Explore our latest insights

Originally published: February 2018. Updated: April 2024. You’re scrolling through your phone, desperately searching for an app that solves a nagging problem. Maybe it’s finding a reliable babysitter at the last minute, splitting a restaurant bill with friends seamlessly, or finally organizing your ever-growing to-do list. But every app you find falls short. “There has to be a better way,” you think. That’s the spark of a brilliant app idea! But then reality sets in: how do you turn that spark into a reality, especially when funding feels like a major hurdle? Entrepreneurs take note: Hold on to your fantastic app idea! This comprehensive guide equips you with the knowledge and resources to navigate the app funding landscape and turn your app dream into a thriving mobile application.  Before We Dive In: Building a Strong Foundation Two key elements, the minimum viable product (MVP) and business plan, will be your cornerstones for attracting investors and securing the capital to launch your dream app. Before we delve into the various funding options, let’s solidify the foundation of your app’s success. The MVP Advantage Many successful apps started as an MVP. This basic version focuses on core functionalities that solve your target user’s problem. The MVP allows you to test your concept with real users early and often. This valuable feedback helps you refine your app and ensure you’re building something people actually want before sinking a ton of money into development. Business Planning: Craft a Compelling Roadmap Having a solid business plan is crucial for attracting potential investors and securing app funding. It demonstrates your understanding of the market, your competitive advantage, and how you plan to turn your app into a sustainable business. Essential sections include: Executive Summary Market Analysis Competitive Analysis Product Description Marketing & Sales Strategy Management Team Financial Projections Many online resources are specifically designed to help entrepreneurs write business plans. Check out SCORE (https://www.score.org/) or the Small Business Administration (https://www.sba.gov/) for free templates and guidance. App Funding Options for Aspiring Entrepreneurs Having a brilliant app idea is just the first step. Transforming that idea into a reality requires funding. This section will equip you with a clear roadmap to navigate the diverse financing landscape for app development. We’ll explore various options, from bootstrapping with your own resources to attracting external investment. By understanding the pros, cons, and ideal scenarios for each approach, you can make informed decisions to secure the capital needed to launch your app successfully. 1. Bootstrapping: Building Your App on Your Own Terms This is where you use your own resources to fund development. It might involve dipping into your savings, taking on a side hustle, or bartering your skills for services you need. Bootstrapping offers complete control over your business but requires careful budgeting, resourcefulness, and a willingness to wear many hats. Here are some tips for successful bootstrapping: Prioritize ruthlessly. Focus on developing the core functionalities that deliver the most value to users and postpone fancy features for later. Embrace open-source tools. Many free and open-source development tools and libraries are available to help you build your app without breaking the bank. Consider a side hustle. If your budget is tight, a side hustle can provide additional income to accelerate development. 2. Friends & Family: Your First Cheerleaders (and Maybe Investors) Your friends and family can be a fantastic source of early-stage app funding, especially if they believe in your vision. However, it’s crucial to approach them professionally. Communicate your vision and investment goals. Create formal agreements outlining the terms of the investment,  including the amount of funding, repayment terms, and ownership stake. This protects everyone involved and avoids misunderstandings down the road. 3. Crowdfunding Platforms: Unleashing the Power of the Crowd Sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo allow you to raise capital from a large pool of online contributors. These platforms offer a unique opportunity to gauge market interest in your app before launch and potentially secure app funding from early adopters who are excited about your idea. Here are some key considerations for crowdfunding success: Craft a compelling campaign. Hook potential backers with a captivating video and story that showcases your app’s value proposition and potential impact. Be transparent about how you’ll use the funds raised. Offer enticing rewards. Incentivize backers with tiered rewards that offer early access to the app, exclusive features, or branded merchandise. Be a marketing machine. Use social media, online communities, and relevant blogs to spread the word about your campaign. The more people who know about your app, the higher your chances of reaching your funding goal. Remember: There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to app funding. Consider the stage of your idea, your comfort level with risk, and the amount of funding needed when deciding which option is best for you. App Funding: Setting Realistic Expectations Be prepared! Launching a successful startup requires hard work, perseverance, and a bit of luck. Unfortunately, many app ideas don’t make it to market. Here’s a reality check: Market Research Is Key Don’t just assume your app idea is brilliant. Conduct thorough market research to understand your target audience, existing competitors, and potential challenges. Focus on Value What unique value proposition does your app offer? Why should users choose yours over the competition? Define Your Target Audience Who are you building this app for? Understanding your target market demographics, needs, and behaviors is crucial for success. Success Rates & Challenges  While success stories abound, it’s important to acknowledge the competitive nature of the app market. Statistics show that only 10% of startups succeed [insert source here (optional)]. This emphasizes the importance of a solid foundation, a well-defined target audience, and a clear understanding of your challenges. Each funding option comes with its own set of challenges: Bootstrapping: Requires financial discipline and may limit the scope and functionality of your initial app. Friends & Family: Potential for strained relationships if things go south. Ensure clear communication and have ironclad legal agreements in place. Crowdfunding: Reaching your funding goal can be difficult and requires effective marketing. Beyond the Basics: Exploring Additional App Funding Options As your app evolves and gains traction, you can explore additional app funding avenues: Angel Investors These are high-net-worth individuals who invest their own money in promising startups. They often provide valuable mentorship alongside funding but expect a significant ownership stake in your company. Venture Capitalists Venture capitalist (VC) firms invest larger sums of money in startups with high growth potential. Securing VC funding is a significant accomplishment but often requires a more developed business plan and a proven track record. App Funding: The Path Forward Each funding option has its pros and cons. Carefully consider your needs and priorities before pursuing a specific type of app funding. By incorporating these actionable tips and realistic expectations, you’ll be well on your way to transforming your app dream into a reality.

Technology is a powerful tool for revolutionizing industries, creating positive change, and building a strong brand purpose. Imagine leveraging technology to amplify your social impact initiatives and connect with a generation of consumers passionate about social responsibility. This article explores how both nonprofits and enterprises can apply tech solutions to create a ripple effect of positive change across various sectors. Bridging the Gap: How Enterprises Can Support Social Impact While technology offers immense potential for social impact, many enterprises struggle to integrate these initiatives into their existing structures. This could be due to a lack of internal expertise in specific technology areas, difficulty finding the right partners, or challenges in measuring the impact of social good programs. Non-profit organizations are at the forefront of social progress, tackling critical issues like hunger and social justice. However, they often lack the resources to fully leverage technology’s transformative power. This creates an opportunity for enterprises to bridge the gap. By partnering with nonprofits, enterprises can offer their technology expertise, resources, and marketing muscle to amplify the impact of social good initiatives. Here’s how enterprises can overcome these challenges: Strategic Partnerships: Collaborate with non-profit organizations to identify areas where technology can address their specific needs. Technology Expertise: Offer pro-bono or discounted tech services to nonprofits, helping them overcome resource constraints. Data & Measurement: Develop frameworks to measure the impact of social good initiatives, demonstrating the value proposition to all stakeholders. Tech for Good in Action: Empowering Sectors for Social Impact Technology solutions are transforming the way organizations serve their communities. Let’s explore a few inspiring examples. Healthcare Augmented Reality Apple Vision Pro, while not originally designed for medical applications, is finding innovative uses in the operating room to assist surgeons: Augmented Reality Overlay: The Apple Vision Pro headset can project virtual information onto the surgeon’s field of view. This allows surgeons to see crucial data, like patient scans or surgical instructions, overlaid in the real world without looking away from the patient. Real-Time Data Streaming: The headset can connect to other medical equipment and software, allowing surgeons to access real-time data streams during surgery. This could include vital signs, imaging data, or 3D patient anatomy models. Improved Communication and Collaboration: Surgeons wearing the headset can potentially communicate and collaborate with other medical professionals remotely, allowing for specialist input during surgery even if they’re not physically present in the operating room. AI-Powered Diagnostics AI-powered diagnostics can expedite treatment in underserved areas, while data analysis can optimize resource allocation and disease prevention strategies. Companies like Paige and iSono Health and organizations like Google’s DeepMind are developing AI algorithms to identify early signs of disease in mammograms, X-rays, and other scans, even with limited physician resources. Personalization & Education Innovative solutions can also empower patients to live healthier lives. For example, consider a mobile app like Cancer Exercise, developed by InspiringApps, that helps patients manage chronic conditions through personalization and educational resources.   Social Justice Identifying Bias Our current justice system isn’t imperfect; unconscious bias can creep into sentencing decisions. Machine learning algorithms can analyze historical sentencing data and identify racial or socioeconomic bias patterns in sentencing practices. By highlighting these disparities, these tools can empower policymakers and judges to work towards a fairer justice system. Streamlining Legal Processes Outdated spreadsheets can lead to data inaccuracies and hinder progress. This is a challenge many legal aid organizations face, as showcased in the impactful film, “Forgiving Johnny.” Machine learning can streamline processes by automating document review, legal research, and risk assessment tasks. This can free up lawyers’ time to focus on the more nuanced aspects of their cases, potentially leading to faster resolution times and improved access to justice for all. Nutrition & Food Security Connecting With Resources Many people struggling with food insecurity simply don’t know where to find healthy food resources. User-friendly apps can bridge this gap. These apps leverage geolocation to connect users with local food banks, soup kitchens, and farmers’ markets. Culturally-Conscious Recipes A one-size-fits-all approach to nutrition doesn’t work. Mobile apps can offer recipe suggestions that cater to diverse cultural preferences and dietary restrictions. This ensures everyone has access to recipes they’ll enjoy and easily integrate into their existing food culture. Empowerment Through Education Apps can give users basic nutritional guidance, explaining the importance of balanced meals, healthy food swaps, and meal planning tips.   Environmental Stewardship Real-Time Data Collection Knowledge is power, especially when it comes to protecting our planet. Sensor networks and mobile applications can collect real-time environmental data on factors like air and water quality, deforestation rates, and soil health. This data empowers communities to identify areas of concern and track changes over time, allowing for proactive environmental protection strategies. Empowering Local Action Data is just the first step. Apps and online platforms can translate complex environmental data into actionable insights for communities. Imagine a platform that allows users to visualize pollution levels in their neighborhood or track water usage in their community. Armed with this information, individuals and groups can advocate for environmental policies, promote sustainable practices, and hold local authorities accountable. InspiringApps in Action A great example of how technology empowers environmental stewardship is the work of InspiringApps with our client, the Boulder Watershed Collective. Together, we developed a mobile app called “Take-a-Hike.” This app provides users with detailed trail information, encourages responsible outdoor recreation, and raises awareness. “Take-a-Hike” showcases how technology can enhance outdoor experiences and inspire a sense of environmental responsibility. The Next Big Idea Can Change Humanity Our mission isn’t just about technology; it’s about building a better world and how nonprofits can unlock unprecedented levels of impact when armed with the right tools. The future is not just digital; it’s compassionate, innovative, and, most importantly, inclusive. If you have the next big idea that will change humanity, let’s work together to make it a reality. Additional Resources & Inspiration Tapping Into Human Potential With Technology: Listen to this podcast with pioneer in technology and human transformation, Nichol Bradford. Human Potential Index: Measure how well your products deliver on your mission. TechSoup: Offers donated and discounted technology products to nonprofits. Nonprofit Tech for Good: A resource hub for nonprofit professionals worldwide. Grant Opportunities for Nonprofits Technology: Explore opportunities for nonprofit technology upgrades. IA Commits Case Study: Read the story behind our program for nonprofits, IA Commits.

The Boulder Watershed Collective is a Colorado nonprofit using apps to advance causes. The small nonprofit has a vital cause: as populations grow, climate changes and forests shift, it’s crucial to preserve the watershed. Beyond mitigation and restoration projects, the nonprofit offers education and engagement to empower environmental stewardship and inspire action.  Giving the community a free, immersive, and informative experience, the Take-a-Hike app was an ambitious project. Let’s explore. Innovation Within Reach Innovation in nonprofit experience design is often out of reach for smaller non-profits, but our design solves that challenge. InspiringApps created a cost-effective mobile app in partnership with Boulder Watershed Collective, offering an immersion into the Boulder trails system never before experienced.  Available for both iOS and Android, the free Take-a-Hike app is a trail guide in your pocket. The user experience is deeply mapped to the mission: concentrate on the natural beauty of Boulder’s trails, but learn about reasons to protect them, too. With InspiringApps’ environmental stewardship app design, users can enjoy hikes internet-free while tracking their progress and learning. Collaboration & Impact True innovation comes from shared collaboration and partnership. Technology decisions can be simplified and streamlined into one cohesive process with shared collaboration. Regarding the app design process, Boulder Watershed Collective shared:  “Thank you and the InspiringApps team for working with us on this and making the idea possible. I am not sure we would even have an app or an app of this quality without you and your team’s awesome work and collaboration.” Experiential Design on a Mission Experiential design goes beyond traditional design practices by considering the entire journey and environment in which the experience occurs. It aims to stimulate multiple senses to create a more immersive and impactful experience. Immersive Experience For nonprofits, digital, experiential design can create a strong impact and elicit positive change. By engaging multiple senses, Take-a-Hike offers an immersive experience that supports local climate innovators through novel ways that foster environmental stewardship. In addition to teaching hikers about their diverse environment, the entire experience educates users on the services and management decisions that aid the wetlands, forests, and mountains.  Interactive Features The app’s design has two key interactive features: a map and an audio narration. As it guides hikers to different learning spots along the trail, the app uses GPS mapping and audio playback from the user’s device to create a natural connection with the outdoors. As a result of the design’s innovations, users can visually learn about points of interest along their hike, and geographically triggered audio segments play at those same points of interest automatically.  Informative & Intuitive Visual Elements Visual elements are both informative and intuitive. When users select and begin a hike in the app, they see a map of their hike and the points of interest or stops along the way. As they hike to each stop, a details screen shows hikers where they are in real-time, info about that point, and the distance to the next stop. Customizable Audio Audio elements offer a high degree of control but a minimum interaction requirement to enhance outdoor experiences.  Users can control the audio from their phone’s notifications panel.  They can turn on an audio narration in the background, so there’s no need to interact with their phones during the hike.  When approaching stops, there is audio to help hikers appreciate their surroundings, followed by silence to enable hikers to use that information while taking in bird calls and mountain views. Sustainable Iterations Through Community Engagement Built in a way that makes adding additional hikes a nominal effort, the app has enabled Boulder Watershed Collective to exponentially grow its education and outreach beyond the small staff’s capacity. Partnering within the community, the team continues to add hikes and expand its reach. Educational Reach After initially releasing the Take-a-Hike app developed by InspiringApps, Boulder Watershed Collective received additional grants. One of those was to work with a school in Lafayette to guide a podcast creation experience with students. Students contributed content that has been integrated into the app. In a testimonial from the teacher, she said:  “The Boulder Watershed Collective took on the impossible. They transformed ninth graders with zero experience into podcasters. With endless patience and spectacular curricular materials, these experts led the students from ideation through a finished product. Along the way, they learned how to ask great questions, create mind maps, collaborate, and use podcasting programs. “At the end of the year, many of these students identified their work creating podcasts with the Boulder Watershed Collective as the most important experience of their academic year.” With the added Spanish translation, the app development experience has enhanced not just one set of learners but many who will follow.  Holistic Approach To Cost-Effective Technology Decisions When creating a nonprofit app, it’s important to take a holistic approach, considering different angles and solutions. Nonprofit organizations seek human-centered designs, but just as in the corporate world, there are also technical and cost aspects to consider.  The metrics for nonprofits differ because the end goal is impact, not profit. To create positive change, nonprofit apps use an innovative mix of: Grant or donor funding Technology Education Community engagement According to Brad Weber, CEO of InspiringApps, that cost difference can become the difference between having an app and not having an app—as many nonprofits know too well: “Our client received project bids that were six figures, which the nonprofit could not afford. With some creative app architecture, we were able to deliver an app for a fraction of that cost, which they were able to fund with government grants.”  A holistic approach addresses a user’s relationship with a mobile product and their user journey from start to finish. The challenge to deliver the innovation needed for the product’s success enabled our team’s creative solutions to come alive—and deliver the immersive experience at a cost that made the project possible. To create cost-effective yet innovative solutions, focus on the core features. Instead of building everything from scratch, explore existing tools, APIs, or software development kits (SDKs) that integrate with your app. This approach can save development time and costs while providing the necessary functionality. Creating Uniquely Valuable Impact InspiringApps is driven by the opportunity to design technical solutions for causes that help our community. Building an app can ensure your organization’s core mission is front, back, and center. Keeping costs down and creating an impactful app is within reach.  InspiringApps has built beautiful and engaging apps for not-for-profit organizations. We are dedicated to helping local organizations and not-for-profit clients bring their web and mobile app ideas to life at an affordable cost. Our goal is to support the growth and prosperity of our community.