Be it mobile or web application development, the chances of an app concept creating its very own category are slim and very difficult. Most app concepts fit into one out of the numerous existing categories. Yes, the very first mobile gaming app created its own category, but all later gaming apps were categorized in that category, likewise for utility apps, puzzle apps, educations apps and entertainment apps amongst the many others.

This brings us to an interesting little problem. How do you ensure that your app is unique, if it isn’t revolutionary? When it comes to mobile application development, it is not necessary that you have a revolutionary new idea. All you need to do is give your app a unique spin. What it requires is a little bit of focused re-imagination. Even a little bit of change, here and there, will guarantee an app that looks and feels different!

So come, let’s take a look at some ways how you can fructify this process of re-imagination.

Take a look at your competitors

Taking a look at what your competitors are up to, especially with respect to their mobile apps will give you a clear idea as to which direction your mobile application development should take. Look at their apps from the perspective of a consumer and think about the changes you would have loved to make. So, make the necessary change and you have a perfectly unique app on your hands.

Think of a category defining features

There might be a cool feature that you think works best for a particular category. Even if you don’t have a particular feature in mind, talk about the same with your mobile apps development team. Maybe they can help you out. This is why you need to choose somebody who has experience of working on apps for diverse categories. This helps them bring all their experience to your concept, which in turn helps them zero in on that one feature that was missing from most apps in a particular category and which your mobile app will have. This can help your app stand out from the other mobile apps in that particular category.

Focus on creating something unique

If you don’t think unique right from the conceptualization stage itself, you won’t be able to give shape to a unique app within an existing app category. Even when you are thinking about building app, you need to think different. At the planning stage, you need to focus on how your app is going to differentiate from the rest of the apps in the category. What this will do is it will help your mobile application development efforts go off the beaten track and help re-imagine the wheel. So, right from the time you work on the conceptual drafts to the time you deploy the app, your focus must be on giving a twist to your app concept.

Mix categories

If you have tried everything under the sun, to make your app raise eyebrows and capture the attention of your target users, and have still not found that X factor, why not mix different categories. It’s a shortcut that will help you ensure that your app is different. For e.g. by developing an app that is an interesting mixture of utility and gaming, you build an app that is neither a gaming app nor a utility app, but can belong to either of the two categories. By doing so, you have spun a unique app without putting in a whole lot of effort in the proceedings.

Do not follow the leader

This step is as drastic as they come, but can be a game changer if a market is extremely saturated with apps belonging to particular category. In such cases, what you need to do is identify the market leader, then go through the mobile apps developed by this leader; identify the finer points of the apps. Once you have an in-depth idea about what the apps are all about, go ahead and do something completely opposite. If the app is going right, go left. This way you will be positioning your app in direct competition to the leader. The decision might boomerang, but you are at least giving your app a chance to break into the market and make its presence felt. It tells everybody,” I am unique and proud of it”. It’s a fact, that target audiences love such apps.

It is only when you start thinking about re-imagining a particular app category that you can give shape to an app that can stand on their own two feet within a category, already overpopulated with unique apps.