Posts tagged app

What (not) must have iPhone app: The Case iBall Challenge

Aug 30th

In all things one must have the experience to understand what works and what does not. In my case the experience is from my app iBall Challenge .

In this app I got a huge personal success: positive consensus from many stores. Italy: 4.5 / 5 (20 votes), USA & UK: 3.5 / 5 (160 votes), Germany: 4/5 (20 votes). But it is also true that in China the votes were 2/5 and have never been able to raise the overall assessment. Of course, not to the levels of Doodle Jump: 5/5 (5200 votes) but I managed to raise an average of 2/5 to 4/5 since the upgrade of my app I've included a few essentials for a good evaluation .

The aim of this paper is to understand what must and must not have an app to get an affirmative vote

must be highly intuitive or, alternatively, to provide a tutorial. Many people experience an app, do not understand how it works and cancel giving an assessment of 1/5. No matter how it works if you wrote the app in a separate page of instructions ... you do not read it, and his vote 1/5 will weigh heavily on the overall judgment. In the case of iBall Challenge early voting has been heavily penalized by votes 1/5, but after an update which included a small tutorial initial grades 1/5 have greatly decreased
should encourage loyal users to vote for you. In iBall Challenge after the change before I had a few negative votes (are inevitable even for Doodle Jump) ... but also a few positive! What I did was to propose to vote for me after the fifth game with a choice yes / later. This has greatly increased the positive comments and reviews
should provide social mechanisms within easy reach. In iBall Challenge there is a profile page where you can log on facebook and twitter and there is a button "challenge" to challenge their friends. Following the statistics of my app on Flurry to me was that few people utilizzassero these tools, with substantial losses in advertising! What I did was make these features available on time when required. Like, put a button "share" in which only then ask the details of authentication on facebook / twitter. Or again: instead of explicitly press a button "Challenge" to propose it, if among the scores of friends do not see anyone. This is called the Internet Sign-in Continuity Pattern and is critical to promote their use.
must be simple but complete. The game should be easier for novice players but complex for veterans. The game should provide levels of difficulty, but this has not yet been realized ... the next update!
must be visually appealing. Never mind that the graphics are simple (see doodle jump) but must have its own style. A good approach is to create a graphic with the same nuances typical standard iPhone interface. A graphic with no shades transmits the absence of depth and three-dimensionality and gives effect to the whole thin. Remember, as a good graphic, that the shades must obey the laws derived from the positioning of a light source and the objects behave accordingly, otherwise the final sensation is not that due. This, alas, was not thought iBall Challenge and probably paid for the effect of "pot" of the game
must respond to a need searchable. If my app was a guide in Rome, sooner or later a tourist who goes to Rome would seek "rome iPhone" App Store and would discharge. But iBall Challenge those who seek him? Or do you know of a friend or you will not try an app like that ever. This is probably the biggest flaw of the game, unfortunately, unsolvable because it undermines the very nature of the app. In general, the games from this point of view app are more at risk because they live and impromptu publicity: without customers they would not.

And you? Have you tried my app iBall Challenge ? What do you think? Be forewarned that it does not work well on iOS4 (I need to update the app). The bad thing is that so far I have only received positive comments! Criticism I'd like, tell me what you think may be the problem! Discuss and comment!

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Study of the idea iPhone. How to satisfy the niche market

Aug 3rd

Posted by ricibald in mind

2 comments

Okay gentlemen, we have officially begun!

Obviously, to produce our great iPhone app the first thing to consider is the idea. We could say: we need brilliant intuition, the idea with a plus. You know what I think? Not true!

We think the iPhone. Many might think it is brilliant as Apple has reinvented the concept of usability but basically what makes Apple or Google is to improve the existing. We could say that actually what they did Apple engineers have been studying other mobile devices, find the positive elements and place all of the iPhone, with an original element condendo everything.

Maybe to tell it so it will seem less exciting, but the idea should be exactly that. Warning: I am not saying to make an app and write it better: it would be like taking the iPhone and want to do an enhanced clone! The road would only be up ... What I mean is to study the factors that determined the success of other apps and include everyone in your app.

Do this: explore the category of the Apple Store in AppAnnie , is an original idea by answering a need that involves the use of the unique features of the iPhone as a microphone, camera, GPS, accelerometer, gyroscope, magnetometer, proximity sensor, multitouch. Having sketched the idea has applications similar to what you want to achieve, the positive studies that determined the success of these and include them in your app! Remember: do not ever reinvent the wheel!

Find the best of all apps related means, in other words, cover as much as possible the market niche that our app is intended to satisfy. What does this mean? Our app has some characteristics that will be downloaded and appreciated only by a particular type of audience with certain characteristics. An iPhone app with explicit violence will have a different audience of children and an app for every audience has its own requirements: You can not make a game too difficult for mere children, but at the same time to satisfy the audience of children you have to fill the game of many colorful cartoons, music and sounds! Get the point? Your task is therefore to perform market research to determine which is the niche market and how to satisfy it.

Also tries to choose the right niche market you are targeting: trying to estimate how profitable. In practice (due to the comment fabio) seeks a niche that is not full: then tries to calculate what is already present competition (# of applications of that type) compared to the actual size of the niche (# of people affected). If your niche is saturated ... you risk making the end of my app iBall Challenge so a good app is likely to remain in the shadows. A good technique is to analyze the trend of using twitter Trendistic to determine the profitable market niche. If I had used this tool before ... I realized that many people wanted an app on the Octopus Paul ! Always remember the rule: make an app that is found in front of a search, do not look for customers, find the facts!

Like these tips are too general? Here is a list of things to do to transform your simple idea into something happened:

Explore the categories of the Apple Store in AppAnnie . Think about an app for every category. Try to create an app that responds to a requirement by the use of the unique features of the iPhone
Is similar to your app in AppAnnie . It highlights what requires the niche market you are targeting: Search AppShopper the detailed file of the app and studying what other people bought the app
Search for any app similar to what led to your success (or failure). Read what they say all the positive feedback (or negative) or the app from the Apple Store in forums or blogs. Take paper and pen ... marked everything that your app must have ... and not have!
Imagine your app respecting everything you've pinned a nice list ... right? Now do some sketches (sketches) on a sheet for each screen while respecting all constraints. Remember that your app should be simple!

Can you make everything the app needs to be avoiding the typical mistakes that led to the failure of related apps and having all that must have to be successful? Can you keep it simple to use? ... Well done! You have certainly in the hands of a killer idea!

Remember, we're not planning the idea of 1 million euros, that brilliant, incredible: we want to get decent gains from a basic idea that surely will be successful because it proved on the blood of other app.

Maybe in a few lines so that what seems simple, affordable, but it does not. Doing well this passage means to work for weeks in search of the idea winner. Without this step ... you're already at 70%.

How about this approach? I beg you, help me to enrich these articles, your support is for the blog (and me) very important!

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