Before opening XCode or hiring a developer to build an iPhone/Android app, there are a few questions that you should ask yourself:

1. Will my product require use of the camera, microphone or other device-specific hardware?
2. Will it access the address book, media library or common user data?
3. Will I charge for my product, using an app store as the payment processor?
4. Will I send push notifications or need background processes?

If the answer to any of the above is ‘yes,’ then an iPhone/Android app may be right for you. If the answer is ‘no,’ you may want to consider building an HTML5 mobile website instead.

Mobile websites:

• Can access geolocation info.
• Provide offline caching and storage.
• Handle touch and gesture events.
• Are easily deployed (new versions and bug fixes)
• Are cross-platform (Android, iPhone, webOS, etc.)

Comments and discussion: #NotAnApp