Choosing a name for your Android app

If you’re new to the mobile app industry, the process of developing an app and putting it in the app store might appear to be a simple one.  In addition to the sheer volume of apps in the various app stores, the fact that mobile apps are usually cheap and usually provide a fairly simple service might suggest that not only is everyone doing it, but that everyone is doing it effortlessly and all the time.

Of course, nothing about mobile app development is as easy as it looks, but one would think that coming up with the app’s name might be a no-brainer.  There are, however, a number of factors you need to consider before choosing a name for your mobile app and making it available for download.

• Uniqueness:  If you submit a mobile app to with a name that’s already taken in Apple’s app store, it will swiftly be rejected.  For Android apps, however, you won’t be able to submit it at all; Android package names must be unique for the app store to allow submission.
• Is the .com name available?  You’ll need to bear in mind that if your roll out your app correctly, the app store isn’t the only place your clients will be exposed to it.  For branding and marketing purposes, you’re going to need a web site, and ideally you’ll want your app and your site to share the same name.  The same applies to Facebook and Twitter, and any other social media forums where you’re hoping to advertise your app.
• Brevity:  Take a look at the apps on your telephone; you’ll notice that all or nearly all the names fit snugly beneath their icons.  A brief and catchy name will likewise go far in ensuring that your app is memorable; brevity is the soul of wit, after all.
• Form and function:  This is perhaps the most difficult factor to quantify, and the most important as well.  Your app’s name is the first thing that prospective customers are going to see, so you want it to express as elegantly and concisely as possible what it is that your app is designed to do.

If you need any assistance getting your mobile app developed, don’t hesitate to contact us.   We’re here to help!