Mobile App Support and Maintenance

While technical metrics fill SLAs, the psychological deliverable of a stewardship contract is "Peace of Mind." You're not just buying uptime. You're buying insurance against the unknown.

When Apple deprecates a critical API, when a zero-day vulnerability is discovered in a third-party library, when a new privacy regulation drops, your partner has already engaged the issue. The "Sleep at Night" factor is a tangible commodity that justifies professional retainers over hourly billing.

We assume the burden of monitoring, compliance, and compatibility so you can focus on what you do best: running your business. This transference of anxiety is our value proposition for non-technical leadership. You shouldn't need to understand the intricacies of iOS 19 beta testing or SBOM scanning. You just need to know it's handled.

Compliance is a moving target. We provide ongoing Regulatory Watch and Implementation as part of our stewardship:

Privacy (GDPR/CCPA 2026): We monitor legal developments, update your data flows and privacy notices, manage Consent Management Platforms (CMPs), and handle user data requests (Right to be Forgotten). The new CCPA 2026 regulations introduce requirements for Automated Decision-Making Technology (ADMT) opt-outs, and we'll ensure your app is ready.

Accessibility (EAA/ADA): The European Accessibility Act mandates WCAG 2.1 AA compliance for many digital products by mid-2025. We provide quarterly accessibility audits, running your app through screen readers (VoiceOver, TalkBack) and contrast analysers. This protects you from litigation and expands your addressable market to users with disabilities.

The Moat: This regulatory complexity acts as a moat for professional agencies. Freelancers cannot easily manage these requirements. We can.

We use enterprise-grade tools to deliver professional stewardship:

This tech stack proves we're not "two developers in a garage". We're a mature operation with the infrastructure to protect your investment.

We provide comprehensive security maintenance including monthly vulnerability scans, immediate patching of security issues, GDPR compliance monitoring, encryption updates, and annual penetration testing. All security updates are deployed with zero-downtime strategies using our rolling deployment process.

Security services include: real-time threat monitoring, SSL certificate management, API security audits, data encryption updates, secure authentication system maintenance, and compliance reporting for GDPR, CCPA, and industry-specific regulations.

Our Manchester and London security specialists stay current with the latest security threats, ensuring your app remains protected against emerging cybersecurity risks. We also provide security incident response plans and coordinate with relevant authorities if breaches occur.

Critical issues receive immediate priority with dedicated Manchester and London team resources. We can deploy emergency fixes within 2-6 hours for server-side issues and same-day app store submission for client-side fixes requiring app updates.

Our 24/7 monitoring catches most issues before users report them. Emergency procedures include: instant team notification, rapid issue assessment, emergency development sprints, expedited testing protocols, and priority app store review requests when available.

For business-critical applications, we maintain hot-fix deployment capabilities and can coordinate with Apple/Google for expedited review processes during genuine emergencies.

Yes, we manage complete app store operations including metadata optimization, compliance with changing store guidelines, review process management, and ASO (App Store Optimization). We monitor over 50 compliance requirements across iOS and Android platforms.

Our services include: app store listing optimization, screenshot and description updates, privacy policy compliance, age rating management, category optimization, and review response management. We handle both Apple App Store and Google Play Store submissions, ensuring your app meets all current requirements and maximizes visibility.

We also provide keyword optimization and competitor analysis to improve your app's discoverability across both platforms.

Apps risk automatic removal from app stores - Google removes apps not updated for 2+ years, Apple after 3 years with low downloads. Without maintenance, you'll face security vulnerabilities, compatibility issues with new OS versions, declining performance, crashed functionality, and increasingly poor user reviews.

Real consequences include: 70% user abandonment within 6 months, vulnerability to cyber attacks, inability to leverage new platform features, degraded search rankings, and potential legal compliance issues with GDPR and data protection requirements.

Regular maintenance prevents these issues and maintains your competitive position in the rapidly evolving mobile market.

App Support covers user queries, bug reports, and guidance without modifying your app's code. This includes customer service assistance, troubleshooting user issues, answering technical questions, and providing documentation updates.

App Maintenance involves technical tasks that require code changes: security patches, OS compatibility updates (iOS 18/Android 15), performance optimization, dependency updates, and feature improvements. Maintenance keeps your app technically current and competitive, while support keeps your users satisfied and informed.

Both services are included in our comprehensive packages, ensuring complete coverage for your app's ongoing success across Manchester, London, and the UK.

Most maintenance activities occur without any downtime using our rolling update process for backend services. For major updates requiring brief app downtime, we schedule these during off-peak hours (typically weekends) and provide 1 week advance notice via email and in-app notifications.

Planned maintenance typically takes 30-60 minutes maximum. Our serverless architecture ensures that 95% of updates happen transparently without user disruption. When downtime is necessary, we coordinate with your team to minimize business impact and provide real-time status updates throughout the process.

We guarantee 24-hour response for critical issues affecting app functionality, 48-hour response for standard support requests, and same-day acknowledgment for all queries during business hours. For emergency situations like app crashes or security breaches, we provide immediate escalation with resolution targets of 2-4 hours depending on complexity.

Our Manchester and London teams provide coverage during UK business hours (9 AM - 6 PM GMT) with emergency support available 24/7. Critical issues receive dedicated resources immediately, while standard requests follow our structured priority system. We maintain 99.9% uptime SLAs for hosting services and provide detailed monthly performance reports.

Based on analysis of 500 top applications, optimal update frequency is 20-40 days. We recommend monthly maintenance updates for minor fixes and performance improvements, quarterly updates for new features, and emergency updates within 24-48 hours for critical issues. This keeps your app compliant with Apple and Google requirements - both stores now remove apps that haven't been updated in 2-3 years.

Our Manchester and London teams follow a structured approach: weekly security patches if needed, monthly performance optimizations, and quarterly feature releases. This ensures your app stays current with iOS 18, Android 15, and evolving user expectations while maintaining stability.

We adhere to a rigorous quality assurance process, including AI-powered automated testing, comprehensive test coverage across devices, and continuous integration pipelines. Our QA process includes performance profiling, security penetration testing, accessibility compliance (WCAG 2.2), and real-device testing on our device lab to ensure each app meets the highest standards of performance, security, and user experience.

Maintaining an iOS app is an ongoing investment. Generally, maintenance costs range from 15-25% of the original development cost annually. Budget £2,000-£5,000/month for comprehensive app maintenance in 2025.

iOS maintenance costs are typically 40-50% lower than equivalent Android applications due to iOS's consistent hardware ecosystem and predictable update cycles. Swift 6 applications have even lower maintenance requirements due to compile-time crash prevention eliminating entire categories of bugs.

Foresight Mobile can assist you with publishing to numerous Android stores worldwide in 2025. These include manufacturer stores: Samsung Galaxy Store (500M+ users), Amazon Appstore, Huawei AppGallery (580M+ users), Xiaomi GetApps, OPPO App Market, and Vivo App Store. For China, we support Tencent MyApp, Baidu Mobile Assistant, and 360 Mobile Assistant. Alternative stores include F-Droid for open-source apps, Aptoide, and APKPure. The EU's Digital Markets Act now requires support for third-party stores, making alternative distribution more viable than ever.

Development timelines in 2025 have been optimised through Swift 6 efficiency and improved frameworks: MVP/Prototype takes 4-8 weeks, Simple Apps 2-3 months, Medium Complexity 3-5 months, Complex Apps 5-8 months, and Enterprise Solutions 8-12+ months. Strategic code audits complete in 1-2 weeks.

Mobile apps experience software entropy. Even if your code doesn't change, the ecosystem around it evolves constantly. APIs deprecate, iOS 19 and Android 16 introduce breaking changes, security vulnerabilities emerge in third-party libraries, and user expectations shift. An app left untouched for 12 months isn't stable; it's broken relative to its environment.

With mobile commerce reaching $4 trillion in 2025, downtime isn't an inconvenience. It's lost revenue. Performance expectations are ruthless: apps must load in under 2 seconds and maintain 60fps animations. Privacy regulations like CCPA 2026 and the European Accessibility Act create legal obligations. Without maintenance, apps lose 30% of users within 6 months due to crashes, security issues, or outdated UX. Google removes apps not updated for 2+ years; Apple after 3 years with low downloads.

While technically possible for simple apps, single-developer maintenance creates single points of failure and knowledge silos. Modern apps require diverse expertise: iOS/Android platform updates, backend services, security patching, CI/CD pipelines, compliance requirements (GDPR, CCPA, accessibility), and UX improvements. One person cannot master cloud services, penetration testing, accessibility audits, AND native platform quirks.

This is why the Fractional Team Model works. For the cost of one junior developer, you access our entire bench: Solution Architects, DevOps Engineers, Security Specialists, QA Automation experts, and UI Designers. Our teams handle 3x more updates efficiently than solo developers, reduce downtime by 75%, and implement best practices across security, performance, and user experience. You get coverage: when someone is on holiday, your app isn't abandoned. For business-critical apps, team-based stewardship isn't optional; it's essential for reliability and growth.

In 2025, your mobile app is likely your primary revenue engine. For mobile-first businesses, it's where transactions happen, where users engage, where your brand lives. Maintenance isn't a cost centre. It's revenue continuity insurance.

The economics are stark: user acquisition costs continue to outpace inflation, making retention the primary lever for profitability. A well-maintained app that adapts to user feedback and new OS capabilities creates a barrier to exit. Conversely, an app that remains static experiences software entropy, and its perceived value declines relative to competitors who evolve. Regular security updates protect against supply chain attacks (Log4j-style vulnerabilities in obscure dependencies can compromise everything). By investing in stewardship, you're not just preventing problems; you're creating opportunities to leverage new platform features (Dynamic Island, Live Activities, AR capabilities) that keep your app feeling native and modern.

Absolutely. This is the power of our Fractional Team Model. Your maintenance subscription isn't just about keeping the lights on; it's access to talent. Unused hours accrue, allowing you to build up capacity for feature work when you need it.

Our in-house design team works on visuals while our tech team implements and measures impact through A/B testing. For larger projects, our Gold/Enterprise tiers include Fractional Resource Access: flexible hours for feature development at reduced rates. You get the flexibility of a full product team (Product Manager, DevOps, QA, Designers) without the cost of hiring headcount. When your app is stable, you're not paying for idle hands; you're securing access to expertise that activates when opportunity strikes.

We'll communicate directly with your previous agency to facilitate the smooth transition of your investment to both yourself and Foresight. You'll receive all of the code and credentials you need to work with any agency you choose going forward. We can either communicate directly with the developers or agency, or advise and direct the process through yourself to ensure that we have everything you need to continue making your app a success.

This is where Product Stewardship differs from traditional maintenance. We're not just fixing bugs. We're your strategic partner in continuous product evolution. Using AI-powered analytics, Real User Monitoring, and cohort analysis, we identify opportunities for growth before your competitors do.

Our Gold tier includes quarterly strategy sessions where we review OKRs, analyse retention metrics (D1, D7, D30), and prioritise features based on ROI. We provide competitive benchmarking, App Store ranking reports, and actionable recommendations. Our proactive approach monitors market trends and helps you leverage emerging platform capabilities (Dynamic Island integrations, AR features, AI assistants) to stay ahead. We sell resilience and evolution, ensuring you understand that in the digital world, standing still means moving backward.

We provide comprehensive analytics through modern dashboards using Google Analytics 4, Mixpanel, or Amplitude. Real-time dashboards track KPIs including user acquisition, retention (D1, D7, D30), engagement metrics, conversion funnels, and revenue analytics. We configure custom events for your specific goals, implement predictive analytics for churn prevention, and provide cohort analysis for user behavior insights.

Monthly reports include performance metrics (Core Web Vitals), crash analytics, user feedback sentiment analysis, and ROI calculations. We also provide competitive benchmarking, App Store/Play Store ranking reports, and actionable recommendations for optimization. All data is GDPR-compliant with privacy-preserving analytics.

We employ comprehensive monitoring using industry-leading tools and AI-powered analytics including Firebase Crashlytics, Performance Monitoring, Google Analytics 4, and advanced APM tools. Swift 6's strict concurrency delivers 99.9% crash-free sessions, and we maintain 99.9% uptime SLAs through 24/7 monitoring.

We prefer the term Product Stewardship. It implies fiduciary responsibility to protect, nurture, and grow your digital asset. Modern maintenance encompasses four pillars: Corrective (rapid response to failures), Adaptive (keeping up with iOS 19/Android 16 and evolving APIs), Perfective (performance optimisation and green coding), and Preventive (security patching before vulnerabilities are exploited).

Comprehensive stewardship includes: platform compatibility testing against beta OS releases; continuous supply chain security scanning; GDPR/CCPA compliance monitoring; accessibility audits (WCAG 2.1 AA); App Store/Play Store ASO; AI-driven performance monitoring; backup and disaster recovery; and user support integration. Proactive maintenance prevents 80% of potential issues and extends app lifespan by 3-5 years.

Costs depend on complexity, backend technologies, and user volume. Our tiered packages provide transparency:

Essential (Bronze): From £775/month. Uptime monitoring, critical security patches, annual OS updates, data backups. Ideal for MVPs or apps in maintenance mode.

Growth (Silver): From £1,500/month. All Essential features plus monthly performance reporting, priority bug fixing (24-hour SLA), minor UI/UX enhancements, ASO updates. The sweet spot for active businesses.

Enterprise (Gold): Custom pricing. All Growth features plus 24/7 emergency response (4-hour SLA), AI-driven APM, quarterly penetration testing, accessibility audits, dedicated account manager, and fractional team access for feature development.

We'll provide a detailed proposal after your free App Health Audit where we scan for outdated libraries, accessibility issues, and security vulnerabilities.