesses with the tools to create a fully-functional, feature-laden, customizable mobile app.

What such platforms also do is give brands complete control over their app building experience. The cloud-based proposition of DIY app platforms not only helps in creating personalised apps to meet the requirements of the target audiences, but also enables brands to tweak and update their apps on a regular basis. All this can be done through a click-based interface within minutes, which allows for the possibility of keeping an app up-to-date in real-time. This eliminates the need to pay huge amounts of money to app developers to make the changes. Brands also have the added advantage of being able to select the features and updates that they want, as they want, when they want.

Mobile apps – this is where the future is at. Global app downloads are expected to have crossed 147.3 billion at present, and are poised to touch 283.4 billion by 2020. Customizability and DIY platforms will be at the forefront of this app revolution, giving brands an unprecedented opportunity to swiftly deploy apps to capture the market mood and drive the efficacy of their business endeavours. Here's to a more "app'ening future, and all that it entails!