diff --git a/onesignal/withOneSignal.ts b/onesignal/withOneSignal.ts
index 76d4a75..c0e1a31 100644
--- a/onesignal/withOneSignal.ts
+++ b/onesignal/withOneSignal.ts
@@ -7,8 +7,18 @@ import { ConfigPlugin } from '@expo/config-plugins';
 import { OneSignalPluginProps } from '../types/types';
 import { withOneSignalAndroid } from './withOneSignalAndroid';
 import { withOneSignalIos } from './withOneSignalIos';
+import { validatePluginProps } from '../support/helpers';
 
 const withOneSignal: ConfigPlugin<OneSignalPluginProps> = (config, props) => {
+  // if props are undefined, throw error
+  if (!props) {
+    throw new Error(
+      'You are trying to use the OneSignal plugin without any props. Property "mode" is required. Please see https://github.com/OneSignal/onesignal-expo-plugin for more info.'
+    );
+  }
+
+  validatePluginProps(props);
+
   config = withOneSignalIos(config, props);
   config = withOneSignalAndroid(config, props);
 
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 1e2999b..b63f098 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {
   "name": "onesignal-expo-plugin",
-  "version": "2.0.0",
+  "version": "2.0.1",
   "description": "The OneSignal Expo plugin allows you to use OneSignal without leaving the managed workflow. Developed in collaboration with SweetGreen.",
   "main": "./app.plugin.js",
   "scripts": {
diff --git a/support/helpers.ts b/support/helpers.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..96285b0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/support/helpers.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,41 @@
+import { ONESIGNAL_PLUGIN_PROPS } from "../types/types";
+
+export function validatePluginProps(props: any): void {
+  // check the type of each property
+  if (typeof props.mode !== "string") {
+    throw new Error("OneSignal Expo Plugin: 'mode' must be a string.");
+  }
+
+  if (props.devTeam && typeof props.devTeam !== "string") {
+    throw new Error("OneSignal Expo Plugin: 'devTeam' must be a string.");
+  }
+
+  if (props.iPhoneDeploymentTarget && typeof props.iPhoneDeploymentTarget !== "string") {
+    throw new Error("OneSignal Expo Plugin: 'iPhoneDeploymentTarget' must be a string.");
+  }
+
+  if (props.smallIcons && !Array.isArray(props.smallIcons)) {
+    throw new Error("OneSignal Expo Plugin: 'smallIcons' must be an array.");
+  }
+
+  if (props.smallIconAccentColor && typeof props.smallIconAccentColor !== "string") {
+    throw new Error("OneSignal Expo Plugin: 'smallIconAccentColor' must be a string.");
+  }
+
+  if (props.largeIcons && !Array.isArray(props.largeIcons)) {
+    throw new Error("OneSignal Expo Plugin: 'largeIcons' must be an array.");
+  }
+
+  if (props.iosNSEFilePath && typeof props.iosNSEFilePath !== "string") {
+    throw new Error("OneSignal Expo Plugin: 'iosNSEFilePath' must be a string.");
+  }
+
+  // check for extra properties
+  const inputProps = Object.keys(props);
+
+  for (const prop of inputProps) {
+    if (!ONESIGNAL_PLUGIN_PROPS.includes(prop)) {
+      throw new Error(`OneSignal Expo Plugin: You have provided an invalid property "${prop}" to the OneSignal plugin.`);
+    }
+  }
+}
diff --git a/types/types.ts b/types/types.ts
index ad48ac8..66e091b 100644
--- a/types/types.ts
+++ b/types/types.ts
@@ -8,15 +8,15 @@
   mode: Mode;
 
   /**
-   * (optional) Used to configure Apple Team ID. You can find your Apple Team ID by running expo credentials:manager e.g: "91SW8A37CR" 
+   * (optional) Used to configure Apple Team ID. You can find your Apple Team ID by running expo credentials:manager e.g: "91SW8A37CR"
    */
-  devTeam: string;
+  devTeam?: string;
 
   /**
    * (optional) Target IPHONEOS_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET value to be used when adding the iOS NSE. A deployment target is nothing more than
    * the minimum version of the operating system the application can run on. This value should match the value in your Podfile e.g: "12.0".
    */
-  iPhoneDeploymentTarget: string;
+  iPhoneDeploymentTarget?: string;
 
   /**
    * (optional) The small notification icons for Android.  Images will be automatically scaled up/down, the recommended size
@@ -42,6 +42,16 @@
    iosNSEFilePath?:       string;
 };
 
+export const ONESIGNAL_PLUGIN_PROPS: string[] = [
+  "mode",
+  "devTeam",
+  "iPhoneDeploymentTarget",
+  "smallIcons",
+  "largeIcons",
+  "iosNSEFilePath",
+  "smallIconAccentColor"
+];
+
 export enum Mode {
   Dev = "development",
   Prod = "production"