Tapadoo has been running for over 15 years now and in this time, we’ve learned a lot about what it really takes to keep an app development agency thriving in today’s competitive market. In this article, we’re sharing some of the biggest lessons, challenges, and insights we’ve gathered along the way.

The App Store is Still a Tough Place to Make Money

The chances of getting rich through the app store varies between impossible and highly improbable. This is why we run an app development agency. We love the process of producing apps, but we’re not reliant on commercial success of apps to stay alive.

Why Clients Build Apps (Even If They Don’t Make Money)

So you may wonder: “Wait. Aren’t your clients making money in the app store?” Well, not necessarily.

There are many reasons to have apps in the app stores besides them being a source of income. Our most common apps involve augmenting an existing service or product and making it more useful. In this case the app itself isn’t directly making money, but rather increasing usage or making a service offering more compelling to end users.

What It’s Like Running an App Development Agency

Running an agency means you’re always juggling one of two problems: having too much on, or too little on. You rarely sit back and think, “isn’t this marvellous?” Believe it or not, those two situations are equally challenging.

Projects Don’t Really Have a Hard Start and Stop

Instead, they “take off” and “come in to land”.

Clients often find the “take off” phase frustrating. They want their project running at 100% from day one — but that’s rarely possible because:

  • Not all of the project pieces are ready on day one.

  • Your team is likely still “landing” their previous project.

Interestingly, clients tend to understand the “landing” phase more easily, often accepting a slower ramp-down while they prepare their marketing and launch activities.

Everyone Wants Their Project Started Next Week

Nobody calls you and says “we have this idea for a project, which we hope to start in a month or two”.

Realistically, every app development agency will have some lead time, and most projects begin 4–6 weeks after that first conversation.

The Unexpected Perks

One of the best parts of running an agency is the variety of businesses you get to work with. We’ve built apps for online banking, logistics, med tech, and even a company that trades coal internationally. Gaining insight into so many different industries has been one of the most rewarding parts of the job.

Ready to Work with an App Development Agency?

Running an app development agency in 2025 is more exciting than ever, and at Tapadoo, we’ve been building iOS and Android apps since 2009, and helping businesses bring their ideas to life for over 15 years.

If your business needs an app or you’d like expert advice on mobile development, get in touch with us today!.

Thanks for reading the Tapadoo blog. We've been building iOS and Android Apps since 2009. If your business needs an App, or you want advice on anything mobile, please get in touch