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AppTrillionaires:
HowToBecomeAnAppDeveloper
EnjoyLife,MakeMoney,andLiveYourDreams!
ABHINAVGUPTA
iUniverse,Inc.Bloomington
APPTRILLIONAIRES:HOWTOBECOMEANAPPDEVELOPER
ENJOYLIFE,MAKEMONEY,ANDLIVEYOURDREAMS!
Copyright©2013AbhinavGupta.
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybeusedorreproducedbyanymeans,graphic,electronic,ormechanical,includingphotocopying,recording,tapingorbyanyinformationstorageretrievalsystemwithoutthewrittenpermissionofthepublisherexceptinthecaseofbriefquotationsembodiedincriticalarticlesandreviews.
iUniversebooksmaybeorderedthroughbooksellersorbycontacting:
iUniverse
1663LibertyDrive
Bloomington,IN47403
www.iuniverse.com
1-800-Authors(1-800-288-4677)
BecauseofthedynamicnatureoftheInternet,anywebaddressesorlinkscontainedinthisbookmayhavechangedsincepublicationandmaynolongerbevalid.Theviewsexpressedinthisworkaresolelythoseoftheauthoranddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsofthepublisher,andthepublisherherebydisclaimsanyresponsibilityforthem.
AnypeopledepictedinstockimageryprovidedbyThinkstockaremodels,andsuchimagesarebeingusedforillustrativepurposesonly.
Certainstockimagery©Thinkstock.
LibraryofCongressControlNumber:2013900222
ISBN:978-1-4759-7043-2(sc)
ISBN:978-1-4759-7041-8(hc)
ISBN:978-1-4759-7042-5(e)
iUniverserev.date:1/9/2013
TableofContentsRAVEREVIEWSFORAPPTRILLIONAIRES!
DEDICATION
1.WHOAMI?
2.ISTHISBOOKFORYOU?
3.THEAPPBUSINESS
HOWMUCHMONEYCANYOUMAKESERIOUSLY?
APPBUSINESSMODELS
APPTYPES:Native,WebandAdhoc
4.STARTINGYOURAPPBUSINESS
5.OUTSOURCEORDEVELOP?
OUTSOURCINGOVERVIEW
PROSOFOUTSOURCING
CONSOFOUTSOURCING
SELFDEVELOPINGOVERVIEW
PROSOFDEVELOPINGYOURSELF
CONSOFDEVELOPINGYOURSELF
6.STEP1:APPRESEARCH
PART1:WRITEDOWNAPPIDEAS
PART2:EDITAPPIDEASLISTFROMPART1
7.APPROYALTIESANDCOPYRIGHTS
ROYALTYFREE
8.STEP2:APPDESIGNANDPAPERTESTING
PROTOTYPEANDPAPERTESTINGACTIONSTEPS
9.STEP3:CREATETHEAPP
OUTSOURCINGTHEAPP
Step1.CreatetheAd
Step2.HowtoselectanOutsourcingServiceProvider
KILLEROUTSOURCINGTIPS
MICROSERVICEWEBSITES
SELFDEVELOPINGTHEAPP
LISTOFAPPCREATIONANDDIYTOOLS
KILLERSELFDEVELOPMENTTIPS
SELFDEVELOPMENT:SHIVA3DOVERVIEW
SoWhatisShiVa3DandWhyShouldWeUseIt?
ShiVa3DACTIONSTEP
10.IMAGEEDITING101
IMAGESANDCOMMONTERMINOLOGY
GIMP–ANOPENSOURCEIMAGEEDITOR
GIMPInstallationandSetup
ImageEditingConcepts
GIMPTools
GIMPDocks
GIMPSelectionModes
GIMPImageScaling/Transform/Crop
FillsandGradients
NextSteps
11.THEAPPLIFECYCLE
ZOMBIES
12.STEP4:APPNAMEANDKEYWORDS-ASO
ASOAppStoreOptimization
KITSKeywords,Icons,TitlesandScreenshots
13.TRACKINGANDSALES
A.FUNDAMENTALTRACKING
B.TECHNICALTRACKING
TRACKINGSHEETBASICS
14.APPMARKETINGBASICS
WhatisMARKETING?
LOCALMARKETING
NETWORKINGEVENTS
BEFOREARRIVINGTOANYMEETING/EVENT
BUILDINGARELATIONSHIP
15.MYKILLERAPPMARKETINGTIPSANDTECHNIQUES
KILLERTIP#1:LOCALIZEDKEYWORDS!
KILLERTIP#2:LOCALIZEDTITLES!
KILLERTIP#3:HOLDACONTEST
KILLERTIP#4:APPUPDATES
KILLERTIP#5:PUSHNOTIFICATIONS
KILLERTIP#6:INPERSONMARKETING
KILLERTIP#7:MULTIPLEMARKETS
KILLERTIP#8:HARO
KILLERTIP#9:MARKETINGFORUMS
KILLERTIP#10:THERIGHTPRICEPOINT
KILLERTIP#11:LOCALIZATION
16.THEMILLIONAIREMINDSET
STEP1–DEFINEYOURVISION
STEP2–DEFINEYOURTHOUGHTS
STEP3–INCORPORATETHEFOURKEYSTOSUCCESS
STEP4–DEFINEYOURBUBBLES
STEP5–VISUALIZATION
STEP6–RECOMMENDEDREADING
17.APPBUSINESSACCOUNTINGBASICS
FINDINGANACCOUNTANT
18.WINNINGSCREENSHOTSANDICONS
19.BOOKMARKSLIST
20.FINALTHOUGHTSANDNEXTSTEPS
AboutTheAuthor
RAVEREVIEWSFORAPPTRILLIONAIRES!
“Thisbookcontainsaplethoraofpracticaltipsandgivesagreatoverviewoftheappsbusiness.But its essence is really thephilosophical approach that is somethingwaymore important than technical tricks.For that reason, Ihighlyrecommend thisbookfor everyone thatwouldwant to take theappsbusiness train, includingexperienceddevelopers.”
“Abhinav uses his real world experiences in breaking into the App developmentbusiness togreateffect in thisbook.For those justgetting into thefield,you’ll finddozensofpearlsofwisdom,withtipsandpointersonallthatyouneedtogetstartedmakingandmarketinggreatmobileApps.”
“AbhinavGuptahascreatedatrulyamazingcollectionofdevelopmenttips, insightsand advice summarized into an easy to read book. Even I myself, a long timeprofessional, foundsomenewideas to trywhile reading thiswellorganized journeyintotheworldofmobileappdevelopment.”
AttilaBeke,3DMagicLLC
DEDICATIONBeing an App Developer and App Business Owner is a challenge and there are manytimeswheneveryonewillnotunderstandyouormaynotunderstandHOWyouareabletodowhatyoudo.Outof frustration,anger, jealousy,envyandevengreed,manywill tryandreduceyourdreamsorbelittleyoueitherbecausetheythemselveshavegivenupontheirowndreams,ortheyhavenottakentheriskstoachievesuccessintheirownlives.Inanycase,keepingapositivemindsetandhavingastrongfaithinagreaterpoweriskeytosuccessinthisbusiness.
For this reason, first and foremost, this book is dedicated to God who has helped methroughsomeofthetoughesttimesinmylifewhenthewholeworldwasagainstmeandsaid Iwas crazy tobelieve that I could achieve success. I’d also like to thankmywifeSeemaandmykidsandfamilywhohavestuckbymysidethroughthegoodtimesandthebadtimes.I’dalsoliketothankmyteamaroundtheworldwhohelpedmeoutinbuildingthis business, especially Amit Niraj who also kept a positive and loyal mindset whenthingsjustseemeddown.
Andtomyvaluedreadersandsupporters,thankyouallfromthebottomofmyheartforyourconstantsupportandinterestinthecreationsIhavemade.IprayandhopeyouwillcontinuetopurchaseandenjoythemanyworksIcreate.
AbhinavGupta
LeadDeveloperandCEO
GameScorpionInc.
http://www.gamescorpion.com
“The starting point of all achievement is DESIRE.Keepthisconstantlyinmind.Weakdesiresbringweakresults, just as a small amount of firemakes a smallamountofheat.”
—NapoleonHill,ThinkandGrowRich
1.WHOAMI?MynameisAbhinavGupta,apersonwhowasbornandraised inOntario,Canada.Myancestry isofSouthEastAsian(Indian)decent,andeventhoughIcanspeaktheIndianlanguagesfluently,IhaveonlyvisitedIndia2-3timesinmylife.Canadahasandalwayswillbemyhome,butknowinghowIgothereisalsoveryimportantaswell,andforthisreason I celebratemy ancestral culture as well asmy Canadian roots. One of the bestthingsthatIloveaboutCanadaisthefactthatIcanwalkdownthestreetandsayhellotopeople in theirown languages. It’s theway theworld shouldbe inmyopinion, aplacewhereallhumanbeingsworktogetherandcelebratetheirdifferencesandloveeachotherandrespecteachother.
I’manAppDeveloper,AppBusinessOwner/Trainer,aFather to twobeautifulchildren,married toawonderfulwifewithacute littleMaltesedogandaverystrongbeliever inGod and the Bible. I’m a graduate of Computer Science from Ryerson University inToronto,Ontario,CanadaandI’vebeenintheITfieldforwellover10years.
SinceIwasayoungboy,makingandplayingvideogameswasalwaysaloveofmineandsincethenIwantedtolearnhowIcoulddothatfortherestofmylife.Ihavealwayslovedtocreatethingsandsocreativityandinnovationhavebeenadrivingforceforme.
YoumayhavebeenwonderingWHYIdecidedtowritethisbook.IfIknowhowtomakemoneyandcanshowothershowtomakemoney,wouldn’tIwanttojusthidethesecretandkeepitalltomyself?
Itstartedbackin2008whentherecessionhitmehereinCanada.IpersonallybelievethatitwasduetothisVERYmentalityofGREED.AmericanCorporateandpersonalgreedhitanalltimehigh!Banksweregivingoutmortgagestopeoplewhodidn’tevenqualifyforamortgage, just to try and make even more money. PUBLIC COMPANIES had CEO’smakingMILLIONSUPONMILLIONSofdollarswhiletheirstaffbarelycouldmakeendsmeet!TheAmericanmarketcollapsedandthewholeworldwentintoarecession!
YoumayaskwhyI’mbringingthisallup…Wellthat’swhenIlostmycomputercontract(Iwasworkingatthetimefixingcomputers).AtthatpointIownedahouse,acarandhadayoungfamily(Wife,sonanddog)anddidnotknowwhattodo.Istartedapplyingforjobs, and here I was with a Degree in Computer Science (Graduated from RyersonUniversity in thatyear)andIcouldnotfinda job.TotryandkeepafloatIopenedupaDollarStoreandComputerStoreinBrampton,OntariowithwhateverlittlenesteggIhadleft,andalsofoundworksellingaglorifiedLintRoller invariousDepartmentStores inOntario. As the recession had just started and was getting worse, sales in the twobusinesseswerejusthorrid,andmyothersidejobsellingtheLintRollerswasnotpayingoff anything…And then at the end of 2008what I did not thinkwas possible actuallyhappenedtome…likemanypeopleinNorthAmericaandtheworld…Iwentbankrupt.
Ibeggedmyparentstomovein,itwasaverylowtimeinmylife,butIkeptfaithinthehigherpowerandkeptbelievingthatGodhadaplanandIknewIwasgoingtobeinabetterplace.At the timehowever Ididnotknowwhat todoand Iwasabitdepressed.Loosingeverythingyouhaveisnotagreatfeelingatall.
Time and time again Iwould look at the news only to seemore doom and gloom andmanycorporationsthatyouthoughtwere“toobigtofail”goingbankruptanddyingout!Someof the topbankswere justwrappingupand leaving thousandswithoutmoney! Itwas a frenzy, people were not sure whether to even trust BANKS! Do you keep yourmoneyunderabednow?LikethesewereatthattimeSERIOUSQUESTIONS!
IputmyresumeouttomanyplacesinNorthAmerica(BothCanadaandtheUS)onlytoget2interviewswhichwerenotfruitfulatall.
I tookwhatever little Ihad left andstarteddoingcomputer repairandopenedupa sidebusiness incomputer repairafter that. It started togrowandwashelpingme topay thebills.Thenattheendof2010thislittleworldofappswasshowntome.SteveJobshadbrought out the next iPhone andwas promoting apps and thisworld ofmicro-softwareproductsthatwerestartingto“REVOLUTIONIZE”thewaywealllivedandworked.
I thought hey lets check it out…And Iwas hooked!Since Iwas 10 years old I alwaysaimedatbeingavideogamedeveloperandthiswastheperfectopportunity.Itseemedlikea higher power was at work even though I did not understand it, but due to personalreasons,IhadtocloseupmyComputerRepairbusiness.ItookwhateverIhadearnedandsavedupforawhileandwentfullforceintotheAppworldandThankGod,sincethen,Ihavebeenmovingforwardandgrowingdaily!
Now today I’m theCEOof a successful app businesswith over 25+ apps in over 10+marketplaces and growing evenmore! I look back at those days of the Recession andGreedatthecostofothers,andItrulybelievethatwecanmakeabetterworldbyhavingmoreRESPONSIBLEMILLIONAIRESratherthanGREEDYpeople.
ThisiswhyIdecidedtowritethisbook.Iwanttohelppeoplewhosharethesamevisionof not only helping themselves and their families, but to also give back to their localcommunities.
That ismymissionwith thisbook. Ifyou followwhat Ihaveoutlinedhere; followmyprogramsandusemytoolsandresourcesIamcontinuouslycreatingandbringingout;youshouldmost likely(noguaranteeshere,yougetoutwhatyouput into it!)becomequitewealthyfinancially.HoweverkeepingitalltoyourselfwouldjustrepeatahistorythatIdonotwishonANYONE!
ThisisMYgoalheretohelpbuildorcreateRESPONSIBLEsuccessfulpeoplewhoarecharitableandbelieveinahigherpower,notjustplaingreedy.Youcan’ttakeyourmoneywithyouwhenyoudie.
SonowyouknowwhoIamandwhyIhavedecidedtocreatethisbook.ButWHYAREYOUHERE?HaveyoufiguredoutWHYyouaredoingthis?
“Manydreamadreamandwakeup toreality…somedreamadreamandMAKEITAREALITY!”
—AbhinavGupta,2008
2.ISTHISBOOKFORYOU?This book dealswith technology and is geared towards thosewho like technology, anddareIsayit,LOVETechnology!Youmayhaveheardfrompeoplewhoclaimthatyoudonotneedtoknowprogrammingnorevenlikecomputerstorunanappbusiness.Sureyoucanrunthisbusinesswithouteventouchingacomputer;however it isaveryunrealisticapproachtotheMobileAppBusiness.
ByreadingthisbookyouarelookingatthepossibilityofstartingaMobileSOFTWAREApplicationBusinessthatCREATESMobileApplications.Icanassureyou,yourequiretechnologyandaloveforcreatingthings.ProgrammingwillDEFINITLYcomeupalongyourpathinthisbusiness!
Ifyouhatetechnologyandhateprogramming,wellIwon’tlietoyouorleadyouon.Myfullrecommendationatthispointifyoufallintothatcategoryistostopreadingnowanddo yourself a favor and go find another business or profession.By you starting an appbusinesswithno love for technologyorcomputers,you’dbebetteroff takingyournesteggtoLasVegasoryourlocalcasinoandyou’dprobablyhaveabetterchanceofsuccessthere. That’s not to say that you can’t do it, you definitely can achieve anything youbelieveyoucan,butyou’dhavetodevelopatotallovefortechnologyandprogramminginordertomakethisbusinessatruesuccess.
I’ve seen toomany people start this businesswithwrong impressions thinking that it’sreallyEASYMONEYor that it’sabusiness that theycanoutsourceeverythingandputthingson“Auto-Pilot”…HA!
Nobusinesscanstartwithoutyouactuallytakingstepstowardsrunningitandmakingitwork.AsIsaidearlieryougetoutofitwhatyouputintoit!YEStherearespecialtoolsandmethods that maymake this business a bit easier or faster to run or get closer to“Auto-Pilot”,butyouHAVEtodoworktogetthemsetupproperly!Youhavetomakethecalls,youhavetosetuptheaccounts,youhavetogettheappscreated,youhavetokeepyourbusinessuptodate,youhavetooutsourceandbuildtherightteam,etc.
Canyoudothisparttime?SURE!
Canyoudoitfulltime?MOSTDEFINITELY!
Butcanyoudo thisonAuto-Pilot?Letme justsuffice it tosay that Ihavebeen in thisbusinessforseveralyearsnow,andIcanassureyouthereisnomagicAuto-Pilotbuttonoutthere,eventhoughtherearesometoolsandsystemsthathelpyoutogetCLOSE.ThisisabusinessattheendofthedayandthefasteryoucangetoutofyourheadthatthisissomesortofGet-Rich-Quickscheme,thefasteryou’llbeonyourwaytotruesuccess.
Letmetellyousomething,youCANmakemoneywhileyousleepinthisbusiness,butittakesmonthsifnotyearstosetupcorrectly.It’snotsomethingthatjusthappensovernight.Infact ifyouresearchthosewhoareovernightsuccessstories, the interestingthingyoumay find is that those so calledovernight success stories tookyears in themaking.Nosuccesscomeswithouta solidamountofworkanddedicationandpersistencebehind itbackedbysolidFaithandBelief!
Auto-Pilot is justnot realistic inmyopinionbecauseyoustillneed to takepart inyourbusinessandnotknowingtechnologyoranyprogrammingatallwhenyou’rerunningaSOFTWAREBUSINESSisdefinitelyawholeloadofnonsense!
HowmanySUCCESSFUL Real Estate agents do you knowwho know nothing abouthouses?HowaboutSUCCESSFULcarsalesmenwhoknownothingaboutacar?Sohowfar do you think you’ll go in your new foundAppBusinesswithout knowing anythingaboutTechnologyandSOFTWAREAPPlications?
So if you are reading this thinking that you aregoing tomake aquickbuck andwon’thavetoliftafingertodoanyworkatall,thenI’vegotnewsforyou…THISISNOTAGET-RICH-QUICK-SCHEME! Get-Rich-Quick is something I like to call Get-Poor-Fast!
“Be not afraid of greatness: some are born great,some achieve greatness, and some have greatnessthrustuponthem.”
—WilliamShakespeare
3.THEAPPBUSINESSTodaymorethanevermorepeoplearepurchasingmobilephonesandtablets.Thegrowthis so explosive that an entire industry has been created around mobile softwareapplications,knownas“APPS”.
TheAppBusinessisoneofthehottestbusinessestogetintoandisexpectedtogrowevenfasterthisyearin2013andbeyond!Manyhavestartedsuchbusinesseswithinvestmentsassmallas10k-15kUSDollarsandhavebecomeverywealthy!
In fact inmany cases, thewealth has been so explosive that people have been quittingtheirdayjobsandturningtoappdevelopmentandtheappbusinessfulltime.
Thisbusinesshashelpedpeoplespendmoretimewiththeirfamilies,travelingtheworldand living their dreams. In fact, as you are reading this book right now, I’m makingmoney!That’sthebeautyofthisbusiness;youmakemoneywhileyousleepLITERALLY!
Howeverdon’tconfusethiswithagetrichquickscheme,itisnot.Ittakesyearstogettothislevel,andalotofdedication.I’veseenmanypeoplestartinthisbusinessonlytofaildue to having a wrongmentality of the business andwhat it’s all about. This is not amagicalbusinessthatwillmakeyouamillionaireovernight,eventhoughtherehavebeenseveralcasesinthepastwherethishashappened.
Letmeberealisticwithyou,firstly,it takesMANYappsrealisticallytomakemoneyinthis industry. If you researchRovio, the company behind the popular appAngryBirds,you will learn that they themselves had built something like 50 apps before hittingmassivesuccesswithAngryBirds.I’mnotheretogiveyouallkindsoffakehypeandtellyou that I have some magic pill to make you rich. What I do have is TRIED ANDTESTEDMETHODSthatIhaveusedsuccessfullytobuildanappbusinesswithover25+appsinmanymarketsthatallowsmetolivethelifemostpeopledreamabout.
Sothatisthegoalhere,togetyoutoapointwhereyoucanrealisticallymakethisintoabusiness that can help you to some day quit your day job and start living the life youalwayswanted.Iprayandhopethatyou’llbeabletouseyournewfoundmoneytonotonlyhelpyourselfandyourlovedonesbutalsotohelpoutyourownlocalcommunities.
IftheknowledgeIshareinthisbookcanhelpinmakingabundantsuccessfulpeoplewholovewhattheydo,itismyhopethatthroughthesepagesIcanalsobuildresponsible“richpeople”.IlostnearlyeverythingIhadtotherecessionin2008andIcanattributethatinmyhonestopinion,toirresponsible“richpeople”.Thecorporationswhoweregreedyformoney, who were too concerned about their own pockets than to make sure theiremployeeswho filled those very pockets had a roof over their head and food on theirplate.
However,I’mgratefultoGodthatIdidendupgoingthroughthatbecauseIwouldhaveneverstarted thisbusiness if Ihadnot lostnearlyeverything,and thisbookwouldhaveneverbeenwritten.IwouldnotwishthatfateofnearBankruptcy,loosingyourhouse,carandnearlyyourfamilyallduetothegreedofothersonanyone!SoIdopleadwithyouasareader,thatWHENyoumakeitinthisbusiness,andI’massumingthatyouareinthisto
besuccessful,makesurethatyouareresponsiblewithyournewfoundriches.
Being “rich” is not just abundance inmoney, but it’s the quality of life that one lives.Having great faith, loving and helping out others, having wonderful health, love andappreciation fromyour family andpeers, being able to enjoyyour life to the fullest onyourterms,andeverydaybeingabletoSMILE!Thosethingsthatmoneycan’tbuyareinmyopiniontrue“richness”andifyouhavethosebasescovered,thenfinancialricheswilljustmagnifythosequalitiesevenmore.
LetusfirststartoffwithaquickexerciseIliketocalltheSMILEexercise.That’sright,goaheadandgiveyourselfthebiggestsmilefromeartoear!Itshouldbesowidethatyourcheeksstarttohurtabit!Holdthatforabout10secondsandrepeat3times.Thisshouldput you into a state ofmind that goes hand in handwith success, a positiveCANDOmindset!Ifyoustartreadingthisbookwiththatmentalityeverytimeyoupickitup,you’llhaveabetterchanceatsuccessthanothersdoatthisbusiness.
YoumaybewonderingwhysuchtrivialthingsaresoimportanttothisbusinessandmaythinkthatImayhavelostmymind!IcanassureyouthatthisbusinessisfullofupsanddownsandaLOTofnegativity.Peoplerarelygetthechancetolivealifeofdreamswheretheycantravelastheywant,spendtimewiththeirfamiliesandbetheirownboss.
Therewill be jealous people, envious people, hateful people andmanyotherswhowilljusttryandputdownthisnewbusinessventureideafromthebeginning!Letmeberealwithyou,anybusinessyoustartwillrequiresomeriskstobetaken.Icanassureyouthatinthisbusiness,therewardsaredefinitelyworthitifyouputyoureffortandtimeintoit.
LetsjustgooversomeofthemanyreasonswhythisbusinessistheULTIMATEbusinessthateveryoneistryingtogetintonowmorethaneverbefore.
Reason#1:MultipleMarketstoMakeMoney
TheAppleAppStoreisoneofthelargestAppStoresintheworldandisalsotheoriginalhomeofwhatarenowcommonlyknownasApps.AlongwiththeAppleAppStoretherearemanyothermarket places inwhichApps are currentlybeing sold.Oneof themostknownonesisAndroidGooglePlayMarketwhichisownedbyGoogle.
Reason#2:NewandFreshMarket
Apps have been compared many times to the website industry when it just started, inwhichwebsiteswere sought after by business owners and companies.MobileApps arenowgoingthroughthesamefateasmanynewbusinessownersarelookingtofindpeopleto develop apps for their respective businesses.Not only doMobileApps share that incommonwiththewebsiteworld,anotheremergingandimportantareathatisnowstartingtoreallyformisthatofASOorAppStoreOptimization.InthewebsiteworldwecallthisSEOorSearchEngineOptimization.IwillbegoingoversomebasicsofASOthroughoutthisbookhoweverthegoalofthisbookistogetyoustartedincreatingasuccessfulappbusinessusinga step-by-stepmethod. Ibelieve the step-by-stepmethod is thebestwayandwillhelpyouavoidmanyofthecommonpitfallsandmistakesthatmyselfandmanyothernewAppBusinessOwnershavefacedwhenjuststartingthisbusiness.
Reason#3:AppsareGROWING!
2013will introduce new and emerging areas inwhich appswill be used. FromOUYAwhich is abrandnewvideogameconsolebasedonAndroid, tokitchenappliances andautomobileswith apps built into them. Imaginebeing able to put a beer into the fridgeonlytohaveyourphonealertyouwhenit’sreadytodrink!Orimaginebeingabletosetthelaundrywash/rinsecyclewhileridingonthetraintowork!Thiswillstarttobecomethe reality over the next years asmobile app technologywill start becoming a part ofeverythingwedo.Thisindustryisdefinitelygrowingandisplannedtokeepgrowingatanexponentialrate!
Reason#4:NewProducts,AppStoresandOpportunitiesforProfit
FromMicrosoft to Amazon, there are many companies bringing out new devices andvariousappstoresandproductstosellappsin.Thispresentsanopportunitytotakeanappyoumakeandplaceitonsaleonvariousappmarketsaroundtheworld, thusincreasingyourchanceatprofits.
Reason#5:TheFreedom
Thisisagreatbenefitofrunningamobileappbusiness.Yougetthefreedomofbeingabusinessowner,andthattooaMOBILEone!YoucanpickupandtravelatanytimeandstillrunyourbusinessfullforcefromanywhereintheworldthatanInternetConnectionexists!IpersonallystartedthisbusinessbecauseIwasvisitinganotherCountryandwasnotabletomanagemystrugglingITBusinessatthetime.Ihadcustomerswhoexpectedme to physically be there and I couldn’t. This in turn made me loose contracts andrelationships which was quite painful. A mobile app business will allow you to beanywhereintheworldandstillrunthebusinesswithoutissues.Ittrulyisadreambusinessinmyopinion!
Reason#6:TheMoney
NoticeIputthisreasonforgettingintotheAppBusinesslast?Everyonealwaystriestohypethisup,thatyou’llgetrichovernight.YesyouWILLmakemoneyinthisbusiness,evenwhilesleeping,butIwantyoutounderstandthatthemoneyisjustaby-productofrunningthisbusiness.Thataside,youWILLseemoneycomingin,evenwhileyousleep!Thisbusinessisreallygreatinthefactthatthemoreappsyoumake,themoremoneyyoumake. You can literally hand out apps for free and STILL make money via in-appadvertisementsandin-apppurchases!ThemoneyisgreatandI’veseenmanywhomakethousandseveryweekifnoteveryday!Itdoesn’thappenovernighthoweverandwilltakeyouatleastayearortwoinmyopiniontoseeasolidreturnonyourinvestment.Keepinmindhoweverthatresultswillvarysodon’texpectthatyouwillgetthat.Youcouldverywellmakelessthanthat,orquitepossiblyevenmore,anditalldependsonyourefforts.
HOWMUCHMONEYCANYOUMAKESERIOUSLY?
WowisthatEVERthemilliondollarquestionthere!Igetaskedthisallthetime!Letmegiveyoua few tipson this, becausemanyofyouaregoing to start offwith somepre-conceivednegativeanddareIsayit,outrageousclaimsthatyouhaveprobablyheardfrom
otherpeople.
FirstlyI’veheardmostifnotalltheseclaims,from,“Myfriendfromoutoftowndevelopsappsandisamillionaireanddrives thisnicecar,etc.” to theageold,“Theguymade6figuresinaweekendmakingastupidlittlefartapp!”
Makingappsfirstlyisachallenge!Makingmoneyfromappsconsistentlyandsuccessfullyis another challenge. That being said letme tell youmy experience andwhat youwillmostlikelyseeasarealitywhengettingintotheappworld.NowbeforeIbegin, letmepointoutthatthosestoriesthatyouhearmayverywellbeTRUEandIdon’tdoubtthattheyare.Howeverunderstandthatiftheyaretrue,thosesamestoriesarewhatIliketocallOUTLINERS in this business. They are not the REALITY in this business for mostdevelopersingeneral.
Can youmakemillions overnight?YES!However that’s like saying you also have thepotentialofbecomingamillionairetomorrowbypurchasingalotteryticket.Nowtellme,ifyoupurchasealotteryticket,canyoualsomakemillionsovernight?Ofcourseyoucan,that is if you hit the correct numbers.The odds of you hitting those numbers are quitelarge!Thesameholdstruefortheappworld!
Whenthingswerejuststartingout in theappworld, therewereahandfulofappsandahandfulofdevelopers.Fast forwardnowmanyyears laterandwehavenearlyamillionapps in the Apple App Store and hundreds of thousands of developers worldwide andmillions more on the way! Everyone is trying to get into the app world and thecompetitionisfierce!Ifyouthinkthatyouaregoingtomakeitwithjustoneapp…wellletmeenlightenyouon thesamemistakeIwent throughandacommonmistake thatmostappdevelopersfallinto.
TheAngryBirdTrap
WhenIfirststartedworkingonmyfirstappIthoughtIhadthenextbighit!IthoughtIwas going to be the next big Angry Birds! This is a common idea that brand newdevelopersstartoffwith.Theyseesomebigappoutthereorcomeupwithsomebigappideatheybelieveisworthmillionsandtheninvesteverylastcentintoit.
MyfirstappwasMelina’sConquest,averyambitious3DRetroRolePlayingGame!Byanystandards,thatgamewasquitetechnicalandhadthousandsuponthousandsoflinesofcode. Ispent8monthson itwitha fewdevelopersandvolunteersandIpersonallywasworkingdailyfor8monthsaround12-15hoursEVERYDAYnon-stoptotryandgetthegamefinished.IinvestedthousandsintothisendeavorthinkingthatIwasworkingonthenextbighit!20+levelsinfullRetrostyle3D!
InfacttherewasonepointwhereIspent2-3weekswithlessthanafewhoursofsleepperdayandmassiveamountsofenergydrinksandcoffee.NotonlydidInearlydiefromthis(Iwasdrinking2-3+energydrinksdaily,withafewcoffees,powerbars,andliterallyverylittlesleepandonlyMcDonaldsasmyfoodsource!)Ialsoburntoutandwasonmyverylastamountsofmoney!
Themomentof truthcamewhenIfinallyreleasedtheappandspentafewthousandon
marketing as well. From Press releases to free app download websites to contests andmuchmore,Ihaddoneeverysinglethingbythebookandbeyondthebook!
Thegamelaunchedandinmyfirstmonth…(DRUMROLLPLEASE)…Ibroughtinatotalof…LESSTHAN$200USDOLLARS!(Inretrospect,Iplacedmyappat$4.99andhadno LITE/FREE version, nor did I have any form of advertising or other forms ofmonetization built in. No push notifications, no extra special things, no game center,nothingbutaplainappatjust$4.99.Thiswasdoomedfromthebeginning!)
Shattered,confused,dazed,sad,bitter,andnearlygivinguponlife,letsjustsufficeit tosayIwasintearsnearly,screamingloudatthetopofmylungswhiledrivingavanthatIdidn’tevenwantinthefirstplace,andeverythingaroundmejustSUCKED!
Thisis theturningpoint inmystory,andtheultimatereasonwhyI toldyouearlier thatfaith and amajor reasonwhyyou’re doing this are going to be important to youwhenrunningthisbusiness.Youwillhavethosetimeswherethingsjustdon’tmakesenseandyou’veinvestedthousandsinanappandalotoftimeonlytoyieldhorribleresults!
IstartedimmediatelytostopblamingGodandstartedtobecomeREALLYGREATFULforall the things in life IDIDhave, likea roofovermyhead, foodonmyplate, Iwasalivewith a beautifulwife and kids that loveme andwerewithme through the toughtimes.AtthispointIreflectedonwhyIgotintothisinthefirstplace;becauseIhadatrueloveformakingvideogamesandapps. Iknewthat thiswasmycallingandIwoulddoeverythingIcouldtomasterit.IknewthisiswhatIwantedtodoinmylife,Iwantedtobe successful at it andmakea real living from it andenjoymy life from the fruits thatcomefromcreatingthings.
AtthatmomentIhadanepiphany…“Justtakeonemorestep…makeanotherapp,reallyfast, without spending 8 months. You’ve learned how to make apps over the past 8months.Nowreplicatewhatyouhavedoneandtryandmakeasingleappin1monthorless!”
Hmmmwhatathought!IfIcouldreducethetimeittooktomakeanappandstartmakingan app in 1month or less, I could potentiallyDOUBLEUPwhat Iwas bringing in. Itwasn’tgoingtobringbackthethousandsofdollarsIlost,butitwouldatleaststartgivingmehopethatonedaythisbusinesscouldpotentiallyleadmetoaverylucrativefuture.
That’s when I was able to build Intimate Fireplace with the help of my friend andcolleagueAmit.WealsobuiltASRIAstralSpaceRacer Infinitywhichwas another3DSpaceracinggame.
Thosetwoappstookmeabout1.5monthstocreaterightafterMelina’sConquestandwithvery littleoutofmypocketbecause Inowhadall the toolsandexperience Ineeded tomakeappsthatIcouldjustreplicatewhatIdidandreusecodefromMelina’sConquest.
With3appsintheAppleAppStore,Istartedlookingtoalternativemarketstotryandgetintoandstartmakingmoney.That’swhenweenteredtheworldofAndroidandgotintoGooglePlayandAmazon.Atthatpointwewerein3marketswith3appsineachofthemarkets.
AndatthatpointcameDecemberof2011,whereIwasabletogofrom$200USDinthelastmonthto$600+!
Okay so this alertedme to the first really cool thingwhich I learnt early on. It doesn’tmattertheTIMEFRAMEittakestomakeanapp!Youcouldjustaseasilymakeasmuchmoneyfromanappthattakesadaytoanappthattakesnearlyayear!
SecondlyIrealizedthatmoreappsmeansmoremoney!AsyoucanseefromthatexampleIwasabletoeasilytriplemyrevenuesfrom3appsin3marketplaces!
Fastforwardtotodaywherewenowhaveover25+appsinover10+marketplacesusingsomeof themostamazingcuttingedgemoneymaking techniques formonetizationandwell you do the math! By the way, I also learnt something really cool as well aboutvariousmarketplaces.EachmarketplacehasaTOTALLYdifferentwaytomakemoneyand after I started learning how each market place worked, I have been able tosuccessfullycapitalizeonthosevariousmarkets!
ItrulybelievethatIfailedonthatfirstappjustsothatIcouldwriteaboutitinthisbooktodayandhelpthethousandsofupcomingdevelopersoutfrommakingthesamemistakesIdidinthepast!
Nowafter doing this for quite some time, I’ve nowbeen able to set up a business thatmakesmemoneyevenwhileIsleep!IhaveonlymyselfandGodasmybossandIgettoliveanextraordinarylife!
Idothisfulltime,andItotallylovewhatIdo!InfactjustrecentlyfromalltheblessingsofsuccessI’vebeenabletoget,IdecidedtofinallygoandbuyacarI’vealwayswantedsinceIwasyoung.Iwentoutandgotmyselfabeautifulblue-greyMercedesC230withabeautifulwoodinteriorandcreamcoloredleatherseats!HavingastrongFaithandhavingareasonthatwassopowerfuliswhatreallyhelpedmetostayinthegame!
HereIamnowgettinginterviews,speakingatvariouseventsaroundNorthAmericaandlivingthelifemostpeopledreamof!SoIcanassureyouthatitisquitepossibletomakeitinthisbusinesswithouthavingtobuildthenextAngryBirdsapp!IlovethefactthatIcanspendtimewithmyfamily,travelanywhereintheworldatanytime,bemyownbossandget paidwhile I sleep!But don’t get tempted to believe that this is something that justhappensovernight.
Takemyownexperienceasyourguideandunderstandthatformanywhohavemadeitsuccessfully in this business, it took years to do, and it is not something that you justautomatically make money from (EVEN THOUGH OVERNIGHT SUCCESS ISPOSSIBLE, it is not a realistic expectation!).Apps have lifecycles, trends, seasons andrequirealotofmarketingskillsalongwithprogrammingskills.
Over time I have beendevelopingmany tools andmethods that alsomake this processfaster and I have started releasing these same tools that can help new and existing appdeveloperssavehoursonendaswellasthousandsofdollarsintheappbusiness!
I urge you to come visitmywebsite at http://www.gamescorpion.com and click on theAppTrillionaires linkon the top.Use the special codeonetrillion to access the special
pageI’vemadejustforthosewhohavereadmybooksorhavebeenpartofmyprogramsandusemytools.Thereyouwillfindaconstantlyupdatedlistofsomeamazingtoolsandresourcesavailabletoyou.AtthesametimeyoucanevenjoinuptooneofmymanypaidprogramsthatI’mconstantlybringingoutforappdevelopersandappbusinessownersandyoucanevenpurchasesomeofmymoreextensivetoolsrightthereaswell!Whileyou’rethere, signup tomynewsletterwhere Iamconstantlybringingout the latestnews, tipsandtricksandtutorialsonthelatestcuttingedgemethodstomakeevenmoremoneyandmonetizeyourapps!
TheappworldchangesDAILYandkeepinguptodateonthingsiswhatwillhelpyoutosucceedinthisbusiness!YoucanevenjoinupourFacebookpageandifyoujoinoneofourongoingmembershippackages,youcanevenjoinmeononeofmylivewebseminars.IntheseseminarsweallinteractandgettolearnfromeachotherandIgooversomeofthegreatnewtipsandtricksandtoolsthatIhavebeenlearningconsistentlyaswellasgoingoveransweringquestions.I’llalsogooversometechniquesandmethodsthathavehelpedmyselfandotherstosucceedinthisbusinesses!Ihighlyrecommendit!
Ifyoustillneedareasontobecomeanappdeveloper,simplydoawebsearchonmobileapp success stories andyou’ll read thousands and thousandsof successful appbusinessowners living thedream!There isno limit tohowmuchyoucanmake in thisbusinessexceptforthelimitsyouputonyourself!I’vesaiditalreadyandI’llsayitagain,thisisabusinessthatrequiresyoureffortsandisnotagetrichquickschemethatyoujustdoforoneweekandforgetabout.Ittakesmonthsifnotyearstomakethisasuccess,howeverifyoucreateasolidbase,followmymentoring,keepuptodateonthesubjectandstayontopofthings,youcanlivethelifepeopleonlydreamof!Listen,youneedtounderstandthat this business changes fast!Whatworked in 2008doesnotworknow!Whatworksnowmaynotwork1-2years fromnow! Itchangesconstantlyandyouneed tokeepupwithitinordertostaysuccessfulinthisbusiness.
APPBUSINESSMODELSThatbeingsaid,letsgoontosomeofthevariousappbusinessesmodelsyoucanfollow.Youreallyneedtothinkaboutwhichcategoryyoufallunderbeforeyouevenstartanappbusinessatall.Luckily Ihavecreatedanice littlechart thatyoucan takea lookat thatbreaksdownthevariousappbusinessmodels(Image1).
Image1:VariousAppBusinessModels
Asyoucanseethereareseveraloptionsavailabletoyou.Doyouwanttoselltoendusersjustinsideofappstoresordoyouwanttosellappstolocalbusinesses?DoyouwanttomakeappsforotherAPPBusinessOwnerswhowouldoutsourceyourservicesorareyouplanningtoworkforacompanyasanappdeveloper?
Depending on what you choose, you may have to agree to non-compete laws andregulations. The best (but most challenging way) to get in is as an App Developer toMASSCONSUMER.Theother areas requiremore legal aspects and contracts in placesuchasNDAs(Non-DisclosureAgreements)ornon-competecontracts.
APPTYPES:NATIVE,WEBANDADHOC
MobileAppsarebrokendowninto3DistinctCategories:
1.NATIVEAPPS:These are apps that run directly on a device and can runwith orwithout an internet connection. You will usually find these types of apps in an appmarketplace such as theAppleAppStore orGoogleMarketplace. This is theMAINtypeofapppeopletrytocreate,butit’shardertogetitapproved.
2.WEBAPPS: These apps run in aweb browser and do not require any approvals.Using various forms ofmonetization, these apps can alsomake you somemoney aswell,buttheyrequireaconstantinternetconnectiontorun.
3.AD-HOCAPPS:Theseappsareusuallymadeforcorporationsandagenciesthatuseappsinternally.Thesearethesamenativeappsfromabove,howevertheyarenotpartoftheAppStoreandcanbesoldontheirown.It’sbasicallyaNON-PUBLICNativeApp.
The path that I will be training you on is the best andmost challenging one which isbecoming an App Developer and selling your native apps via app stores to MassConsumers.Otherprogramsandbooksmayrecommendsellingtolocalbusinessesownerswhichisalsoanexcellentwaytostart.
However,ifyouwereplanningtoworkforanothercompanymakingappsforthem,thenIwouldnotreallyrecommendthatunlessyouarereallydesperateandgetasolidoffer.Thereasonisthatyoucouldverywellmakethenexthitappthatcouldsellmillionsofcopiesand the sad realitywouldbe that youwouldnot begetting anythingbut your basepayfromit.Ifyoudochoosethispath,alwaystrytoincludesomeformofroyaltiesfromtheappsothatyoumakemoneyaswellfromthenumberofunitssoldandnotjustthebasepayformakingtheappasanemployee.
Okay so that’s enoughon theAppBusiness andgettingyou introduced into it. I didn’twant toboreyouwithawholebunchof statisticson the industrywhichyoucaneasilyfindviaasimpleGooglesearch.Sufficeittosaythatthemobileappindustryisboomingand expanding exponentially. Get on board now and start making money before timepassesbyandyouareleftsittingfarbehindtherest!YouverywellcouldbecomethenextAppTrillionaire!
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shallfind;knock,anditshallbeopenedtoyou.”
—Jesus
4.STARTINGYOURAPPBUSINESSIhavesetupmuchofthisbooktobeinastep-by-stepformatwithlittlenotesandtipsaswellaspossiblecostsyoumayincurineachstepinUSDollars.Sincemanyofyoumaybeinadifferentpoint in thebusiness,pleasechoose tostartwhereyoubelieveyouare.Formanythismaybeanewfirststep,anditisexciting,andsoIwouldrecommendthatyou start here at the beginning. For otherswho have a running app business, youmaywanttostartatanotherpart,possiblylookingintoASOorsomeofthevarioustechniquesandmethodsIhaveoutlinedinlaterchapters.Forthosewhowishformoreormayrequiresome additional help, you may want to join one of my many training programs I amconstantly building online for new and current app developers. Simply visithttp://www.gamescorpion.comtoviewmanyofourtrainingsandwhileyou’retheremakesure tosignup tomynewsletterwhereIamalwaysoutlining the latest informationandnews on themobile app business as well as providing tips and advice on the industrywhichIhighlyrecommend!
In addition to this I have setup a Facebook page for those who have read the AppTrillionairesbookandarepartofmyprogramsorareinthemobileindustry.Iliketoholdmastermindmeetingseverynowandagain,whichreallytakesyoutothenextlevel,whereyoucanmeetlikemindedindividualswhoarealsotryingtolearnandgrowtheirownappbusinesses.Youcanjointhegroupbyvisitinghttp://www.facebook.com/AppTrillionaires.
SoletsbeginwiththefirststepsinstartingyournewsuccessfulAppBusiness!
TIP:IhighlyrecommendactuallytakingactiononthestepsIhaveoutlined.Ifyouneedtodoonestepadaythatisfine,butatleastputitintoacalendarandstarttakingactiononit.Icannotstresshowmanypotentialappdevelopersfailduetonottakingaction!IfyoureallywanttocreateasuccessfulappbusinessthenyouneedtotakeACTION!
STEP1:ChooseBusinessModelAndCompanyName(COST:$0)
a.ChooseabusinessmodelfromthebusinessmodelsIshowedyouearlier.
b.Chooseacompanyname.
TIP:Keepyourcompanynamessimpleandmemorable!
c.Checkonlinetoseeifyourcompanynameanddomainnameareavailable.WhenIfirststarted I used something like GoDaddy.com orMisk.com to viewwhat domain nameswereavailable.IwouldalsorecommendaGooglesearchtoseeifthecompanynameyoumaybelookingforexistsornot.Bymakingsureyourcompanynameisnotavailableyoucansaveyourselfalotofheadachesandlawsuitsinthefuture.Infactittookmenearly2weeks toreallycomeupwithasolidcompanynameanda lotof research,andI finallysettledonGameScorpion.IalsohadGameTorchinmindatthetime,howevertherewasanotherseveralplacesthathadthatnamesoIfinallychoseGameScorpionandwentfullforcewithit.
d. Decide on what business type your company is. Are you an individual (SoleProprietor)? Do you want to protect your assets and plan a larger undertaking
(Corporation)?Whateveryouareplanning todowilldeterminehowlong things take tosetup.A sole proprietor for example can be setup onAppleAppStore in a day or lesswhereas a Corporation (Like what I have) can take you three weeks or longer to getapproved.Ifyouarenotsure,Iwouldrecommendtalkingtoalawyeroraccountantwhomaybeversedonadvisingyouonthebenefitsofwhattypeofcompanymayworkbetterforyou.
STEP2:OpenTheBusiness(COST:$60to$2,000)
a.Thisweekgotoyour localcityhallorbusinessdevelopmentoffice to learnhowyoucanopenabusiness.Youwillberequiredtopayabout$60to$2,000dependingonwhichtypeofbusinessyouopen.SoleProprietorshipstendtocostmuchlessthancorporationssofigureoutwhatworksbestforyouandyourbudget.FormeIknewthiswasmylongterm business and what I was planning to do full time always so I chose to open acorporation.Itcostmepersonallyaround$500inCanadatoopenthecorporationonlineandpayforanamessearch.
STEP3:WebsiteandDomain(COST:$100-$300/Year)
a. Go toGoDaddy.com orMisk.com and reserve your domain name for your businessthereforabout$10-$20/year.Ipersonallychosea.COMaddressoveranyotheroneduetothefactthata.COMismuchmoreprominentwhencomparedtootherdomains.
b.Nextchooseawebhostingservice tohostyourwebsite foryou.Thiscouldcostyoubetween$80-$200/year.GoDaddy.comoffersmanybasichostingpackages. IpersonallyuseExabytes.comforourhostingpackageasIfindthemaffordableandmoreimportantly,reliable.
c.ForthewebsiteIsetupaWordPressinstallation(www.wordpress.org)andobtainedathemeforeasywebsitemanagement.TherearemanyplacestoobtainwordpressthemessuchasThemeForest.net,ElegantThemes.comandTemplateMonster.com.
TIP: Ifyouhave trouble insetting thisup,simplyheadonover towww.fiverr.comandoutsource thewebsitefor just$5!That’s right,oneof thenice little tricksweuse in theindustryisthatwetryandoutsourcewhatwecan.Fiverr.comoffersmanyproviderswhowillinstallandsetupyourbasicwordpressinstallationforalowpriceandyoucanbeupand running easily by simply providing yourweb hosting details to a service provider.Make sure to change your passwords and access information after they set things upsuccessfully.
d. Take a quick crash course tutorial on how to update and edit your newwebsite andtheme.Youcan findmanyof these tutorialsonlinebydoinga simpleGoogle searchorevensearchingYoutubevideos.
STEP4:BankAccounts(COST:$10-$20/Month)
a.Thisweek focusongettingabankaccount setupSPECIFICALLYforyourbusiness.EvenifyouarerunningaSoleProprietorship,youstillshouldhaveaseparateaccountforyourbusiness.Manybanksofferbusinessbankaccountsforaround$10-$20permonth.Inmy case as I am considered an InternationalAppDeveloper being inCanada, I had to
setup two accounts, one for CanadianDollars and one for AmericanUSDollars. I settheseaccountsupforaround$15/monthperaccount.Whenyousignuptoappstoresinthefuturesteps,you’llberequiredtoprovidethisinformationtothemsothattheycanpayyouviadirectdeposit.
STEP5:HardwareandServices(COST:UpTo$1000-$3000)
TIP:Totrulykeepyourbusinessmobile,purchasedevelopmentdevicesthataremobileaswell,suchasLaptopsinsteadofDesktops.
a.APPLEDEVELOPMENT
AppleDevelopmentwillrequireyoutopurchaseaMaccomputersystem.TheMacmustbecapableofrunningthelatestversionofxCodewhichmeansitmustmostlikelybeanIntel based Mac computer. Doing a simple Kijiji, Craigslist or local Classified searchshouldyieldyoumanypeoplewhoareselling theiroldusedMacs forcheaperprices. IwasabletoworkoutadealwhenIfirststartedandscoredasweetMacbookAir13Inchfor just $800!Look around and seewhere you can save yourmoney.TheMac systemalonecancostyouup to$2000ormoredependingonwhatsystemyouareplanning tobuy foryourdevelopmentpurposes.Anotheroption is topurchaseaPConlyanduseaservice calledMac InCloud (http://www.macincloud.com).Mac InCloudbasically is aMac computer you can use through the Internet that allows you to submit your app toApple without requiring a physical Mac computer. This will cost you up to around$50/monthtousethisservice,soit’sagreatoptionfornewdevelopersonabudget.
b.ANDROIDDEVELOPMENT
ForAndroidDevelopmentyouwillrequireeitheraMacorWindowsbasedsystem.Youcan easily purchase very powerful PC Windows Based Laptop system at your localelectronicsstoreforaround$500.IpurchasedmylaptopsforexamplefromBestBuyandFutureshophereinCanada.
The tools Iwillbe recommending fordevelopment in thisbookwillbeheavilyPCandWindowsbased.HavingasolidPCWindowslaptopthenwillbeveryimportantforyourbusiness.
c. Internet is a REQUIREMENT for this business to run successfully. Sign up for aconstanthighbandwidthinternetconnection.Youwanttobeabletouploadanddownloadalotofdatawithoutlimitations.Mostbasicmonthlyinternetpackagesshouldsuffice.InCanada Ipayaround$40/month forHighSpeed Internet.This shouldbecomparable tomostplacesaroundtheworld.HavingasolidinternetconnectionissomethingthatIjustcan’tstressenough!MAKESUREYOUHAVEIT!
d.Obtain testingdevices to testyourappsout. Iwould recommend topurchaseat leastoneAndroiddeviceandoneAppledevice.IpersonallyhaveaniPhone,iPadandaGoogleNexus7AndroidTablet.Youcanpurchasewhatyoufeelwouldhelpyouthemost.IhavefoundthatIcanpurchasetabletsandphoneseasilyviaKijijiandCraigslistforrelativelylow prices. I’ve been able to personally obtain Tablets for as low as $150!Wheneverpossible, save your money as there are a lot of expenses to get this business up and
running.
STEP 6: SignUpToVariousAppMarkets and SetupVariousAccounts (COST: $150-$300)
TIP:Makeaspecialplaceinyourwebbrowserbookmarkssectiontostartputtingallthelinksyoucomeacrossforyourappbusiness.Therearealotofwebsitesandtoolsyouwillfindalongthewaysoalwayskeepalistsoyouhaveeasyaccessandwontforget!
a.AppleAppStore
You will need to sign up as a developer by visitinghttp://developer.apple.com/programs/register/.Youwant tosignupto the iOSDeveloperProgram and not theMac Developer Program unless you plan to make Apps forMacComputersspecifically.Thecostwillbearound$99/yeartobeanAppleAppDeveloper.
b.GooglePlayAndroidMarket
Visithttps://play.google.com/apps/publish/ tosignup toGooglePlayMarketsoyoucandevelopforthemainAndroidMarketplace.Thiswillcostyouabout$25asaonetimefeebyGoogle.
c.OtherMarkets
ThefollowingothermarketsIhavepersonallytestedandhighlyrecommend.Pleasemakesure to sign up for an account on these if you can.Not all of them are available to allcountries and regions however these are the ones that I have tested with great resultscomparedtoothers.ThereareliterallydozensofmarketplacesouttherefortheAndroidmarketandonlyONEfortheApplemarket.IpersonallyusethetoolShiVa3DtomakemyappssoIcanprogrammyappsonceandthenportthemovertomanymarketswithoutissue,evenotheralternatemarkets likeRIMBlackberry,HPWebOSandseveralothers.Over the years I have tested outmanymarketplaces and so the followingmarketplaceshavebeentestedbymeandhavemadememoremoneythanothers.
AlternateMarketplacestoSignUpTo:
i.Amazon(http://developer.amazon.com/)
ii.BarnesandNoble(https://nookdeveloper.barnesandnoble.com)
iii.Samsung(http://seller.samsungapps.com)
iv.BlackberryRIM(https://appworld.blackberry.com/isvportal/)
d.AdvertisingandMonetization
Thefollowingplaceswillallowyoutomonetizeyourappsandmakemoneyfromplacingads within your apps or from sending push notifications. I have listed several placesbelow,howeverkeepinmindtherearemanymoreout thereandwillchangeover time.This is what has beenworking forme thus far, however as time goes on this list willchangeandsoIhighlyrecommendtoalwayskeepuptodateonthelatesttrends,toolsand
marketnewstoknowwhat’sthelatestandgreatestinappmonetization.IhavepersonallytestedoutthefollowingandatthistimeIcanpersonallyhighlyrecommendthem.Pleasesignupandsetupaccountsatthefollowingplaces:
i.RevMob.com(http://www.revmob.com/)
ii.AdMob.com(http://www.admob.com)
iii.LinkShare.com(http://www.linkshare.com)
iv.PushWoosh.com(http://www.pushwoosh.com)
v.PushWizard.com(http://www.pushwizard.com)
e.BusinessAdministration
Iwouldhighlyrecommendsigninguptothefollowingplacesandcreatingaccountswhichwillhelpyou runyourbusinessbetter. Ipersonallyhaveconnectedupallmyemails toGmailonlinewhichallowsmetosendandreceiveemailfromanywhereintheworldonanydeviceIwant,thustrulymakingmybusinessmobile!You’lldefinitelywanttosetupGmailandGoogleDocsonlineusingthelinksbelowaswellasGoogleCalendar.
i.GoogleGmail(http://www.gmail.com)
ii.GoogleDocs(http://docs.google.com)
iii.GoogleCalendar(http://www.google.com/calendar/)
iv.WarriorForum–ForMarketing(http://www.warriorforum.com/)
v.ReutersDailyTechNews(http://www.reuters.com/news/technology)
vi.AppAnnie(http://www.appannie.com)
vii.TopAppCharts(http://www.topappcharts.com)
viii.AppCod.es(http://www.appcod.es)
ix.Fiverr.com(http://www.fiverr.com)
x.oDesk.com(http://www.odesk.com)
! NOTE ! – The steps outlined thus far should take you about a week to accomplish.Scheduleagoodweekorpossiblytwotogeteverythingdone.Donotmoveontothenextstepsunlessyouareabsolutelysureyouhavealreadysetupyourbasicenvironmentandallrequiredmembershipfeesandlicensefeestobeanappdeveloper.
“Neverleavethattillto-morrowwhichyoucandoto-day.”
—BenjaminFranklin
5.OUTSOURCEORDEVELOP?Sonowthatwehavecompletedthefirststepsandsetupawholebunchofaccountsandsetupourbusinessandhavenowgotthingsrunning,wenowneedtoactuallycreateourfirstapp.
Therearetwomainwaystocreateanapp.Thefirstistobuildityourselfbyeitherusingaspecial tool to make your app or learn programming. The other is to outsourcedevelopmenttoothersaroundtheworld.
Manypeoplewhoarenewtotheappbusinesswilloftenaskthisquestion:DoIlearntodevelopmyselfordoIoutsource?
My programs specifically focus on learning to develop yourself, and the tools andsoftwareIambringingoutconstantlyandrecommendinginmyprogramswillallowyoutodojustthatbyfollowingalongwithmyinteractivetutorialswhichonceagainyoucanfindonmywebsiteathttp://www.gamescorpion.com.
Letsfirstgooveroutsourcingsoyouunderstandabitmoreaboutwhatitis.AfterthatIwillgooverdevelopingyourself.Outsourcingmaybeagreatoptionforthosewhomaynot like programming as much however I still recommend you learn some form ofprogramming. Maybe take a crash course on programming online or at your localcommunitycollege.
If youknownothing of programming, thenmanyof these outsourced service providersmayendupchargingyoualotmoremoney,andyoumayevenhavemanyprojectdelaysbecauseyou’dendupapprovingthingsincorrectlyduetoalackofknowledgeofcommonprogrammingandtechnological terms.Sufficeit tosaythatnotknowinganythingaboutprogrammingwillCOSTYOU!
OUTSOURCINGOVERVIEWFrom the previous steps we already setup two accounts on two highly recommendedoutsourcingwebsites.ThefirstisFiverr.comwhichisknownforMicro-ServicesandthesecondisoDesk.comwhichisforlargerprojectslikeAppsandWebsites.
Letsgooversomeoftheprosandconsofoutsourcingandsomeofthethingsyoumayruninto just likeIdidwhenI firststartedoutsourcing.Thiswillsaveyoua lotof timeandheadachebyknowingthisstuffupfrontbeforeevenstarting.
Firstlyunderstandthatwhenyouarejuststartingout,yourfundsaregoingtobeVERYlimited. In fact as I saidearlier, inorder to run thisbusiness,youneed tohavea lotofapps, and a small budget will NOT allow you to outsource an amount of apps thatgenerates enough revenue to cover your costs.For this reason I train newappbusinessownerstobecomeappdevelopersfirst,andthenlaterastheirbusinessgrows,outsourcetohelpgrowevenmore.
I personally have outsourced several staff members as the business has grown and asthings have become more challenging to handle just myself. However I still refuse to
outsourcemydevelopment topeople Icannot trustas Idon’twantmy ideasstolen,butthat’sjustme.EvenwithalltheNDAs(Non-DisclosureAgreements)inplace,ifsomeonereallywantstostealyouridea,theyaregoingtostealit,andit’sabigchallengeandquitecostlytostarttakinglegalactionoverit(especiallyiftheappisnotahitappanyways!).
HOWEVERwhat I like to do is split up thework into parts and hand it off to totallydifferentoutsourcedstaff so thateven if someonehad the intention tosteal, theywouldrequireALLassetsoftheapptoreallycreatetheapp,andthat’sonemethodofdeterrentalongwithregularNDAagreements.
SonowontotheProsandConsofOutsourcing!
PROSOFOUTSOURCING
a.Lessupfrontlearning
Usuallyoutsourcedworkershandleallprogrammingandtechnicaldetails,soyoucangetupandrunningrelativelyfastratherthanspendingtimelearningprogramming.
b.Lowcostofhourlystaffcomparedtoin-housestaff
Outsourcedstaffcanbeaslowas$1/hourdependingonwhatneedstobedone.YoucanalsogetthetopofthelinedevelopersfromEasterncountriesforaround$5-$10/hour.
c.Noneedtoworryaboutcommonphysicalstaffrelatedissues
Outsourced workers are usually considered contractors. Thismeans you won’t need toworryabouthealthbenefits,hoursofwork,lunches,etc.Manyofthemworkaminimumof5daysifnot6-7daysaweekandyouwon’tneedtoworryaboutthemasyouwouldwithphysicalemployees.Thereisnophysicalofficetoopenupdailyandyoucanaccessyouremployeesonlinefromanywhereintheworld.
d.24×7capabilities
Manyof theoutsourcedserviceprovidersworkwhileyouare sleeping, thusgivingyouthebenefitofapossible24x7operation.Ifyouhireseveraloutsourcedserviceproviders,youcouldhaveafull24×7operationwithallthebellsandwhistles!
e.Automation
YesthemagicalitemItalkedaboutearlierthatdoesn’tFULLYexist.Youcan’tautomateeverything, however you can automate several parts of this business tomake your lifeeasierandthat’swhereoutsourcinghasitsrealstrength.
f.FasterHiringandFiringthanregularin-houseemployees
Oneofthegreatbenefitsofoutsourcingisthefactthatyoucanhirefastandfirefast.Ifyou don’t like a contractors work, simply end their contract and hire another one.oDesk.com makes this fast and easy. No need for 2 week notices or uncomfortablesituations. And most of the staff on oDesk end up finding more work through oDeskanyways as it is an open market. Rest assured you’ll always be able to get top talentwithoutriskingalotofyourtimeandenergy.
CONSOFOUTSOURCING
a.LanguageBarriers
NotEnglishspecifically,butmoreabouthowEnglishisspoken.Wordsandculturalrulesareverydifferentinotherpartsoftheworld.
b.TechnicalBarriers
TryingtoexplaintooutsourcedstaffwhatyouwantwillbeaCHALLENGEandcantakea lotof time.Youmayask themforexample tomakea ladder, theymay in turncreatesomethingdifferentthatjustraisesyouhigheroffthegroundbutisnotthesamethingasaladder.This isacommondownfallofoutsourcingandcancausea lotofconfusionandlosthours.
c.Longercreationtimes
Creationtimesarelongerduetoeithertheoutsourceddevelopershavingmoreprojects,orthefactthatthereisalotofbackandforthcommunicationtogetthingsdone.
d.Lossofdevelopersovertime
Over timeyoumay loose importantdeveloperswhoeither takeon toomuchwork, findhigherpayingcompaniesorjustleaveyouwithoutareason.Fullappscanbedeemeddeadatthispointasthereisnocodetoupdatethemandoriginaldeveloperswhoknowthecodeorhave thecodenolongerworkforyou.You’re leftwithafinalversionofanappthatyou either downgrade to a lowerpricedue tonomoreupgrades,make free for helpinggrowyourbusiness,ortakeitoffthemarketifthebugsaretooproblematic.
e.ManagementIssues
Ifyouarenotconstantlykeepingupwithyouroutsourcedstaff,theytendtotakealotoftimeandinsomecasesstopworkingontheproject.Alwayskeepinguptodatewithyourcontractorsisanimportantpartofoutsourcing.
f.CreativityissuesandQualityIssues
Itsnosecretthatoutsourcedworkingeneralisofalowerqualitythanlocalandin-houseemployees. The only way to counteract this is to try and keep certain parts of thedevelopmentIN-HOUSEortooutsourceonlytohigherqualityhighercostproviders.ForexampleyoumaywanttooutsourcegraphicstoadedicatedGraphicDesignerratherthanleavingthatuptotheoutsourcedappdeveloper.
g.LongtermcostsformanyappsisASTRONOMICAL!
Oneappalonewillcostbetween$1500-$5000realisticallyforahalfdecentapp.Yestherearetimesyoucouldgetluckyandscoreadeveloperwhomaydosomethingfor$300butthosecasesarerareifnon-existent.Inordertoreallydowellintheappbusinessyouneedtohavemanyapps.IfyououtsourcedthatdevelopmentthatcouldrunyouintothousandsifnotHUNDREDSOFTHOUSANDS!
h.DataSecurity
Possiblelossofsensitiveandimportantcompanydataandinformationisaveryrealissue.Always be carefulwhen handing out passwords and important company information aseverynowandagaintherearescamartistsouttherelookingtododamage.
i.IdeaStealingandLoss
This one happens all the time! Possible loss of company secrets and app ideas! NDAAgreementsarewrittentotryandprotectyoufromthisverybadpractice,howeveritisavery real issue that does happen and the only way to protect against this is to eitherdevelopyourselfforthemaximumsecurityofyourideaortobreakaparttheoutsourcingsoastomakeitharderforsomeonetocreatetheexactsameapp.
j.LackofDedication
Asmanyoutsourcedstaffworkwithmanycustomers,yourprojectsmaynotgetthefull100%attentiontheyneed!
k.ConfusingNon-DisclosureAgreements(NDAs)
HavingtowriteandreadveryconfusingNonDisclosureAgreements(NDAs)thatmayormay not work well in protecting your ideas depending on where in the world you areoutsourcingtoisarealdownfallsometimestooutsourcing.
l.SexDifferences
Iknowthisoneseemskindofunusual,buttrustmeIlearntthisfirsthand.Firstlyifyouaredealingwithfemaleemployeesaroundtheworld,inseveralcasesI’vehaditbeaployto hire their husbands or to try and gainwork forOTHERcontractors. Secondly if thefemaleoutsourcedstaffmemberwasgenuine,thenculturaldifferenceswereanimportantfactor.Forexample I rememberone time IhiredaPHPDeveloper fromIndiawhowasfemale to help us in updating ourwebsite page.Because I asked her howher daywasgoing,whichisacommonpracticeinNorthAmericatosimplybekindandaskyourstaffhowtheyaredoing,sheinstantlyquitstatingthatIwastryingtocourther!Sometimessexrelated(Likemale/femaleinteraction)orculturalrelatedissuescancomeupandcancauseissues when working with staff from around the world which is another reason whyoutsourcingisachallenge.
m.CulturalDifferences
AnotherexperienceIhadwaswithanotherworkerwhomIsimplyaskedfortheiropinionon one of the ideas I had for my website at the time. They instantly thought meincompetenttoleadandendedthecontract!Apparentlywherethiscontractorwasfrom,ifa manger or boss ever asked for a personal opinion from a staff member, then thatmanager or boss was not capable of leading. WOW what a difference! Where thatcontractorwas from,everybossor leaderALWAYSapparentlyhadall theanswersandknewexactlywhattheywantedandthat’sjustthewayitwas.Noonewasentitledtoanopinionotherthantheleaders.SOasyoucansee,you’llbehavingalotofculturalissuesaswelltodealwith,sothinkaboutthiswhenhiringaswell.Whereintheworldyouhireandwhoyouhirecanbefactors insuccess inyourbusiness.Unfortunatelywedon’tallliveinNorthAmericaandcannotassumethatit’sthesameworldwide.
n.TechnicalandOtherUnusualDifferences
Technicallyspeaking,contractorsinIndiaandChinaandotherpartsoftheworlddonothavethebenefitof24x7powerthatweareblessedwithhereinNorthAmerica.Wealsohave the benefit of safety from our local communities. I’ve had some of my ownoutsourcedcontractorshave terrorists in their localareasand their internetsgodownortheyweren’tallowedoutof thehouseduetoastateorcitywidelockdownandcurfew!I’vealsodealtwithcontractorswhohavehadlowerhardwaresystemstoworkwith,suchas slowercomputersor slower internet speeds.Other things for exampleare things likeholidays,whichinotherpartsoftheworldaremuchmorefrequentthaninNorthAmerica.Knowingthatthisexistswillhelpyouinyouroutsourcingexpectations.
TIP: When outsourcing, go with an open and realistic mind with the new foundknowledgeyouhavejustlearned.Outsourcingisnotperfectandrequiressomegettinguseto,howeverifdonecorrectlycanhelpyououtinyourbusiness.I’venoticedthatthebestpricedEnglishspeakerswhohavesomedecentformofEnglishcapabilitiescomefromthePhilippines, where as those who have the most technical background are usually fromIndia and China. I’ve also found that the most affordable and higher quality graphicdesigners tend to come from European countries. And of course the best and mostexpensiveoutsourcedstaffarefromNorthAmerica.Thosearejustmyresultsandmyownopinionsatthistime,howeverthisisalwayschangingandshiftingsoalwayskeepuptodateontheoutsourcingmarket.Agoodthingtodobeforehiringanyworkeristoalwayssee theirportfoliosandany reviews theymayhavehad fromotheremployersas that isalwaysasolidindicationofhowgoodacontractoris.
SELFDEVELOPINGOVERVIEWLearninghow todevelopyourself isachallengebutalsohas themostcost savingsandbenefitsforyouinthelongrun.Ihighlyrecommendtakingthiscourseofactioninsteadofoutsourcing to start your business because you’ll learn hands onwhat your business isabout.JustasthereisnoCaptainofashipwhodoesnotknoweverypartoftheirship,asabusinessowneritisyourresponsibilitytoknowyourbusinessinsideout.Thebestwaytodothisistodevelopthingsyourselfandovertimefromthemoneyyouearn,re-investitintoprocessesandprocedurestostartautomatingtheprocessmore.Notonlywillthishelpyou at the beginning in keeping your costs down, itwill also help you in the long runwhenyoudostartoutsourcingasyouwouldalreadyknowwhatgoesintogettinganappintothevariousappstoresandhowtoprogramthem.
However like I said earlier, I highly recommend this option, but it is nonetheless arecommendation.Letmegoovertheprosandconssoyoucandecideforyourselfifthisoption is for you. I personally however highly recommend this course of action overoutsourcingwhenyouarejuststartingout.
PROSOFDEVELOPINGYOURSELF
a.MinimalCostsinthelongrun
Youcancreateasmanyappsasyouhavethetimetocreatewithoutworryingaboutprice
issuesorcontractordelays.
b.Noissuesaboutothersstealingyourideas
Hence no need for extensive NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements) as you are the onlypersontouchingthecodeandcreatingthebaseidea.Yourideasareprotectedbyyouandhavelesschanceofbeingstolen.
c.Controloveryourowncode
Noissuesofothersre-usingyourcodeforotherapps.
d.YOUGETtheactualcode,notjustanapp
This way you don’t have to worry about developers leaving you hanging where youcannotupdateyourapps.You’llalwaysbeabletonotonlyupdateyourappsbutcanalsoreuseyourcodetocreateevenmoreapps!
e.Speedofcreation
Everythinggetsfasterwithcodereusingandtherearenodelaysorhighercostsforspeed.Asfastasyoucancode,isasfastasyoucancreate.Varioustoolsevenexistthathaveafastercreationspeed,butyoudon’thavetowaitonotherdeveloperstogetcodetoyou.Youalsodon’thavetoworryaboutthebackandforthhassleoftryingtoexplaintootherdevelopers just exactly what you want. You can create EXACTLY what you envisionratherthangettingsomethingthatisn’tquitewhatyouwanted.
f.Noscams
Noworryingaboutbeingoverchargedorscammedbyshadyappdevelopmentfirmswhoaretakingyouforarideduetoyourlackofknowledgeorexperience.
CONSOFDEVELOPINGYOURSELF
a.TimetoLearnHowToProgram
Possiblyuptosixmonthsjusttolearnhowtodevelopappsonyourown.
b.Upfrontcostofsoftware,toolsandhardware
Itcostsmoneytobecomeadeveloper,andthesoftwareandtoolsrequiredaswellasthelicenses can cost several hundred if not a few thousand dollars initially. Inmy opinionhowever it’swellworth the investment for the long term gain you’ll achieve, but onceagainit’smyownopiniononit.
TIP:Usetoolsandmethodsthathelptospeedupthedevelopmentprocesswheneveryoucan. If you visit my website you can even sign up to my various programs and evenpurchase and obtainmy special tools that I have available to help you in creating appsfasterorinhelpingyourunyourappbusinessmuchmoreeasily.Onceagainthewebsiteishttp://www.gamescorpion.comsocheckitoutandsignuptothenewsletterforuptodateinformationontheappbusiness.
“Learningwithoutthoughtislaborlost.”
—Confucius
6.STEP1:APPRESEARCH
PART1:WRITEDOWNAPPIDEASAsyouarelookingforvariousappideasusingthefollowingmethodologies,makeSUREyouhaveapaper andpencil handy towrite themdown!Wewillbegoingover the listAFTER you have created the list! Simply go through all theses steps and write downvariousappideasastheycometoyou.Thelongerthelist, themoreoptionsyou’llhavewhenfinalizingonanapptocreate!Ievenbuiltasimpleapptohelpyougeneratesomeideas calledEasyApp IdeaGenerator!You can find the link by visitingmywebsite athttp://www.gamescorpion.com.
a.Lookforideasviaappstores!
Going over the Top 100 apps (PAIDAND FREE) in the various app stores, Look forwhat’sbeensellingforquitesometime,non-FADapps,non-HOLIDAYapps,etc.
I.iTunes
a.iTunesPaidTop100
b.iTunesFreeTop100
II.Android
a.AndroidPaidTop100
b.AndroidFreeTop100
III.Amazon
a.AmazonPaidTop100
b.AmazonFreeTop100
IV.BarnesandNoble
a.BarnesandNoblePaidTop100
b.BarnesandNobleFreeTop100
V.Blackberry
a.BlackberryPaidTop100
b.BlackberryFreeTop100
b.LookforideasusingLIFESTYLE(NICHEAPPS)
I.TargetvariouslifestylesusingKeywordCombinations
a. KEYWORDS (Mom, Dad, Single Female, Single Male, Teen, Tween, Toddler,Senior)ComeupwithasmanyKEYWORDSasyoucantohelpthinkofevenmoreideas.Ex.Divorcee,Newlywed,Newborn,etc.
b. COMBINEWITH (Daily Routine,Work, Fun, Hobbies, Relaxation Time, etc.)Comeupwith asmanyCOMBININGkeywords as you can to thinkof evenmoregreatappideas.Ex.DoingGroceries,WalkingtheDog,GoingonVacation,etc.
c.HOWTOUSE:Example
Anappfor“Mom”whois“DoingGroceries”OR
Anappfor“SingleMale”tohelpthemwith“Hobby”XOR
Anappfora“Tween”foruseduringtheir“Vacation”
c.LookforideasusingMARKETS
I.Targetvariousmarkets
a.Eachmarketsegmentisdifferent.YouhaveMANYmarketsavailabletotarget.ForExample:
i.Men
ii.Women
iii.Seniors
iv.Children
v.Religious(Christian/Jewish/Muslim/Hindu,etc.)
vi.Groups(BoardsofTrade/ChamberofCommerce/Non-ProfitOrganizations,etc.)
vii.PoliticalBeliefs(Republican/Democratic/Liberal/NDP/Conservative,etc.)
viii.Transportation(Thosewithacar/Thosewhorideabicycle/Thosewhowalk)
ix.Disabled/PhysicallyChallenged
x.MANYOTHERMARKETSEGMENTS,Thinkofsomeothersyoumayknowofaswell.
d.LookforideasusingNEEDSANALYSIS
I. Look for various needs that various people in a groupmay have. For example thinkabouttheneedsofayoungstudentwhoisinHighSchool.Whatwouldtheirdaytodayneedslooklike?HowaboutthedaytodayneedsofParents?AnEmployeeatajob?AJobHunterlookingforajob?ABusinessowner?
II.GoovertheDAYTODAYchallengesthatthesevariouspeoplemayencounter.
a.Whentheywakeup,isthereaneedwecanhelptakecareofthere?
b.Whentheygoforbreakfast?
c.Whentheycommutetotheirlocationofwork/play
d.Whentheyareservingtheirfunctioninsociety(Working/Studying/Playing,etc.)
e.Whentheycommutebackfromwork/play,etc.
f.Whenthensitdownfordinner
g.WhentheyRelaxaftertheirdayorduringtheirday
h.Whentheygotothegymorexercise
i.Beforegoingtobed
j.Duringsleep/rest
k. OTHER outside of their daily routine events: Groceries, going to the mall,vacations,holidays,etc.
e.LookforideasusingEMOTIONS
I. Many purchases for apps happen because of an emotional need that is trying to besolved. Usually it’s trying to change a NEGATIVE EMOTIONAL response into aPOSITIVE EMOTIONAL response. Before we list the various negative and positiveemotionalresponses,keepinmindofwhatappsyoucancreateorcomeupwithtotryandhelp change a response.EX.Emotion of Sadness toHappinessOREmotion/Feeling ofConfusion/OverwhelmintoFocusandGraspingofaSituation.
II.Emotionsandtheiropposites1
a.SADNESS/GRIEFJOY
b.DISGUST/HATELOVE
c.FEARHOPE
d.GREED/ENVYGENEROSITY
e.CRUEL/MEANSYMPATHETIC
f.SHAMEPRIDE/CONFIDENCE
g.ANGER/RAGEGRATITUDE/THANKFULLNESS
h.FAMILIARITY/HABITUALSURPRISE/AMUSMENT
i.DISGUSTDESIRE
j.PANIC/ALARMCURIOSITY/INTERST
III.Youcancontinuebuildinguponthelistabove,butthepointisthatifyoucancreateanapp that can take people fromaNegative/Painful emotion to aPositive/Happy emotionyouwillhaveadefinitehitonyourhands.ThinkoftheTOPappsthathavemadeit,howdo they takeaperson fromaNegative/Painful state toaPositive/Happystate?Canyoudescribe which specific emotional groups an app is workingwith from the list above?Usingthiscanyouthinkofanappideathatmayworkaswell?
f.LookforideasusingKISSMETHOD
I.KISSstandsforKeepItSimpleStupid(KISS).Ifyoukeepyourappideasimpleandtothepointandeasy tousewithastraight forward function, itwill tend togeneratemorebuzzandsalesvolumethanappsthataretoocomplexorhardtouseordonotstatewhattheyareingeneral.
II.WhataresomeSIMPLEappsthatyoucanthinkof?
g.LookforideasthroughCATEGORIESofthetopMarkets
I.Gotothemarketplacesofeachofthetopmarketsandlookthroughthecategories.
II. Note down categories that have a SMALL amount of apps, yet a high amount ofdownload volume (Simply click on the number 1 app in that category to see the totalamountofdownloads).
III.AnappcategorythathasHIGHDOWNLOADVOLUME(bycheckingappdownloadstats)andaLOWAMOUNTOFAPPSmeans—MONEY!(Lesscompetitionandgreaterappsalesvolume)
h.GOOUTSIDEANDHAVESOMEFUN!
I.Thisisbyfaraverygratifyingexperience.Simplygooutsideandenjoyyourday,andthroughouttheday,thinkofappsthatyoucouldcreatethatwouldhelpyouinyourday.Ifyougooutforacoffee,maybeyoucouldmakea“BurntMyTongue”appthatwouldbeafunnoveltything.Orforexampleyoumaygotothegrocerystoreandsay,“Heywouldn’titbeneattocreateanappforcountingcaloriesinfood?”
II.Havefunwiththisideaandkeepgoingouttorelaxandatthesametimecomeupwithappideasduringyourdaytodayadventures!
PART2:EDITAPPIDEASLISTFROMPART1Okaysonowthatwehavealistofideas,letsnoworganizethembasedontheamountoftime,complexityandpossiblerevenue.Rate theapp ideasfrom1 to10where10 is themost hard,most complex app orLEAST revenue generating, and 1 is the easiest, leastcomplexorMOSTPROFITABLEapp.
EXAMPLETABLE:
10Worstrating
1Bestrating
Step 1. Complete the Example Table using a Google Docs Spreadsheet or on regularpaper.
Step2.Zone inonahandfulofapps(3-5apps in total) thatyouwould like toconsidercreating based on the best scores from the list above. (To calculate, just add the scoresacrossandthenrankthemoutof30.30istheWORSTratingand3isthebestrating.)
Step3.CreateAppDesigns (NextSection) of the3-5 app ideas.Thesedesignswill beusedwhencreatingtheappsorwhensendingappideastodeveloperstocreate.
“Thebestthingsareplacedbetweenextremes.”
—Aristotle
7.APPROYALTIESANDCOPYRIGHTSIn thispartwearegoing togoover several importantdefinitions thatyoushouldknowwhenitcomestoappdevelopmentandcopyrightlaws.Formoredetaileddescriptionsyoucanalwaysaskalawyerforexactlegalitiessurroundingyourappaswhatwediscusshereisaverybasicoverview.
ROYALTYFREEIfapersoncreatesaworksuchasanimagetexture,asoundoramusicalpiece,theyownthecopyrightstothatwork.Ifyouwanttohavetherightstousethatwork,youwouldtalktotheoriginalcreatorandpaythemaFEEtousetheirworkEVERYTIMEtheworkwasused.Forexampleinaradiostation,everytimeasongisplayed,theoriginalartistwouldreceivearoyaltyforthesongbeingplayed.ThatiswhataROYALTYisinbasicterms.
RoyaltyFreeisbeingabletoUSEthatsameworkASMANYTIMESwithouthavingtopay any more ROYALTY to the original work creator. This you can think of as anunlimitedusagelicensetousetheirworkinyourcreationsforpersonalorcommercialusedependingonhowtheyhavedefinedthatusage.
Thisdoesnothowevergiveyouanyformofownershiponthecreationofthecopyrightedmaterial.Forexample,youmaybuyyourselfaniPadtouse,howeveryouarenottheonewhocreatedtheiPad.ForthisUNLIMITED/ROYALTY-FREEusage,youwouldusuallypayanUPFRONTfee.Sometimesyoucangetroyalty-freeitemsforfreeaswell.
Whenitcomestotheworldofsoftwareandapps,beforeyoulaunchanapppubliclyyoumustmakesure thatyouhaveobtained theRoyalty-Freerights touse theIMAGESandSOUNDSthatareincorporatedintothatveryapp.
This is very important because if in the future you have aHIT app and are using anycopyrightedmaterialinsideofyourappofwhichyouhavenotobtainedtheRoyalty-Freelicensetodosoorownthecopyrightsyourself,youcouldendupbeingsuedfordamages.
Manytimeswemayoutsourceourdevelopmenttootherdevelopersortoartistswithoutthinking about such things. Just because you have paid a developer for their TIME tocreate an appdoesnot necessarilymean that youhavepaid for theusage rights of anyimages/soundstheymayhaveusedinyourapp.
Example—YouhireCompanyXYZ fromOverseas.CompanyXYZ is in a country thatdoesnotworryaboutCopyrightorDigitalCopyinglawsandsotheysimplyfindimagesthroughan Imagesearchonlineand findsounds fromvarioussourceswithoutworryingabout the rights.Yourappcomesbackandyouhavean imageofapopularMovieStarwithmusic in thebackgroundfroma1990’s rockgroup. IfyouhaveNOTobtained therightstousethiscontent,youCANandWILLbeheldliable.
OKSowheredoIgetRoyalty-FreeitemsfromthatIcangivetodevelopersoruseinmyownapps?
Website1.SoundSnap.com(http://www.soundsnap.com)
SoundSnapisagreatresourceforfindingRoyalty-Freesounds.Yousimplypayafeeof$9,$29oroneof their set fees,andyoucangainaccess tovarious soundsROYALTY-FREE.Thisisagreatwaytogetmusicandsoundsintoyourapps,frombuttonclickstoentireRockBallads.SoundSnapisagreatsourceofRoyalty-Freematerial.
Website2.CGTextures.com(http://www.cgtextures.com)
CGTextures is agreat resource forFREEROYALTY-FREETextures and imageswhichcanbeusedcommerciallyinyourapps.Theonlystipulationisthatyoumaynotusetheimagestosell individuallyor todoanyformofscrapbooking(pleasereadthetermsformoredetails).AsforyourappsthisisagreatsitetogatherROYALTY-FREEimagessuchasClouds,Forests,OceansandMore!
TIP:AlwaysresearchthetermsandconditionsofanywebsitesyouareplanningtogainRoyalty-Freeitemsfrom.Foryourappdevelopmentneedsyouneedtohavecommercialusageroyalty-freeitems.
“Faith is to believe what we do not see; and therewardofthisfaithistoseewhatwebelieve.”
—St.Augustine
8.STEP2:APPDESIGNANDPAPERTESTINGInthisstepyouwillrequireapaperandpencilwithaneraser.Iusuallyuseamechanicalpencilwithlotsofleadandasolideraser.Youcaneasilypickuptheseitemsinyourlocalofficestoreordollarstore.
ForyourphotocopyingpurposesIhaveincludedapaperversionofamobilephonedeviceIcreatedonaseparatepage.Simplyphotocopythatpageseveraltimesandcutouttostartdrawingyourpaperdesignsinthenextpart.
Alsoasabonusifyouvisitmywebsiteathttp://www.gamescorpion.comandclickontheAppTrillionairesmenu link above, Iwill post up several documents there, including aspecialdocumentcalledPhoneTracePaperwhichhas6ofthesamemobilephoneimagesso you can simply print it out, cut out the phone designs and start paper testing anddesigningyourapp!It’safreedownloadavailableonlytomyreadersandthosewhoarepart ofmy programs and usemy tools. To access this special download page youwillrequire thepassword:onetrillion.Feel free to signup toourmailing listwhile thereaswell!
PHONETRACEPAPER–SINGLEPHONE
Step1:PaperModeling(PROTOTYPING)
i. Paper modeling is simply drawing out what your app looks like via paper andpencil.
ii.Createyourappdesignsandthenfinallyoncecompletedscantheminifyouwishtosendthemtoadeveloperorsavethemforfuture.
iii. You can even take your prototyping and designing to the next level by buyingvarious stencils and design tools by visiting UIstencils.com(http://www.uistencils.com/)
Step2:CommonComponentsinApps
i.VirtualKeyboard
ii.Left/Rightbuttons
iii.HomeButton
iv.DropDown(COMBO)boxes
v.RadioButtons
vi.Checkboxes
vii.TextBoxes
viii.Sliders
Step3:80/20rule
i.If20%ofyourlaborcanovercome80%ofyourwork,dothe20%laborfirst!
ii.Intermsofanapp,ifyouaredevelopinganappwithvariousfunctionalities,ifyouknowthatletssayittakes5minutestodevelopanimageforaclockbackgroundor2hours to program a clock image background, you’re better off taking the faster 5minuteapproachandmovingon.Youcaneasilyupdatetheappinthefuturetoaddmoreadvancedfunctionality.
Step4:KISSMethod
i.Sameasbefore,KeepItSimpleStupid(KISS).Whendesigningappsalwayskeepyourdesignseasyandsimple.Eventhoughyoumayhavemanycomplexideas, it’stheappsthatcanmakethesecomplexideasEASYthathitoffandgainmajorsuccess.
ii. Usually try and keep an app (Especially those from more complex markets)SIMPLEandeasytouse.ThereasonwhyGOOGLEhitoffasasearchenginewasdue to its SIMPLE interface. Just a SINGLE search box, you search forwhat you
want.Other search enginesweremore complex, had all kinds of things to do, andmanyotherareasthatconfusedusers.Todaywhodoweknowownstheentiresearchenginemarketwithoutadoubt?GOOGLE.KEEPITSIMPLE!
Step5:FUNFACTORANDTALKMethod
i. When designing, ask yourself, “Would someone have FUN with this app?” or“Wouldsomeoneshowtheirfriendsandtalkaboutthisapp?”Letmebreakittoyoustraight…IFNOONETALKSABOUTYOURAPP,yourappwillnotsellverywell.Wordofmouthisthemostpowerfulmethodofmarketing,andnowevenmoresointhe appworld.We see it viaAppReviews, butwe also see it via PHYSICALappsharing.Youmay see a friend using an app, or having funwith an app, and guesswhat,youjustcreatedaconversationstarterrightthere.Alwaysaskyourselfifyourappwilleitherbefun,talkedaboutorboth!
Step6:EasyonlinetoolstohelpinPrototyping
a.iPhoneMockupWebApphttp://iphonemockup.lkmc.ch/
b. Serena Prototype Composer http://www.serena.com/products/prototype-composer/index.html
c.RethinkRealizerhttp://www.realizerapp.com/
d. (TOP CHOICE) Just In Mind Prototyperhttp://www.justinmind.com/prototyper/free-edition
PROTOTYPEANDPAPERTESTINGACTIONSTEPS1.Start byphotocopyingandcuttingout the amountof screensyoubelieveyour appwillhavebyusingthePhoneTracePapershownonanearlierpage.
2. Draw out rough versions of your screens. Try andmake your app functional. Forexample ifyouwant to showabutton,drawa rectangle, and then if someonewas toclickonthatbutton,drawthescreenthatwouldshowupafterpushingthatbutton.
3.After drawingout all the paper prototypes, start doing somepaper testing. Put theslidesinthecorrectorderandgetafriendorsomeonewhoyouknowtocomeandtesttheappoutonpaper.Iftheyclickonabutton,showthenextpagethattheywouldseebyclickingonit.Papertestingisthefastestandcheapestwaytoreallygetyourappideaofftheground.
4.Repeatthisprocessforalloftheappsyouselectedinearliersteps(Around3-5apps)and then once you have paper tested all the ideas, start scanning them in for actualcreation.
5. At this point you are now ready to either outsource the app development to anoverseas companyor tobuild it yourself.Basedonwhatyouhavedecided, it isnowtimetoputtogetherallyourassetsanditems.
“Sometimesafallistheonlywaytorise!”
—AbhinavGupta
9.STEP3:CREATETHEAPPIn this step you are required to do what it takes to start creating your app. If you areplanning to outsource, then start outsourcing on oDesk for an app developer or appdevelopmentcompany.MakesureyouhavewrittenNDAsandhaveyourmaterials andresourcesreadytogivetothedeveloperstostartworking.
Weigh your options carefullywhen just starting out!As your business grows, youwilleventuallyhavetoconvertovertotheOutsourcingroute,buttostartwithyoumaywanttotry your hand at developing yourself. Not only does this help you save some moneyupfront as you grow your business, but later in the future when other developers arequotingyoupricesonwork,youwillknowwhatdeveloper is takingyoufora rideandwhatdeveloperisnot.OnceagainitcomesbacktoSAVINGMONEY!
Let’sgoovertheoutsourcingroutehereinamoredetailedstepbystepmethod.
OUTSOURCINGTHEAPPSTEP1.CREATETHEAD
a.OutsourcingWebsitesforAppDevelopment
There are two main types of outsourcing websites available in the market; RegularOutsourcing and Micro-Service Outsourcing. Regular Outsourcing focuses on majorprojectsthatarelarge.Thefollowingaresomeveryhighlyusedoutsourcingwebsitesthatareformajorprojects.Onthesesitesyoucansetabudgetsizeofanyamount.IpersonallyhaveusedandcanrecommendoDesk,butIamlistingotherssoyouhavesomeoptionsaswell.
http://www.guru.com
http://www.odesk.com
http://www.elance.com
TIP: Iwouldhighly recommendonly sticking to regular outsourcingwebsites for yourmain app development. It is a very big mistake to go to micro-service outsourcingwebsitesexpectingafullapptobemadeforacheapprice.Remember,yougetwhatyoupayforattheendoftheday!
b.AdBasics
Createanadononeofthesesitesthatshowsoutsourcedserviceproviderswhatyouarelookingtohavemade.Donotputspecificsoryourappideainthejobpostingunlessyouwanttoriskyourideabeingstolen!Yourgoalistokeepitsimple,forexample,“LookingforanappdevelopertomakeanEntertainmentorUtilityapp”andthengointodetailsonwhatyouexpectfromaserviceprovider.Whateveryoudo,doNOTputyourexactideathere!
STEP2.HOWTOSELECTANOUTSOURCINGSERVICEPROVIDER
a.SelectaServiceProvider
Selecting an outsourcing provider is based very similarly to any auction website. Yousimplyseethefeedbackscoreandreviewpreviousworkaserviceproviderhasdoneandthengofromthere.That’sthefirststep.
b.DoanInterview
The second step is conducting an interview to basically check if everything that theserviceproviderstated linesup in the interview.Forexample if theysay theyarefluent10/10 inEnglish and can communicate correctly, and you interview them and they canbarelyspeakEnglish,thentheyhavejustliedontheresume.Thiswouldbeimportantforyou if you were looking for someone who was going to MARKET YOUR APP forexample. In my case, I hired several people for creating press releases for me. Thisinterviewprocesshelpedmetoweedoutthosewhowerejustlyingtogetthegigversusthosewhowerereallygenuine.
c.ProbationContract
ThethirdstepafteralltheitemscheckoutistodoaPROBATIONcontractfirst.Thisissimplyaweekorafewdaysorevenasinglehourorevenasmallproject(Dependingonwhat’sbeingdone),justtotesttheserviceprovider.Beforeyougofullforcewithaserviceprovider, takea smallbudget for testing theproviderout.You shoulddo thiswithonlythosewhohavepassedyourinterview.Takeasmallpartofyourbudgettotestouttheirskills.After this,makeyour final selectionandcompleteyourapp.AlwayshaveoneortwopeopleasaBACKUPfromtheabovesteps,justincaseaproviderscrewsyouoveroryoujustdecideyouarenotsatisfiedwiththework.
Afterselectingaserviceprovider,havethemsignaNon-DisclosureAgreementwithyou(Irecommendyouspeakwithalawyerorfindguidanceonhowtocreate/obtainaNDAAgreement).
Before you begin to discuss ANY ideas with any service provider, always have anagreementsignedbythem.Thismaybehardtoenforceinvariouspartsoftheworld,butattheendofthedayitshowstheserviceproviderthatyoumeanbusinessandthatyourideaisvaluable.
TIP:This3Stepmethodwill inmostcasesgetyouadecentserviceproviderwhowillgiveyoutheresultsyouwant.FindingasolidserviceprovidercantakeYEARS!Itisnotanovernightordeal!Youarebuildingarelationshipwithyourdeveloper,sodonotexpecttohavethishappenovernight.
KILLEROUTSOURCINGTIPSHerearesomethingstolookoutforwhenoutsourcingtovariouspartsoftheworldbasedonmyownexperiences.
a.TheFURTHEREAST,theLOWERTHEPRICE!
AllAsianCountriesareverylowinprice!
b.TheFURTHERWEST,theHIGHERTHEPRICE!
Euro/NorthAmericanCountriesareveryhighinprice
c.TheFURTHEREAST,theLOWERTHEQUALITY!
Thisisgenerallytrue,butinsomerarecasesyouendupgettingagoodsolidapp.
d.TheFURTHERWEST,theHIGHERTHEQUALITTY!
Onceagainthisisgenerallytrue.
TIP: When looking to hire an outsourced service provider, rank them based on thefollowingpoints:
a.Price
b.EstimatedTimetoCreateapp
c.Feedbackscore
d.Synergy(Whoseemslike theyworkwellwithyouandcanunderstandwhatyouwantmorethansomeoneelsebasedonyourinterview?)
e.OverallQualityofOutput(Howis thequalityofoutputof thepreviousapps thisserviceproviderhasmadeforothers?)
MICROSERVICEWEBSITESMicro-service outsourcing focuses on services that have a lower cost to them. Forexample, most of theMicro-Service websites focus on a low fee per service renderedmodel.Thismeansthatfor$5orsomethingaslowasthat,peoplearewillingtoprovideyouaspecificservice,fromsimpleicondesigntosingingyouabirthdaysongonyoutube!
Themostpopularmicroservicewebsitesarelistedbelow:
http://www.fiverr.com
http://www.tenbux.com
http://www.gigbucks.com
SELFDEVELOPINGTHEAPPThis isby faramongst themostchallenging,yet themost rewardingoptionavailable intheappbusiness.Ihighlyrecommendstartingtodevelopyourselfsothatyoustarttolearnthe insandoutsofwhatgoes intomakinganappandhowtogetyourapp into theappstore.
IuseaspecialtooltocreateappsacrossmultiplemarketscalledShiVa3D.ShiVa3Disastate of the art 3D WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) app and gamedevelopmenttool.Itsgreateststrengthliesinitsabilitytoportacompletedapporgameintovariousmarketplaceswithoutmuchrecodingofyouroriginalapp.
InfactIhavecreatedmanytoolsandprogramsthatrevolvearoundShiVa3Dthatcanhelp
youinyourappdevelopmentandcreation.Itishowevergoingtotakeyoutimetolearntodevelop using this tool and will require some form of programming knowledge andbackground.
OverthenextseveralpagesIwillbegoingoverabasicoverviewofShiVa3Dsothatyougeta tasteof thisdevelopmentenvironmentandcanstart learning todevelopyourownapps.
HoweverbeforeyoubegingoingdowntheShiVa3Droad,letmepointoutthatthereareother options aswell if you are looking for something less extensivewhen it comes toprogramming.
LISTOFAPPCREATIONANDDIYTOOLS
Thefollowingisalistofotherdevelopmenttoolsandwebsitesyoucanusetocreateappsfastandeasy:
1.Appmakr.com(http://www.appmakr.com/)
Thiswebsitefeaturescodelessappcreationforfreebasedoncreatingwebapps.
2.GameSaladCreator(http://www.gamesalad.com/creator)
GameSalad is agreatWYSIWYGtool tocreate2DVideoGames for iOSandAndroiddevices. It also features a very little/no-coding based system that you can use to startdevelopingappsimmediately.
3.TapLynx(http://www.taplynx.com/)
ThisisanothercodelessappdevelopmenttooltocreateiPhoneapps.
4.MobileRoadie(http://mobileroadie.com/)
Anotherappbuildingwebsitefocusingoneasyappcreation.
5.iTorque2DGarageGames(http://www.garagegames.com/)
ApowerfulsetoftoolstocreategamesandappsforiPhoneandiPad.
6.PhoneGap(http://www.phonegap.com/)
Amobileappbuildingtool.
7.Unity3D(http://unity3d.com/)
AnotherextensivetoollikeShiVa3D,howeverrequiresalotmorecodingbackground.
Sothereyouhaveseveralappandgamedevelopmenttoolsthatyoucanusetostartyourowndevelopmentofapps.IhoweverwouldstillrecommendspendingseveralmonthsandlearningShiVa3Ddevelopmentandprogrammingasitwillallowyoutoscaleupasyougrow.Notonlywillyoubeabletocreatebasic2DappswithShiVa3Dbutyoucanalsobuildfullhighend3DVideoGames!ThemostimportantstrengthbehindShiVa3Disitsporting capabilities thatwill get you intomoremarkets and hence, increase your profitpotential!
KILLERSELFDEVELOPMENTTIPS
a.Notallprogrammingtoolsaremadeequal
Ifyougetsomethingtoosimple,asyougrowyou’llendupbeinglimitedtothetypeofappsyoucanmakeand thuswillhave to re-learnsomethingnew just stayup todate. Iwouldrecommendlearningatoolthatwilllastyouforalongtimeratherthanatoolthatwilllimityouinthefuture.
b.Keepreferencematerialcloseathand
Ifyoucan findawebsitewhich lists thedocumentationof the toolyouuseorcommonfunctions or programming reference items, then I highly recommend you have it allbookmarked!IpersonallyhavealltheShiVa3DdocumentationbookmarkedandcloseathandwheneverIneedtofindaspecificcodefunction.
c.Joinforumsandaskforhelp!
Always join thecommunity forumsof the tool thatyouaregoing touse tocreateapps.You can always ask for advice or tutorials from other successful or more experienceddevelopers.Joiningaforumisalwaysagreatideaandwillhelpyoustart theprocessofdeveloping.
d.SearchYoutubeforVideoTutorials
Thisisagreatwaytolearnnewthingsandlittletricksthatpeoplewithexperiencemayhave placed on youtube. I can’t tell you how many times I found great little goldennuggetsonYoutubeaboutdevelopmentandprogrammingin3DwhenIwasjuststartingout.Ifanimageisworthathousandwords,ayoutubevideoisworthinfinitewords!Itcandefinitelysaveyouhoursofreadinglengthydocuments!
e.RE-USECode!
Afterdevelopinga fewapps, re-useoldcode tospeedup theappdevelopmentprocess!Youcanendupcreatingappsinafractionofthetimebyre-usingyouroldcode!Ihighlyrecommendit!
f.Don’tgiveup!
Programming can be a challenge, but learning how to develop apps will help youunderstandwhat future developers you hire or outsourcemay be going through.You’llalso learn the terminologywellwhichwill help you in running your business.Anothergreat strength is thatbyknowinghow tocodeanddevelopyourself,whennewdevicescomeoutorwhennewtechnologiescomeout,youcanbeamongstthefirstearlyadopterstointegrateandincorporatethemandthushaveagreaterchanceatincreasedprofits!
SELFDEVELOPMENT:SHIVA3DOVERVIEWLetmestartbygivingyouaquickintroductiontotheworldofShiVa3D.Youcanstartoffbyvisitinghttp://www.stonetrip.comandgetyourselfacopyoftheFREEwebeditionofShiVa 3D.Thiswill allow you tomake apps for theweb, but if you seriouslywant todevelop commercial apps and games then I recommend purchasing the Basic version.
Before you purchase however, first go through some of the basic tutorials andwalkthroughandseeifShiVa3Disrightforyou.
SOWHATISSHIVA3DANDWHYSHOULDWEUSEIT?
ShiVa3DisaspecialsoftwareprogramthatweusetodevelopappsandprogramsthatrunoncomputersystemsanddevicesknownasHARDWARE,suchasaniPhoneoraniPad.The termAPP, as stated earlier, is a short form for thewordAPPlicationwhich is theword we use in the computer world for a computer program. In order for a piece ofHARDWAREtowork,itneedsApplicationswhicharecommonlyreferredtoasSoftwareprograms. Software programs can be as large as anOperating System or as small as asimplecalculator.Eachprogramhasaspecificfunctionthatitmustdoonthemachineorpieceofhardware. If therewasnosoftware, thehardwarewouldprettymuchbeadeadpaperweight.
SoWhyUseShiVa3D?
WelltherearemanyreasonsforthisasIhaveoutlinedbelow:
1.Pricevsothertoolsonthemarket!ShiVa3Dispricedataround$400USDfortheirbasicversionwhichgivesyoucommercialcreationcapabilities.
2.Easeof programming!ShiVa3D featuresLUAScripting vs.muchmore advancedC/C++orJavaprogrammingthatothertoolsrequire.
3.Portability!ShiVa3DallowsyoutodevelopONETIME,butexportthatsameapptoMANY platforms including,Windows,Mac, Linux, iOS (iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch),Android(GooglePlay,Samsung,KindleFire,BarnesandNobleNook,etc.),Blackberry(BlackberryPlaybookandevennowthelatestBB10Platform),WebOS(PalmandHPTouchpad),andmanymoresystemscomingoutallthetime.ItevenallowsyoutogetintotheCONSOLEmarketandportfullgamesovertoNintendoWii,XBOX360andotherpopularconsolesaswell!
4.NoADDITIONALFeesfornewmarkets!TheShiVateamkeepscomingoutwithnewplacesyoucanportyourappto.JustrecentlytheybroughtoutinBETAform,WindowsPhonecapability.YouwouldnotbepayingforthisasadeveloperwhichisanADDEDbonus!AnewmarketmeansaNEWPOTENTIALCASHFLOWandyouwon’thavetore-codeallyourpreviousappsagain!SimplyusetheShiVaAuthoringtoolandyourappwillbeportedtothenewplatform!
5.SupportiveDeveloperForum.Wheneveryouare stuck,havingotherswhoarealsodevelopinghelpingyououtcansaveyoualotoftime.ShiVaforumsareagreatplacewhereall thedevelopersworktogether tohelpeachotherout.This isagreatwayforyoutobeabletotroubleshootissuesyoumayhavewithinyourapps.
SHIVA3DACTIONSTEP
StartoffbydownloadingyourselfafreecopyofShiVa3DWebEditionandstart tryingoutsomeofthemanytutorialsavailabletoyouasanewdeveloper.
Youcanfindsomeof the latest tutorialsandwalkthroughs forShiVa3Dbyvisiting the
ShiVaWikiandclickingonGetStarted:http://www.stonetrip.com/developer/wiki
Trymakingsomesmallapplicationstostartwith,suchasasimplebuttonapp,andthentryandport itout to thevariousdevices suchasan iPad, iPhoneorAndroiddevice ifyouhaveany.Onceyouknowyoucandothisandtestitoutsuccessfully,trycreatingamoreadvancedappandkeeponupgradingyourskills.
Ifafter testingoutShiVa3Dyou find that it is something thatyoubelievewouldbeofbenefit, thenIhaveaspecialofferforourreadersandusersofmybooks,apptoolsandprograms for10%offyourpurchaseofShiVa3D.Simplyvisit theStonetripwebsiteathttp://www.stonetrip.comandusethecouponcode:kaw3pRap.
“Tears won’t change your situation. Get up, moveforward & make your dreams come true! Positiveactionyieldsresults.”
—AbhinavGupta
10.IMAGEEDITING101Whydoweneedtolearnhowtouseanimageeditor?
An ImageEditor is a tool thatweuseon a computer system that allowsus to edit andmanipulateimages.Wecandobasicthingssuchasremovingred-eyefromphotographs,tomoreadvancedimageeditingsuchascreatingmasksandvariousdigitaleffects.Imageeditinghasbeenaroundformanyyearsandhasgivenmanyusersthepowertocreate,editandmodifyphotosandgraphicsinwayswenevercouldbeforemanyyearsago.
Intheappbusiness,wewillbedoingaLOTofimageediting.ImageeditingisrequiredfromaGraphicArtist’s point of view to create the Icons, Screenshots andother in-appelements that you will require for your apps. After that, you as the app developer/appbusiness ownerwill require image editing to do simple changes or to approve graphicsthatarebeingsenttoyoubyeitherotherDevelopers,OutsourcedGraphicArtistsorothercontractorswho are on the project.Knowing how an image editorworks,what are thefunctionsandterminologyandwhatthingsyoucandowillgreatlyhelpyouinyourfutureasanAppDeveloperandAppBusinessOwner!
If you visit my website at http://www.gamescorpion.com and go to the special AppTrillionairespage(Usepasswordonetrillion)youwillfindthereaspecialdocumentthatI’ve created that will list to you many of the common image sizes for icons andscreenshots. In yourmobile appbusiness youwill notice that youwill require differentsizesforimagesandfrommyownexperienceIknowhowconfusingtryingtorememberallthesizesforthevariousmarketscanbe.ThisspecialdocumentwilloutlinethevariousscreenshotandiconsizesfrommostofthemajormarketsandItrymyverybesttokeepitupdated.
IMAGESANDCOMMONTERMINOLOGYAsyouget into thebusiness,youwillcomeacrossmanycommonfile formats thatyouwillbeconstantlyopeningupandusingforvariousthings.Thecommonformatsyouwillseemostofthetimearelistedbelow:
JPG, JPEG Pronounced “JAY-PEG” this image format is the MOST common one.Usuallyyouwillgetgreatqualitymixedwithlowersizefiles inmostcases.Becauseofthis feature (LowFileSize,DecentQuality Image) JPEG tookoffas themostcommonandpopular image formaton theweb.Theonly limitation thatyouhavewithJPEGs isthat they do NOT allow for transparencies/transparent pixels. This is a very importantfeature,especiallyforiconswhichhaveROUNDEDcorners.UsingaJPEGyouwouldnotbeabletodosuchathing.
PNGPNGFilesaresimilartoJPEGfileshowevertheyALLOWtransparentpixelsandcanstoremoreimageinformation.Forthisreasontheytendtobelargerinsize.PNGfileshoweverarerequiredformostofthefinaluploadingtovariousmarketplaces.Specificallyfor ICONSPNG files allowyou to use transparencies tomake unusual shaped images,such as cutting off the corners for icons to give that rounded look. Many markets,includingiOS,BarnesandNobleandseveralotherswillrequiresomeoftheirimagesinPNGformat.
TGA Pronounced “TARGA” these files are a little less common, however are usuallyused by graphic designers andwewill specifically also see these image formats beingused inShiVa3D.Theyhold a lotmore informationon an image suchas the rawdatainformation.Forthisreason,youwillnoticethattheirfilesizestendtobemuchlarger.
PDF Not a common IMAGE file format, but it is used every now and again fordevelopersorgraphicartistswhomaywanttoshowyouaproofofanimagebuttomakesureyoucanGUARANTEEDseeitonyourend,theysaveitinPDFformatwhichallowsyoutoeitheropeninyourimageeditorifithasthecapabilitytoopenPDFormostlikelyAdobeAcrobatReader.
GIMP–ANOPENSOURCEIMAGEEDITOR
GIMPisanopensource,freetodownload,imageeditorthathasmanypowerfulfeaturesandtools.Ijokinglycallitthepoorman’sPhotoshopbecauseittrulyisthatpowerfulandyetcostsnothingtodownload!Youcanmakesomeincrediblelookinggraphicsusingthistool,andyoucanalsoeditalotofdifferentfileformats.Thebestpartofthistoolisthefactthattherearealotoftutorialsontheinternetregardingit,andinmanycases,mostofthePhotoshop toolsarealmost theexact same.Later in the future ifyoueverdecide toturntousingaprofessional tool likePhotoshop,you’llalreadyhavethebasicskillsyoulearnfromGIMPwhichwouldmakethingsthatmuchmoreeasier!
GIMPINSTALLATIONANDSETUP
A.Gotohttp://www.gimp.org/downloads/
B.Clickon“DownloadGIMP2.8.0–InstallerforWindowsXPSP3orlater”todownloadthefileforwindows.
C.Choose theDesktopas the location for thedownloadandas the file isdownloading,continueontoreadingthenextsection.
IMAGEEDITINGCONCEPTS
A.DPI–Writtenasdpi
dpiStandsforDotsPerInch.ItisameasureusedtodeterminehowmanydotsofINKwillbeplacedinsideofasingleinch.Thehigherthisnumberis,thehigherthequalityoftheimagewillbewhenPRINTEDOUTPHYSICALLY.Thisalsoincreasesyourimagesizeandresolutionaswell.Usuallyforwebpurposes,thedpiissettoaround72asacommonamount,howeverwhenyouwantbetterlookinggraphics,higherdpivaluesarerequired.Forourappswewillspecificallybemakingallourgraphicsandiconsin300dpi.Youcanalsochoosehigheramounts,butfornowwearekeepingitat300dpi.
B.Resolution
Resolution is thenumberofPIXELSacrossyour screenby thenumberofPIXELSdownthescreen.Apixelissimplyasingledotoflightthatcanchangecolor.Ifyoutakeamagnifyingglassandholdituptoyourcomputerorlaptopscreen,youshouldsee MANY little squares or dots. These individual dots/squares are known asPIXELS. Images come in variousResolution sizes.Here are theCOMMON imageresolutionsforICONSandSCREENSHOTS:
ICONResolution(COMMON):
512pxby512pxor1024pxby1024px
ScreenshotResolution(COMMON)
1024x768(iPadscreenshots)
1024x600(Amazonscreenshots)
800x480OR480x800(AndroidScreenshots)
ThereareMANYOTHERscreenresolutionsbasedonthemarketyouareaimingtoputyourappsinto.Youwillfindthatyouwillrequirealisttotrackallthevariousappsizes.
C.Layers
Taketwosheetsofpaper.Ononeofthem,drawacircle.Onasecondone,drawtwodots for eyes and a smiley face in the same location aswhere the circle is on theFIRSTsheet.NowholdbothsheetstogetherandholdituptothelightandyoushouldseeaFULLsmileyfaceasasingleimage.
Each SHEET of paper in that example is considered a LAYER. Layers are animportantpartofimageeditingandcanallowyoutodothingssuchasmoveobjectsaround in front of backgrounds, or even simply hide layers to help you in imageeditingevenmore.Theconceptof layerswillbecomemoreeasier tounderstandasyoustartlearningandusinganimageeditormore.
NOTE:AtthispointweareassumingthatyouhaveinstalledGIMP.ThenextpartswillallcontinueinsideoftheGIMPprogram.
GIMPTOOLS
BeforeIstartgoingoverthisbasicoverviewofGIMP,firstlyIwanttoalertyouthatthisisjustaverybasicoverviewofanimageeditor.Ifthisstuffintimidatesyou,nottoworry!WhenIfirststartedlearningthisstuff,italsowasquiteconfusing,howeverwhenyouaredealingwithgraphicartists,knowingthisstuff isessential!Thereare toomanytimesinthis business that youwill be dealingwith images, and the last thing Iwant you to gothroughishavingagreedygraphicartistchargeyoualotofmoneyforsomethingyoucando yourself easily. Learning basic image editing for this reason is important! I’ve seenpeoplegetchargedforsomethingassimpleasSHIFTINGTHELOCATIONOFTEXTinanimagetosimplychangingthecolorofabackground!Somepeoplehavebeenchargedhundredsofdollarsforsuchsimplechangestoanimage!
Sosufficeittosay,learningabasicamountofimageeditingcansaveyoualotofmoneyinthisbusinessinthelongrun.Let’snowtakealookatGIMPandsomeofthetools itoffers.
GIMPconsistsofseveralwindows.OneofthemostusedwindowsistheTOOLBOX.ThetoolboxhasmanytoolsthatyouwillusefrequentlyinsideofGIMP.InthebottomlistingIhave BOLDED items that we use most often in image editing and also added a littleexplanationofthem.Non-boldeditemsIwilljustlistbutIwon’tgointodetailexplainingtheirusage.
TheGIMPToolboxWindowAndDockWindow
FromTopLefttoBottomRightthetoolsintheGIMPToolboxare:
MARQUEES(MarchingAnts):
a.RectangularMarqueeSelectionTool
This tool is used to select items that are usually in a rectangular or square shapeddimension.
b.EllipseMarqueeSelectionTool
Thistoolisusedtoselectitemsthatareusuallyinacircularorovalshapedimension.
c.LassoMarqueeSelectionTool
Thistoolisusedtoselectirregularpolygonstyleshapeditemsinanimage.
d.MagicMarqueeSelectionTool
This toolwill speed up your selection process by selecting entire regions of a specificcolor.
e.ColorMarqueeSelectionTool
OTHERTOOLS:
f.Scissors
g.ForegroundSelectTool
h.PathsTool
i.ColorSelectTool
Thistoolwillallowyoutosettheforegroundcolortothecoloryouselectwiththistool.It’sreallyhandywhentryingtogettheexactcolorofaniconorapp.
j.ZoomTool
k.MeasureTool
l.MoveTool
This toolwill allowyou to adjust andmove a layer simply by clicking anddragging alayerwhilehavingthistoolselected.
m.AlignmentTool
n.CropTool
o.RotateTool
Thistoolwillallowyoutorotateacertainimagelayerbyacertainamountofdegrees.
p.ScaleTool
Thistoolwillallowyoutoshrinkorgrowalayeryouselectbyacertainpercentage.
q.SheerTool
ThisuniquetoolwillallowyoutostretchalayerinaspecialwayknownasSheering.
r.PerspectiveTool
This toolwillallowyou tostretcha layer toanydimensionyouwant. Iuse this tool tohelpmeincreating3Dscreenshoteffectsformyappscreenshots.
s.FlipTool
t.TextTool
Thistoolallowsyoutoaddtexttoyourimage.
u.PaintBucketTool
This tool allows you to fill a selected layer or a portion of a layer in the color of theforeground.
v.GradientTool
Agradientisagradualcolorchangefromonecolortoanother.Itcanreallyenhancethelookand feelof iconsandappscreenshots.Use it to fill acertain region inyour imagewithagradualcolorthatchangesfromtheforegroundcolortothebackgroundcolor.
w.PencilTool
Usethistooltodrawlinesanddotsanddrawfreehand.
x.PaintbrushTool
Usethistooltopaintwithvariousbrushheadontheselectedimagelayer.
y.EraserTool
Usethistooltoerasemistakes.
z.AirbrushTool
aa.InkTool
ab.CloneTool
ac.HealingTool
ad.PerspectiveCloneTool
ae.BlurTool
Usethistooltobluroutpartsofanimage.
af.SmudgeTool
UsethistooltoSMUDGEorpushpartsofanimagearound.
ag.Dodge/BurnTool
GIMPDOCKS
In GIMP we will be navigating our image using various DOCKS. Docks are variouswindowsthatcanallowustoviewdifferentaspectsofourimage.Forexample,wemaywanttoviewlayers,andsoatthatpointweopenuptheLayersDock.Wemayalsowanttozoominandnavigatethroughouttheimage,andforthisweusetheDisplayNavigationDock.
SimplybyclickingontheTINYARROWnexttothenameoftheDockwindowyouarein,youcanaddmoredockwindowstothelist.ThemostcommondockwindowsyouwillbeusinginGIMPistheLayersDockandtheNavigationDock.
GIMPSELECTIONMODES
PreviouslyIoutlinedvariousMARQUEE(MarchingAnt)selection tools.Eachof thesetoolshasvarioustypesofSELCTIONMODES.
You can ADD to a selection, SUBTRACT from a selection, or even INTERSECT acurrent selection. Each method will allow you to grow or shrink your selection in avariousway.
Once you have made your initial selection you can now Shrink or Grow it by thefollowingmethods:
ToShrinkonthemenusimplypressSelectShrinkandselectapixelamounttoShrinkby.
ToGrow,on themenusimplypressSelectGrowand select apixel amount toGrowby.Youwillfindthistobeaveryeasytousemethodtoselectvariouspartsofyourimages.
Finallywe have theMAGICWANDMarquee tool. Therewill be times that you haveunusual edgesor even curves.A simpleway to select objects is byusing aRANGEofcolors.This iswhere theMagicWandmarquee tool comes inhandyandallowsyou toselectvariouspartsofanimagesimplybyclickingonit.ThiscansaveyouaLOToftimecomparedtoothermethodsofselection.
GIMPIMAGESCALING/TRANSFORM/CROP
IfweselectalayerfromourLayersDock,wecansimplyHIDE/MakeVisiblethelayerbyclickingonthelittleEYEiconnexttoit.
In order toSCALE the layer,we simply select theScaleTool and resize our image bysimplyclickinganddraggingorevenputtinganimagesize.
Tomove our layer,we simply select our layer in theLayers dock and select theMoveTool.Wethenselectonanyactivepixelinthelayerandwewillbeabletomovethatlayertoanylocationintheimagecanvas.
FinallyifweuseourMarqueetools,wecanselectanareaandthenselectImageCropToSelection,andtheentireimagewillbeshrunkdowntothesizeofyourselection.
FILLSANDGRADIENTS
Usingthepaintbucket,wecanfillanENTIREareaofanimagewitheitherasinglecolor,oranimagepattern.SimplyselectthePaintBuckettool,chooseacolorfromyourcolorslistandthenclickonanyareaintheactivelayeryouwishtohavethecolorpaintedonto.Notice that thePAINTbucketwill tend to fill inbasedona region it findsviacolororevenanentire layer. Ifyouuse theMarquee tool,youcaneven forcea fill inacertainlocation.
AGradientisafancywordforsaying,“DrawcolorsfromColor1toColor2inasmoothway”.Forexample,IfIwanttogofromBlacktoWhite,IwouldfirststartwithBlackandthen continue onto all the other Grays until I reachWhite. It would just keep gettinglighterand lighteraswegetcloser to thecolorwhite.Gradientsareused toenhancean
imageandgiveitanaddedtouchofDEPTH.
NEXTSTEPS
IHighlyrecommenddoingseveraltutorialsorwatchingyoutubevideosandlearningmoreaboutimageeditingbasics.InadaystimeasanappdeveloperI’mopeninguptheimageeditor at least 3 ormore times!From Icons to screenshots to approvals of appdesigns,imagesareaveryimportantpartoftheappbusiness!Knowinghowanimageeditorworksandhowtouseitwellwillhelpyounotonlyworkwithimageseasilyandfast,butitmayalso save you some unnecessary costs which you could incur just from the lack ofknowledgeofimageediting.
“Overnight success is many years of persistence…ironically when it happens, people say it’sOVERNIGHTbecausetheydidn’tknowaboutyouthenightbefore!”
—AbhinavGupta
11.THEAPPLIFECYCLEInordertomarketappssuccessfully,youmustunderstandtheappLIFECYCLE!
Ingeneralmostappsthatarelaunchedtendtodeclineinpopularitytoapointwheretheycanonlybefoundviaanappsearch,whichiswhatIliketocallAppOblivionbecauseitisnolongerinthecharts.Ingeneralatthispoint,theappsalesvolumedecreasesgreatly,whencomparedtotheinitiallaunchandthusitisonlyfindableviaanappsearch.
Theapplifecycleingeneralgoesthroughthefollowing:
1.Launch
The launch of an app can last anywhere from 1 to 3 weeks depending on howpowerful you started your marketing. In general without marketing, chances areyou’llhitappoblivionfaster.Keepinmind,therearetimeswithanappwhereanappmay just hit oblivion immediately.That canbepainful, somake sureyoudo someformofbasicmarketing(spreadthewordviasocialnetworksliketwitterorfacebookoronmessageboards,etc.)andtryandincreasetheoddsofalongerlaunchperiod.
2.Generalsalesgainandincrease
Aswordstartstospread,ifyoudidagoodjobandhaveagoodapp,thenyoushouldstarttoseesalesriseovertime.Atanymomenthoweverasalways,yourappcanhitoblivion,butanappcanhavealifetimeofaround1-6monthsbeforeitdiesoutintooblivioningeneral.Someappsdon’treachoblivionforalongtimeandfirsthitwhatisknownasTerminalVelocityorPlateau.
3.TerminalVelocity/Plateau
Thisisthepointwhereeveryonehaslearntabouttheapporalreadyhastheappandiskindof getting sickof the app.Either the app is nowoutdatedor is just no longerpopularbecauseeveryonealreadyhas it.AngryBirds is currently inPlateauand isstartingitsdeclinenow.Everyoneeitheralreadyhasitor isgettingsickof itandisjustwaitingforthenextbighit.ThisstageisprettymuchtheHIGHESTsalesyoucanexpectforanappwithoutanyotherformsofadvancedmarketing.
4.Decline
AtthispointtheappisloosingitssteamandheadingrightintoOblivionandthereisprettymuchnostoppingitunlessyoustartsomeadvancedmarketingtechniquesasIoutlineinChapter12.
TheAppLifecycle
ZOMBIESYoumay see in the diagram a little doodle of a zombie. These are apps that suddenlybecomepopularandgainlifeagaininwhatappearstobesomeRANDOMgrowth(Hencethetermzombie–Comingbacktolife)!
Therearereasonsforthis,howeverandwillkeepyougoinginthelongrun.SometimesappsareSEASONAL, soyoumay see anapphit oblivion through the summermonthsandtheninwintermonthspickupagain.WhenanappgoesZombie,youwanttohelpitgetALLthesalesitcanbydoingamarketingpushorusingadvancedtechniqueslikeyouwilllearninChapter12.Zombiesneedhelptogrowandcaneasilybecomeheavyhittersforquitesometime.
A great example is our fireplace app called Intimate Fireplace. Our app goes ZombieduringthewinterandChristmasmonths.Duringthattimeweliketoputmarketingdollarsbehinditbecauseitwilljustcomerightoutofappoblivionbecauseeveryoneislookingforafireplace.ItstartsgainingarankagainonitsownandwecanthentakethatZombieappandgrowit.
Other reasons why an app may go Zombie could be specific NEWS or POLITICALevents!Let’ssayyouhaveasoccerapp,andevery4yearsistheworldcup,allofasuddenduringtheworldcupyear,yourappgoeszombie!
Ifyouwatchthenewsandprepareyourself,youcanhelpyourzombiesoutso theycangainmoredownloadsandincreaseyouroverallappinfrastructure.
“Habitscanmakeorbreakyou.Listyourbadhabitsdownand replace themwithgoodones!Changewillleadtosuccess!”
—AbhinavGupta
12.STEP4:APPNAMEANDKEYWORDS-ASOUpuntilthispointyouhaveworkedhardoncreatinganapp,howeverIhavenottoldyoutonameyourappyet.ThatisbecausewhatyouNAMEyourappwilleitherincreaseordecrease your sales! In this next step we must now go over App Store Optimizationtechniquestonameourappsuccessfullywithahigherprobabilityofsuccessratherthanjust blindly naming our apps. Using keywords and app titles in a smart way andresearchingwhathasbeenworking forotherswillhelpyou to increaseyourdownloadsandsalesovertimeratherthanthosewhodonotoptimizetheirappsfortheappstore.
ASOAPPSTOREOPTIMIZATION
AppStoreOptimizationisaverypowerfultrendtakingovertheentireappmarketplace.Choosingtherightcombinationofkeywords,icons,titlesandscreenshots(KITS)canhelpyourappincrease inrankthroughout theappstore.Goneare thedaysof justputtinganappupandprayingitwillbecomeanumberonehit.Withnowover700,000appsintheApple App Store, competing against all of them will be a challenge. This is whereoptimizationofyourappcanhelptoyieldmoredownloadsandresults.
I highly recommend using the service from AppCod.es (http://www.appcod.es). Theyliterallyletyoudrilldowntothekeywordsthatpeopleareusinginthemarkettoobtainhigherappstoresearchrankingscomparedtootherswhohavesimilarapps.
a.SimplysetupanaccountonAppCod.esfor$15/month
b.Addanappnameorpotentialappnameyouareconsideringnamingyourappandstartaddingsomekeywordsyouareconsideringtouse.
c.Nowsearch for appsusing the searchbar insideofAppCod.es andyou should see alistingofappscomeup.
d.Inthelistingyouwillnoticethateachapphasatotaldownloadcountpermonthandanoverall download count as well. Look at the apps that have high monthly and overalldownloadcounts.
e.Ofthoseappswithhigherdownloadcounts, takenoteof theappnameandkeywordstheyareusing.Wewanttouseasimilarnameandsimilarkeywords.
Forexample, Ihaveanapp in theappstorewhich IhadnamedQuizFlashcardMaker.ThiswasbeforeIdidanyformofASO.After thatIdidamajorupdateonmyappanddecided to start ASO and researched that most people were typing in just the wordflashcards.AfterthatIlookedatthekeywordsandtitlesofsimilarappsandreplacedmyownkeywordsandtitlesandrenamedtheappto“Flashcards.”(YESthereisaperiodinthetitleoftheapp).
This change helped me to rank much higher compared to other apps and instantly ifsomeonesearchedforflashcards,outofover1600apps,minewasinthetop100thistime.That’saHUGEdifferencefrombeingatthebottomofthelist!
f.Nowuse your newfound information to nameyour app and prepare keywordswhich
youwillenterwhenyousubmityourapptotheappstore.
TIP:Usesimilarkeywordsandtitlesofthetopperformingappsandyoutoowillstarttoseeanincreaseinyourapprankanddownloads!
KITSKEYWORDS,ICONS,TITLESANDSCREENSHOTS
AlongwithKeywordsandTitles,youwillalsoneedtohaveaVERYHIGHQUALITYIconandequallyhighqualityScreenshots.
A winning combination of KITS can yield a successful application that gets a lot ofdownloadsandiseasilyfoundintheAppStore.
IhighlyrecommendoutsourcingIcondesignandGraphicsdesigntospecializedgraphicartistswhohavethateyeforgraphicsandcolors.
In fact on fiverr.com I’ve been able to get many great icon designs for just $5 so it’salwaysagreatideatooutsourcethingslikethistoothers,especiallywhenthecostofsuchthings is relatively low. Simply send over your image screenshots and screen capturesfromyour device or running apps, and the graphic designers can add your promotionaltextandmakethosescreenshotsgofromboringtostellar!
Sogoaheadrightnowandgoandgetaniconandscreenshotsmadesothatyouarereadytouploadyourapptothevariousappstoresandstartsellingyourfirstapp!
CONGRATULATIONSONMAKINGITTHISFAR!
WELCOMETOTHEWORLDOFAPPDEVELOPMENT!
So…Nowwhat?
“FormulatosuccessWhenyoufall,getbackupandtry again! NOTE: If you fall again, re-read theformula!”
—AbhinavGupta
13.TRACKINGANDSALESAsyoudevelopyour appbusiness,youwillbegettinga lotof informationdaily.Salesvolumes,applicationdownloads,anumberofappsinvariousmarkets,totalrevenue,etc.From this youwant to be able to drawvarious conclusions to help you growyour appbusiness.Let’sfaceit,ifyoudon’tknowyournumbers,youhavenoideawhereyouareorwhereyou’regoinginyourbusiness.
YouneedtoknowWHATspecificnumberswillhelpyou,andyouaredoingthisbecausewith that specific information you can make an educated judgment call on choosingvariousmarketsorcancelinglowperformingmarkets.Numberswillhelpyoudeterminehowtoplanyourmarketingstrategyoralsohowtoprepareforupcomingcosts.
Knowingyour numbers can be very crucial in theAppBusiness so that iswhywe aregoingtogooversomeveryspecialareastotrack.
A.FUNDAMENTALTRACKINGFundamentalsaretrackingnon-numericalthings.Usuallythisisthemarketnewsorlatestproduct announcements.Findingout that anewappmarket is about tocomeoutor thenexttabletdevicecouldhelpyougainmorerevenuesinthefuture,youcanstartpreparingyour apps for that new market. Fundamental tracking is important because it helpsPREPARE you for changes in the market. Always keep up to date on the latestfundamental news from top news sites on technology. I personally am subscribed toseveralmajor news agencieswho are in technology, includingReuters, CNN and evenGizmodoandCNET.
B.TECHNICALTRACKINGThisistheactualtrackingofnumbers.Youwanttoknowsalesvolume,salesprojections,salesrevenue,totaldownloadspermarket,totaldownloadsperday,what’syourbestdays,what’s your worst days, etc. Technical tracking is the real meat and potatoes of youroperationandgivesyouapulsecheckofyourbusiness.ItisdoneDAILYaswell,andyoumayendupgoingtothedataseveraltimesintheday.
To help in your technical tracking, I have created over the past yearsmy special SalesTrackingSheet!Thissheet isavailableonlinefordownload tomyreadersandfor thosewhoarepartofmyprograms,toolsandsystems.
ToobtainthisspecialdocumentaswellastheothersIhavementionedsimplygototheGame Scorpion Website (http://www.gamescorpion.com) and click on the AppTrillionaireslink.Unlockthepageusethefollowingpassword:onetrillion.Fromthereinthe downloads list you will see a special spreadsheet document calledsalestrackingsheet_Completed.xlsx.SimplydownloadandsavethefiletoyourharddriveandyoushouldbeabletoopenthisdocumentupusingMicrosoftExcelorevenuploadingthisintoGoogleDocsSpreadsheetandsettingituponline.IhighlyrecommenduploadingitasaGoogleDocsSpreadsheet.
TRACKINGSHEETBASICS
Before we continue on with using the tracking sheet, please make sure you havedownloadeditontoyourcomputerdesktop.Thefollowingstepsassumeyouhavealreadydonethisandhavethefileonyourcomputer.
Step1.SheetSetup
1. Upload salestrackingsheet_Completed.xlsx file. (NOTE: If it does not look like aGoogleDocsSpreadsheet,simplyinsideofGoogleopenthedocumentandclickonFile ConverttoGoogleSpreadSheet.)
Step2.SheetConcepts
Concept1-UNITValue=$0.99
Alwaysmakesure thatevery timeyouenteranysalesvolume,youenter it inasUNITVALUE. For example, if you have an app that sells for $1.99, it would be equal to 2UNITS for every 1 SALEof that app. If you sold 5 apps at $1.99 youwould have 10UNITSthatyouwouldenter.
Concept2-DailyInputs
Itwillbeassumedthateverydayyouwillbegoingat12AMEasternTimetocheckoutthe daily sales numbers for the DAY BEFORE. For example, if at 12 AM EST yourcomputer clock’s date says July 5th, youwould be checking SALES for July 3rd. The
reasonwedothisisthatsaleshavenotusuallyfinalizeduntilafull24hourshaspassed.Manymarketplacesallowtimeforausertorefundanappandalsorequiretimetofinalizetheirnumbers.
Alternatively youmay also check the numbers early in themorning.The same conceptapplies,subtracttwodaysfromthecurrentdatetogettheactualdayyouaregoingtoenternumbersfor.
AlsoifyouareoniOSyouwillnoticethatsometimesappsalesaredelayed.This1daydifferencetakesintoaccountALLthesefactorsandformostoftheyearthis2daydelayworksverywell.TheONLYtimethis2daydelaydoesnotworkisduringDECEMBER.
Expect to have no sales data being shown to you formany days if not weeks! In factAppletakesa1-2weekBREAKduringDecemberwhichmeansthatyoucan’tevenSEEyour salesvolume forat least anentireweekduringDecember!Nowyouknow, soBEPREPARED!
Concept3-TotalDailySales
In the sales tracking sheet on the first page there is a long equation. This equation(=B4+B15+B26+B37+B48+B59+B70+B81+B92+B103+B114+B125+B136+B147+B158)will help you in calculating daily sales. It takes into account up to 15 differentMarketplaces!Asyouexpandyourbusinessyouwillbeabletoaddvariousmarketplaceswhichyouwouldliketotestintothemix.
Notallmarketplacesworkwell,so lateryoucanalways throwamarketplaceoutof themixatanytime.ThisequationlistedabovewillcalculatethesalesfortheFIRSTSundayof themonth. If IaddaSINGLEdigit toeachCellnumber, Iwill thenendupwith thetotalsalesforthefirstMONDAYofthemonth.Forexample:
=B5+B16+B27+B38+B49+B60+B71+B82+B93+B104+B115+B126+B137+B148+B159
Concept4-ColoredZones(GreenorAqua)
ThroughoutthesheetsyouwillnoticeGreenZonesorAquaZones.TheseareEDITABLEareas.DoNOTeditoutsideoftheseareas.Thesheetwillautocalculateeverythingbasedonyourentriessomakesureyouonlyenteringreenareas.Thatbeingsaidhowever,playaround with the sheet to try some new things. If you start learning how to work withspreadsheetsevenmoreyoumayevenbeabletodoevenmorefancythingsandgetevenmoreinterestingnumbersspitouttoyou.ForexampleIwasabletoadjustthesheetandcalculate what percentage of my overall sales each market I had my apps in wasgenerating.Thesenumberscanhelpyouinmakingdecisionsinthefuturetoeithersupportamarketortotallyleaveamarketcompletely!
So thereyouhave it, nowyoucan startmanipulating the sheet asyouwishor learningfrommynewsletters,programsorotheronlineresourceshowtokeepyoursalesdatauptodateandhelpingyougrowyourbusiness.TechnicalandFundamentalanalysisofyourappbusinesswillhelpyoutosucceedastheMobileIndustrychangesrapidly!
“Dreamsarewhatmakelifeworthliving.Dreambig!Dream of theBEST! This iswhat builds hope in lifeandgivesusareasontotryharder!”
—AbhinavGupta
14.APPMARKETINGBASICS
WHATISMARKETING?
Marketing is in a nutshell the process used to inform a certain group (known as ademographic) of certain products or services via various forms andmethods (Print ads,SocialMedia,TVCommercials,Newspapers,etc.)overacertainperiodoftimeinordertoachievequantifiablegoals(Numberofleads,NumberofSales,etc.).
ManypeoplebelievethatMarketingisADVERTISING.MarketingisNOTadvertising,itisamuchmorelargerareathansimplyadvertising.
Amarketingprofessionalrequiresalotmorethansimplyanadvertisingprofessional,yetmanytimesthetwoprofessionsarethoughttobethesame.Youcanthinkofadvertisingprofessionals as simply thosewho just create ads in one area and do not really PLANthingsoutlikeamarketingprofessionalwould.Anadvertiserissimplyapersonwhojustcreatesanadandputsitoutandkeepsrepeatingtheprocess.
Marketing professionals focus more on a procedure and usually ask the followingquestions:
1.Whatarewetryingtoachieve?
a.MoreSales
b.MoreLeads
c.MoreDownloads(Notnecessarilysales)
2.WHOisourTARGETmarket?
a.FocusonASL(Age,Sex,Location,etc.)
b. Focus on other factors which may help define the market more such asreligion,habits,etc.
c.Whatistheperfectimageofyourtargetmarket?Iwasoncetoldofagreatwayto imagine the market for ELECTRONICS His name is MAT (Man AfterTechnology=MAT).
d.Wheredoesyourtargetmarketspendmostoftheirtime?
e.Keepontryingtodefinetheperfectexactimageofyourtargetmarket
3.WhatdoesyourtargetmarketREACTto?
a.Ex.Menreacttosex/sexyads,alsoSPORTSads,alsocar/technologyads,etc.
b. Ex. Women react to sex/sexy ads of Men, HOME related ads,Jewelery/Shoppingads,etc.
c.Expandonyourtargetmarketbyasking100peopleinyourtargetmarketwhatthey would like to see in an ad.What peoplemay react to today is not whatpeoplereactedto10yearsago!Evenifyouthinkyouknowyourmarket,doingamarketanalysisconsistentlywillyieldbetterresults.
4. Define what ADVERTISING METHODS you will utilize to attract the specificmarkettoyourproduct/service.Newspaper?SocialMedia?Print?TV?Radio?Etc.ThiswillbebasedonaBUDGETthatcanbespent.
Track results! Thiswill basically be ratios based on amount spent. For example if youshow5000peopleanadvertisementusingvariousadvertisingmethodsandgenerate1000sales,that’sa20%closingratio(meansthatyougot20%ofthepeoplewhosawyouradtomake apurchaseor to take action). If your app is $0.99 andyoupaid$1000 for theadvertisingthat’snearwhatwewouldcallaBREAKEVENpoint(1000unitsat$1each=$1000). This can help you determine a futuremarketing push that you can then defineaftertakinginthatdataandonlypayingforthosemarketingmethodsthathadthehighestratios.Maybesomeadvertisingmethodshada50%ratiovs.othersthatmayhavehada5%ratio.Ifyoukeepfocusingonthosemethodsthathadhigherratios,you’llgetbetterresults.
LOCALMARKETINGWhenitcomestolocalmarketingofyourbusinessthemostcommonattemptsfromthosewho are just starting out at physicalmarketing and advertisingmethods usually end upbeingintheprintmediaornon-humaninteractionareasofadvertising.Mostpeoplewhoarenewtoadvertisingandmarketingtheirbusinesstendtobeafraidofsayinghello,anditsnotthattheyareafraidoftalkingtopeople,itcouldverywellbethemainfearthatgetsmostofusandthatisthefearofrejection.
EvennowaftermanyyearsofhavingasolidfoundationinRetailSalesaswellaslearningsomeofthemostadvancedmethodofcoldcallinganddealingwithcustomers,Istillhavejitterseverynowandagainaboutrejection.Whenyouarerunningasmallbusiness,youtendtothinksometimesthatotherswillbeabletodothejobforyou,butIcanassureyouthatnooneknowsyourproduct(inmostcases)betterthanyoudo,especiallyifyou’reanentrepreneur!
Soletmecutrighttothechase…theBESTmosteffectivewaytocloseanysalesdealisWORDOFMOUTHmarketing. Basicallywhat thismeans in a nutshell is that peopletend to trust a person over an advertisement. Secondly, they tend to trust a real humanbeingoverasalesperson.
Sohowdoyou:
a.MeetPeoplewhowouldbeinterestedinyourbusiness
b.Not“SELL”themanythingandatthesametimeincreaseyoursales
Wowdoesthateversoundchallenging?
ThesolutionforthefirstpartisLOCALMARKETING.ThesolutiontothesecondpartisREFERRINGBUSINESS to others first and genuinely trying to help the other peoplemakemoneyaswell.
Now the stuff I’mabout to gooverwillwork for both theAppBusiness and for otherbusinessesaswell.SomeofthemethodsIhavebeenusingformyappbusinesshavebeencreating flyers, business cards and email lists discussing our latest apps and business.WhenImeetpeople Iwillusually talk lessand listenmore to themand takeagenuineinterestintryingtohelpthemout.Aftermeetingthem,IgenerallywillfollowupwithanemailandreallykeeptheminmindwhenImeetpeopletoseeifIcanfindthembusiness.Ialsoask themif theywould like to joinuponmymailing listaswellandwouldpassaroundmynewsletterorpromotions to those that they feelwouldbe interestedaswell.This goes into building a solid RELATIONSHIP rather than becoming a sleazy salesperson looking to justclose thedeal.So letmenowgoover the twoareassoyougetasolidideaoneach.
NETWORKINGEVENTS
Hereisalistofwebsitesthatwillhelpyoutofindprofessionalbusinesstobusinessandbusiness to customer networking and marketing events in your local areas (Some will
chargeacover fee,somewillbecompletelyfree toattend.ALWAYSdressprofessionalduring mornings, semi-professional during evening events and I would not everrecommend toevergowith runningshoesanda t-shirtunless there isevera reason to.FirstimpressionsDOMATTER!):
Meetup (http://www.meetup.com): This is the best place in my opinion to find localeventsinyourarea.Yousimplydefinethesearchparametersanditshowsyouallthelocalphysicalnetworkingeventsthatarecomingup.
Lanyrd (http://www.lanyrd.com): Another great event listing site which lists downmany events and even allows you to search them as well. Lanyrd deals more withconferences,howeveryoumayendupfindingsomesolidconferencesthatyoucanattendandmeetmanypeoplewhomaybeinterestedinyourapps.IfyouhavebuiltaHealthappforexample,agreatconferencewouldbeonewithalotofHealthProfessionalsinit.
Upcoming(http://upcoming.yahoo.com/):Thisisanotherconferencesite,butdealsalsowithmany localevents thatmayalsobenon-business. I’d recommendcheckingout theconferencesandlocalbusinessnetworkinggroupswithmeetingscomingup.
BNI(http://www.bni.com):Thegranddaddyofnetworkinginmyopinion.IlearnedsoverymuchfromjoininguptomyownlocalBNIChapter in thepast. Ifyouareseriousabout networking thenBNI is the place to be.The costmay be an issue, but it iswellworthitinthelongrun.Ifyou’relookingatnetworking,orevenlearninghowtobecomeabetternetworkerANDgrowyourbusinessatthesametime,thenBNIistheway.Thebaseconcept is that30orso localbusinessownersget30-60seconds tostatewhat it istheydoaroundatablewhileeatingbreakfastorlunch.Attheendofthemeeting,referralsarepassedaroundanddealsaremadeeveryweek!
Eventbrite (http://www.eventbrite.com/): This is a great site to find local businessmeetingsandconferencesyoucanattend.
Eventful (http://www.eventful.com): This is another one of those great event findingwebsites, however it features events in all topic areas. I highly recommend searchingthroughtoseewhatrelatedeventsarecomingupwhichhavebusinessandnetworkinginmind.Withasimplesearchyoucanfindlocalnetworkingandbusinessopportunities!
Zvents(http://www.zvents.com/):ThisoneissimilartoEventfulandrequiresasearchtofindrelevantnetworkingopportunities.
OTHERGROUPSTOCHECKOUT (Google search these veryVERY importantgroups):YourlocalBoardofTrade,ChamberofCommerce,LionsClub,ToastMasters,and also do a search for local business networking groups! There are many that areavailablethroughoutyourlocalarea.
BEFOREARRIVINGTOANYMEETING/EVENT
Firstlybeforeevendecidingtogotoanevent,haveaplanofaction.ChooseONLYthoseeventsthatfityourtargetmarketornichebest.Don’tjustrandomlystartgoingtoaneventjust because you think “EVERYONE” is your target market. Not everyone likes“ChocolateBars”sodon’tassumeeveryoneisthe“MARKET”foryourproduct.Ifyour
appsareeducational,chooseeventsandvenueswithlocalbusinessownersorconferencesdealing with the education market. Don’t just end up at a “Top Dogs and Puppies”conferencethinkingyou’llbeabletogeteveryonetobuyyourapp!DogsandPuppiesareaVERYdifferenttargetmarketthaneducation!You’dbebetteroffhittingupaconferencefornewteachersorauniversitiesandcollegesconference.Okaysonowletsmoveontosomeimportantpointsbeforeheadingtoameetingandduringameeting:
1. Arrive EARLY by 15 minutes, but don’t be there so early that you distract theorganizerseither.Bepunctualbutdon’tbeapest.
2.ALWAYShavebusinesscardsandmarketingmaterialready.Ifyou’replanningtogotoanetworkingeventwithoutthesebasicrequireditems,thendon’tbothergoing.
3. Leave your family/life/personal issues at the DOOR! A POSITIVE mentality isrequiredwhenyougo into theseevents. Ifyouareplanning togo in there looking tomakefriendswhoyouwouldhangoutwithovertheweekend,thenyou’reinthewrongplace.Thisisaprofessionalenvironment,sokeepitprofessional.
4. Don’t drink TOO MUCH! Several of these events (Such as boards of trade orchamberofcommercemonthlyeveningnetworkingevents)will tend togiveyoufreedrinksatthebar.Keepyourfocusonbuildingrelationships,notonjustgettingcarriedawaydrinking.Not only is it dangerous for you, it canmake you hurt your businessimageandcouldalsobepotentiallydangerousifyouplantodriveafterthat.
5. Don’t eat TOO MUCH! Yes you heard me right! Many of these events featurebreakfast or lunch.The last thing youwant is to be educating a business networkingpartneronyourbusinessonlytohavetoendupgoingtothebathroom.Youneverknowwhoyou’respeakingwithsometimes,andthelastthingyouwantistowalkawayfromtheCEOofacorporationwiththousandsofemployeeswhomaybeinterestedinyourappsor to someonewho is sowell connected that they simply tellpeopleaboutyourappsandyoursalesincrease.ImyselfonetimehadtowalkawaytothebathroomonlytofindoutthatthepersonIwasspeakingtowasoneoffiveowners/partnersina500milliondollarcompanywithover2000employeesworldwide!
6. Arrive Early, Stay Late! Networking should never be rushed! Spend timewith asmanypeopleasyoucan,andstaylatetogettoknoweveryone.Therearemanytimesyou’ll endup spending timewith theeventcreatorsaswell andcould lead toagreatbusiness relationship that could get you into more venues or even give you theopportunitytospeakorpresentyourbusinessinotherupcomingmeetings.
7. SHOWANDTELL!Always have a reason for your conversations.What are youlookingforthisweek?Didyoujustdevelopanewapp?Showit!TakeyouriPad/iPhonealongandalwayshaveyourapps ready to showpeople.Thiswilldefinitelyget themengagedandwillallowyoutoeasilybreaktheiceandstarttheconversation.
8.LISTEN!Alwayshaveagenuineinterestinlearningaboutotherpeoplesbusinesses!Don’tjusttalkandgoonandonaboutyourbusiness.Thisisasharingexperience,andinfactIwouldrecommendtalkinglessandlisteningmore.
9. TALK! Learn to talk at the right times and have a 30 second pitch about yourbusinessandhowyouoryourbusinesshelpsothersout.Talkaboutbenefitsratherthanwhat you do. Example: “We make apps” does not share benefits of what you do.Somethinglike,“WehelppeoplehavefunwiththeiriPad/iPhonewhileboredonatraintoworkortakingaquickstudybreakatschoolbycreatinginterestingandfunappsandgames” is a better pitch. Another example would be if you are an accountant, youwouldn’twanttojustsay“I’manaccountant”,butinsteadtryandshowhowyouhelppeopleout,“Wehelptakethestressoutoftaxes”.Yougetthepoint?Makea30secondpitchonwhoyouare,what’syourbusiness,andwhatyou’relookingfor!
10.DONOTSELLORCLOSEADEAL!ThepointofnetworkingisNOTtocloseadealthefirst timeyoumeetsomeone!Iknowitmayseemlikeaweirdstatement,butthe goal is to build a relationship. You’re not in it for the get-rich-quick cash flow,you’reinitforthelong,consistent,growingcashflowthatcanonlycomefromasolidbusinessthatgrowsinreputation.Doyouwantyourbusinesstobelookedatlikeit’sa“usedcarsalesman”orlikeafortune500company?Thechoiceisuptoyou!
BUILDINGARELATIONSHIP
1.Aftereveryevent,alwaysfollowupadayortwolaterwithanemailoracalltothankthepersonandtoaskthemtojoinyourmailinglist.
2.Ask them to go for a coffee to learnmore about howyou can refer their businessbetter!Bookatimetohaveaprofessionalsitdownwhichwillhelpyoutolearnmoreaboutthispersonandviceversa.
3.Always respect email rules and never spam anyone. If they do notwish to join amailing list, don’t do it. You’re better off forgetting about them and moving ontoanotherpotentialbusinessrelationship.
4.YouwillALWAYSfindthetravelingsalesperson.Don’tgetconnedintopushysalespeople.Also,don’tbecomeapushysalespersonyourself.
5. AIM FOR 1-3 months to build the relationship out. During this time, help referbusinesstopeopleandinturntheywillwanttodothesame.
6.Alwaysthankyourreferralpartners(that’swhatyoucalltheserelationships)forthebusinesstheyhavegiventoyouintheyear.Aneasywaytodothisistosimplysendoutathankyoucardeveryyear.TherearemanyservicesthatcanhelpyououtifyouhaveabulklistofcontactssuchasonethatIhavetriedbeforecalledSendOutCards.com.
“Challengeshappen,youWILLovercomethem!Keeppositive and believe! Success is right around thecorner!”
—AbhinavGupta
15.MYKILLERAPPMARKETINGTIPSANDTECHNIQUES
Onceyouhave an active app in the app store and thevarious appmarkets, andyou’vefollowedalltheASOandKITSadviceandhavesetthingsupcorrectly,thenthenextstepinvolvesincreasingyourdownloadsandsalesvolume.
Okay,sonowletmesharewithyousomeofmykillermarketingtipsandtricksthatI’velearnedalongthewaythatIknowworksandcanhelpyouincreasesalesanddownloadvolumes!
KILLERTIP#1:LOCALIZEDKEYWORDS!
Somethingneathappenswhenyoustarttoaddlanguagestoyourappusingwhatisknownaslocalization…Yougetanother100charactersfortotallydifferentkeywords!WhatIliketo do is research keywords in different languages that people would type in and forEnglish based languages I can have up to about 4 different keyword sets!USEnglish,CanadianEnglish,AustralianEnglishandBritishEnglish!Thisisareallyneattipthathashelpedme to start gaining higher rankings due to a higher amount of keywords inmyapps.
KILLERTIP#2:LOCALIZEDTITLES!
YoumaynotbeabletogetyourtopcovetedtitleintheUSAppstore,howeveryoumaybeable toget a translated title that is ahotheavyhitter in another country!This couldeasily increase your global sales and hence your revenues! Always look for translatedtitlesthatcanhelpyouincreaseyourdownloads!
KILLERTIP#3:HOLDACONTESTIhaveusedthissuccessfullytimeandtimeagainandIendupgettinghonestfeedbackandratingsfast,withoutissues,andallforjustgivingawaya$15iTunesGiftCard!
a.SimplysignuptoTouchArcade.comforumsandthenpostacontestasadeveloperfora$15iTunesGiftCard.
b. Purchase your iTunes Gift Cards either from your local Walmart, or fromJerryCards.comifyouareoverseas.
c. Give each valid user review a ticket number and track ticket numbers inside of aspreadsheet.
d.Onthedrawdateyouhaveselected,useRandom.orgtoselectarandomnumberfromtherangeofticketid’syouhaveobtained.
e.Drawawinnerandgiveawaythegiftcard.
Nowafterthecontestyou’reconsideredasoliddeveloperasyougainnewfanswholoveyouforgivingawaya$15iTunesGiftCard.You’vealsoreceivedappreviewsFAST!InmostcasesIusuallygetaminimumof10appreviewsandmanyofthemturnouttobepretty decent. The best part is that all of the reviews are HONEST and are helpful inmakingsure I create thebestqualityapps.Thishelpsgivemyapp theBESTchanceatmakingitsuccessfully.
KILLERTIP#4:APPUPDATESAlwaysupdateyourapp!Notonlywillyougetmoreusers,you’llalsokeepyourprevioususershappy!
KILLERTIP#5:PUSHNOTIFICATIONSI personally can recommend a few push notification services. One that I have usedsuccessfully has been PushWoosh.com and another one that I have just startedinvestigatingheavilyisPushWizard.com.
Push notifications arewhat I like to call Cash for Clicks!You simply grow your pushnotificationuserbaseovertime,thenduringcertaintimesintheyear,changethepriceofoneofyourappsthatarerelatedtotheappthathasthepushnotificationsbuiltinandsendapushmessagetothatuserbase.
Instantly you should see an inflow of sales the next day, and in some cases this couldmeanthousandsofdollarsfromasimpleclickofthemousetosendyourmessageviapushnotification.Forthisreason,IliketocallthisCashforClicks!
KILLERTIP#6:INPERSONMARKETINGThisisoneareathatnotmanyappdevelopersaredoingmuchifatall!Wordofmouthis
trulythemostpowerfulmethodofmarketingandwhatIhavedonetohelpincreaseappsales has been creating flyers and physicalmarketingmaterial to helpme promotemyapps inmy localmarket. To add to it, I have created business cardswithmywebsite,email,linktotheAppStorewithourappsandmyinformationonit.Ithengoaroundtovariousvenuesthroughoutthemonthandmeetwithotherbusinessownersandindividualstopromotemybusinessinperson.
OnthenextpagesareafewoftheprintreadyflyersIhavemadethatIusetopromoteourtwoappsIntimateFireplaceandMyClockStationPro.
MyClockStationProFlyer
(NONDIE-CUT)
IntimateFireplaceFlyer
(NONDIE-CUT)
KILLERTIP#7:MULTIPLEMARKETSTomakemoremoneyandmarketyourappsevenmore,Ihighlyrecommendgettingyourappsintoasmanymarketsasyoucan.Thiswillhelptogiveyoumaximumexposureandrevenuesasyoustarttogrowyourbusinessonline.
KILLERTIP#8:HAROThisoneisaninterestingnewtoolI’vebeenusingthathashelpedmetogetmyappsoutthere. It’s a website called HelpAReporter.com better known as HARO. On this site,reporters from all around theworld come and request pitches for products or expertisefrom various industries. There aremany timeswhere you can easily get your app intoprominentmagazines andwebsites simplybypitchingyour app.This is a greatway toreallygetthewordoutthere!HAROisasecretweaponI’vebeenusingsuccessfullyforawhilenowandIplantocontinuetouseitevenmoregoingforward!
KILLERTIP#9:MARKETINGFORUMSThereareseveralmarketingforumsouttherethatarealwayskeepinguptodatewiththelatest inMobileMarketing techniques. The ones I am listing here are ones that I havepersonally used and am a part of. I try not to spend too much time talking on thesewebsites,buttryingtolearnandhelpoutothersaswell,withwhateverlittleknowledgeImayhavebeenblessedwithinthisindustry.
WarriorForum(http://www.warriorforum.com)
DigitalPointForums(http://forums.digitalpoint.com/)
KILLERTIP#10:THERIGHTPRICEPOINTThesweetspotpricenowgoinginto2013isFREE.Yesyoureadright…FREE!Sohowtheheckdoyoumakemoney fromsomething for free?Thesolution to this iscalled InAppPurchasesandMobileInAppAdvertising.
This method works extremely well for games, however for utilities and apps in othercategories IuseaLITE/FULLversionmethodwhere I releasea freeversionof theappwith limited functionality and then using push notifications I hold price promotionsrandomly.
In thepast a commonmethod that alsoworkedwellwasPRICEFLIPPING inwhichapersonwouldtaketheirappthatwasmoreexpensivethan$0.99andwouldputitdowntojust$0.99.Thisalsoworksbutnotaswellasituseto.IfindthatabettermethodistouseaFreemiummodelforgamesandusingin-apppurchasesletpeopleunlockyourapp.Thissame method has been used in the software industry for years and was known as“SHAREWARE” in which a user would get a limited functionality app and wouldpurchaseafulllicensetounlockallthefeatures.
Freemium is now becoming the norm, however I still urge you to try out the varioustechniquestoseewhatworksbestforyourapp.Itmaybeamixtureofseveralmethodsormaybeonespecificmethod,butyou’llhavetokeeptweakingandtestinguntilyougetitjustright!
Each app is a different beast so what works for one app in pricing may not work foranotherone.InanycasealwaystryandmonetizeyourappsusingIn-AppadvertisingandPushNotifications!
KILLERTIP#11:LOCALIZATIONLocalizationisafancytermforsimplychangingthelanguageofyourappfromEnglishtoanotherlanguagearoundtheworld.Bydoingthisyouopenupyourapptoaworldwideaudienceandanincreasedchanceatsales.Youcanliterallyseeanincreaseindownloadssimplybyhavingapopulartitleforyourappinadifferentlanguageormayevenstarttoseedownloadsfromuserswhofinallyunderstandwhatyourappisabout.
Another great feature of localizing your app meta data and info is that you can gainanotherchanceataddingevenmorekeywordsandscreenshotstoyourapp,whichinturnmeansMOREmarketingandahigherchanceofdownloads.Inanycase,localizationisagreatwaytoreallypushyourapptoitsmaximumpotential.
Okaysonowyouknowsomekiller tacticsyoucanuse tohelpgrowyourbusinessandincrease your downloads and revenue. What comes next is having a killer mindset tohandleyournewfoundincome!
“SuccessfulpeopledowhatunsuccessfulpeoplewouldconsiderHARDWORKorBORINGAUTONOMOUSwork.Onlypersistenceyieldsresults!”
—AbhinavGupta
16.THEMILLIONAIREMINDSETI personally decided towrite this book because Iwanted to help peoplewho share thesamevisionofnotonlyhelpingthemselvesandtheirfamilies,butalsogivingbacktotheirlocalcommunities.IwrotethisbooktohelpbuildRESPONSIBLEwealthyandsuccessfulpeople.
Whenyougrow larger Iwould love to see yougive to thosewho are less fortunate. IfsomeonehaslostajobandisNOTqualified,becharitableifyouhavetheresourcesandpay for that person’s education and HIRE THEM in your business! You would havehelpednotjustoneperson,butpossiblyanentirefamilykeepahouseandnotgobankrupt(like what happened to me). Help out your local communities, schools, hospitals. Beresponsiblewiththemoneyandabundanceyouhavebeenblessedwith!
That ismymissionwith thisbook. Ifyoufollowwhat Ihaveoutlinedhere,youshouldmostlikelybecomequitewealthyfinancially.
Inordertoreallygrowthisbusinessandkeepatitwhentimesgettough,yourequireatopnotch positivemindset.Getting thismindset can be a challenge, but I’ve laid out somestepsyoucantakerightnowtohelpyouonthepathofcreatingthatabundantmindsetthatwillhelpyousucceed!
Soletsstartoffbyaskingyourselfthisimportantquestion:
WHYAREYOUHERE?
HaveyoufiguredoutWHYyouaredoingthis?
STEP1–DEFINEYOURVISIONIf youwant to become amillionaire to pay bills, then you’re in the “GetRichQuick”mentality.You’llbefocusingonyourdebtandtrustme,thatwillNOTgetyourichatall,notevenclose!
Infactmostpeoplewhohavebecomemillionaires(andI’mnottalkingaboutthelotterywinsor thosewhogot it frominheritance)are theoneswhohadagreatVISION!TheirvisionwasSOlargethatitwasallthattheycouldsee.
Whatisyourgreatvision?Wheredoyouseeyourself inthenext5years?10years?50years?Whatdoyoubelieveyourpurposeishere?
Itrulybelieveweallhaveareasontobehere,apowerfulpurpose,avision!Maybeoneofyoucouldendupcuringaids,anotherpersoncouldhelpoutlittlechildren,someoneelsecouldfocusoncreatingbeautifulmusicthatcouldhelphealthesoulofmillions!
Comeupwith apowerfulvisionand let thathelpMOTIVATEYOUwheneveryouaskyourself“WhyAmIdoingthis?”
I was there many times as well and asked that same question, but because I had aMASSIVEVISIONformylife,Iwasalwaysabletokeeponkeepingon!
STEP2–DEFINEYOURTHOUGHTSThoughtsareTHINGS!Youmayhaveheardthisverystatementseveraltimesinvariousplaces. It isvery true!Whatyou thinkabout iswhatyouhave thepotentialofcreating.Whateveryouthinkaboutthemostiswhattendstohappen.
Youmaythinkthisisallnonsense,butitistrue.Ifeverydayyousurroundyourselfwithnegativethoughtsandnegativepeople,youaregoingtomostlikelygetnegativeresults.
Changethatandstartsurroundingyourselfwithpositivethoughtsandpositivepeopleandyourresultswillendupbeingpositive!
Unlessyoucanchangeyourmentality,itwillbeveryhardtohitsuccessATALL!
Focusingonwhatyouwantratherthanwhatyoudon’twantisthekeytowatchingyourthoughts!Go to“HAPPY”places thatyouknowwillputa smileonyour faceandwillallow you to change your thoughts to those of “I CAN” and “EVERYTHING ISPOSSIBLE”.
STEP3–INCORPORATETHEFOURKEYSTOSUCCESSFaith,Belief,PositiveMindsetandPersistence!
Thesefourkeystobecomingsuccessfulareimportant,andinmyopinion,arequirementtosuccess.
In my life I went through many of these phases where I would have either Belief inmyself,butnoneoftheotherqualities.OrIwouldpersistonlytobemiserable(Thisisthewhole“JOB”example,whereyouareconstantlypersistentlygoingtowork,butyoudon’tlikeit).
You need to have all FOUR items to truly start seeing success! In order tomake yourvisionofyourfuturereal,youneedtoBELIEVEthatitispossible.YouneedtohaveaPOSITIVEMINDSET about it. You need to PERSIST at making it a reality ANDduringtimesoffallingdown(alwaysrememberpersistencemeansyougetbackupagain),havingFAITHinahigherpower(inmycaseIprayedtoGodallthetime)willbethegluetomakeeverythingconnect,especiallyduringtimeswhenthingsmayseemimpossible!
STEP4–DEFINEYOURBUBBLESSo what is holding you back? Usually it’s your own self in most cases, and a largecontributingfactortothisistheconceptofBUBBLES!Weliveinvariousbubbles,somebig,somesmall,buteachbubbleisaspecificgroupofpeople.Thiscouldbeabubbleofpeoplewhoallearn40-50k.Itcouldbeabubbleoffactoryworkers,orabubbleoffamily,etc.Wehaveseveralbubblesthatweareapartofonadailybasis,andthisgrouptendstohelpmoldourthoughtsandwaysoflife.
ThereasonIhavegivenittheterm“bubble”isbecauseuntilweSTEPOUTSIDEofthisbubble,wedon’trealizewhatisTRULYPOSSIBLE!
Take forexampleabubbleconsistingof friendswhoallmake40k-50kperyearandallownahouseandhavefamilies.Askanyofthemtogooutfora$100/persondinner,andyou’ll have them flinch at the price! Take the next bubble of friends who are allDOCTORS,andyouwillhavethemnoteventhinktwiceabouttheprice.
Inmost caseswe are stuck in various bubbles due to our families. These are themorechallengingbubblestobestuckinanditcanbequitehardto“lookoutside”thebubbletoseewhatispossible.
IfyourbubbleconsistsofpeoplewhohaveNEVERthoughtofmillionsorcouldNEVERimagine themselves evenmakingmillions, theywill think you are crazy! Ironically themethodstheyfollowdoNOTattractmillionsofdollars,nordotheirlifestylesshowthattheyarelivinglikemillionaires.Sochancesare,ifyouare“NOT”withthemandcopyingthemandlivingintheirlifestyle,youare“NOT”thesameandtheycannot“RELATE”toyou.HENCEyoucannotbuildalasting“RELATIONSHIP”andthat’swherefriendshipsdieoff.
You may have heard many people say, “Oh money changed them, they no longer arefriendswithme”.InmostcasestheironyisthatinordertoMAKEMONEYyouneedtochange the bubble that you are a part of, and people in your original bubblewillNOTunderstand that. Because you will be more focused on doing things the people in theabundant bubbles do, your original friends from your original bubble will think thatyou’vechangedorthat“money”changedyou.Itisactuallyquitefarfromthetruth,andinactualityyoucouldnothavechangeduntilyousteppedoutsidethebubbleandlookedatwhatwaspossible.
EventilltodayIhavemanyfriends/familywhojustdon’tunderstandwhyIdon’thavea“JOB”.UntilIsteppedoutsideofthat“bubble”Ididn’tknowthatyoudon’thavetohaveajob,butcouldactuallylovewhatyoudoandlivea life that isEXTRAORDINARY!InowhaveaCareer,Ireallydon’twork,IlovewhatIdoandenjoyit!Thisissomethingthatmyoriginal“bubble”offriendsandfamilyjustdonotunderstand.TheycallitweirdandeverytimeImeetthesesamepeoplefromthatbubble,theyalwaystryandfindsomewayto“RELATE”tomeandalwaystryandgetmetoeithergeta“JOB”ordothingsthattheycan“RELATE”tobecausetheyhaveneversteppedoutsidethebubbleandjustwantyoutobeapartoftheirbubble.
IactuallyhadonepersongetsoupsetatmebecauseIwas“SMILING”aboutlife.
“HOW CAN YOU BE HAPPY? YOU DON’T HAVE A JOB! AREN’T YOUMISERABLE?”
The ironywas, theyweremiserableand Iwashappy,and thatwaswhatgot themevenmoreupset, theywantedmetobemiserablewith themsothat theydidn’tfeel that theywerecrazyandthe“onlyone”whowasmiserable!
Ifyoucan’tsmileinlife,quitefranklyyou’rewastingyourtimedoingthewrongthings.And I’mnot talkingaboutwaiting for theRIGHTTIME tobehappyandgrateful.Youshould be able to be happy and grateful about life atMOST times (Obviously I’m notsayinggotoafuneralandstartdancingandlaughing,that’snotwhatImeanbythis).But
formosttimesinyourlife,youshouldbeabletoreallyenjoyandsmileaboutitandsay,“WOWthisisamazing!Ican’tbelieveIGETtodothis!”
Asyoubecomeanappdeveloper,andstartgoingoutsideofyourbubble,expecttomeetmanyfromyouroriginalbubblewhojustdon’tunderstandorrelatetoyou.That’sbecauseyouare steppingoutsideofyouroriginal bubble to seewhat else is possible, and I canassureyouhereandnowthatANYTHINGYOUPUTYOURMINDTOANDBELIEVEWITHFAITHANDAPOSITIVEMENTALATTITUDEISFULLYPOSSIBLE!
STEP5–VISUALIZATIONOk so now onto some visualization tools and exercises. So how do you visualizeabundance?Letsstartattherootofit,whichisMONEY.
HereisagreatwebsitethatprovidesatoolthatyoucanusetogaintheMENTALITYofabundance. It is calledUnlimitedUniversalBank.combyMegan Jenifer.You simply putyouremailaddressin,andeveryfewdaystoeveryweek,yougetaVIRTUALDEPOSITof$1000intoavirtualbankaccount.
Ifyoutreatitlikearealbankaccountthatyounevercantakemoneyoutof,youwillstarttonoticethatas itaccumulates,yourEMOTIONSofabundancestart togrow.THATISTHEKEY!
Youwanttobuildanemotionalfeelingofabundance,andsoonenoughthisemotionwillallow you to start focusing on the things that WILL gain you even more abundance.Pushing your vision forward, you’ll be able to achieve great things using this simpletechnique.
Thesecondtool isknownasaVISIONBOARD.AVisionBoardsimplyput isaboardthatyouputANYTHINGyouwouldliketohaveinyourlifeon.Imagineiftherewerenolimitsandnorestrictionsontime,moneyorresources.Ifyoucouldhaveanything,whatwouldyouget?PlacethisonyourVisionBoard,andtheneverydaycomeandtakealookatitwhenyouwakeupandbeforeyougotosleep.Forexampleyoumaytakethebodyofaphysically“sexy”personthatyoumaywanttohaveabodylikeandcutoutyourheadandpasteitontop.
Youmaytakeaphotoofthecaryouwanttodriveandthentakeaphotoofyouandpasteitontopinsuchawaythatyouaresittinginsidethecar.ThemoreyoucanbeapartofALLoftheseimages,themorerealitwillfeelandhencetheemotionswillgrowandyouwillreallystarttofeelthatyouHAVEthesethings.
After doing this exercise daily for years, I was able to obtain things that I simply putinside ofmy own vision board. Around 2007 I created a vision board, and one of thethingsontheVisionBoardwas,“IwillonlyworkonmyDreamsandGoalsandhaveonlymyselfandGodasmyboss”.HereIamnowin2013andIamLIVINGTHAT!
HereIamwritingabookandI’vealreadycreatedaVideoGameBusinessandIplanontakingthemoneyIearntonotonlyhelpmyselfandmyfamilybutalsocreateaCharityonedaygivingbacktotheworld.
Becausemyvisionhasbeensolarge,wheneverIfeltlikegivinguporwheneverIfeltthatIwasnotgoingtomakeit,Ilookedbackatmygreatvisionandsaid,“Ihavetomakeit,therearepeoplewhoneedme,Imustkeeponmovingforward,keeppersisting!”
Have a large VISION and use these tools of Abundance and Visualization to help increatingthatgreatvision!
STEP6–RECOMMENDEDREADINGThesearethebooksthatIhavepersonallyread(Exceptafewoftheholybooks)andcanHIGHLY recommend.They helped changeme (ForBetter!) and putme in amind andstateofsuccessandabundanceandalsohelpedmetoseeoutsideofmyownbubble.
Over the past 10 years I have amassed a great library which I believe is even moreimportantthanmoneybecauseithelpsmegetinthemindsettogenerateabundanceandcreate an abundant lifestyle. (ASmall list of theover100Books that I havepersonallyread!)
BOOKLIST:
ThinkandGrowRichbyNapoleanHill
TheRichestManInBabylonbyGeorgeS.Clason
SuccessThroughaPositiveMentalAttitudeNapoleanHillandW.ClementStone
ThePowerOfPositiveThinkingbyNormanVincentPeale
GetTheEdgePROGRAMbyAnthony(Tony)Robbins
TheScienceofGettingRichbyWallaceD.Wattles
TheGreatestSalesmanInTheWorldbyOgMandino
7HabitsofHighlyEffectivePeoplebyStephenR.Covey
TheOneMinuteManagerbyKennethBlanchard
YourHolyBook(ForwhateveryourSpiritualBeliefsAre)Bible,Quran,Torah,Gita,etc.
“OftenfamilyandfriendsgiveuponYOURdreams&goals, because they are YOUR dreams & goals.Believeinyourself,evenwhennooneelsecan!”
—AbhinavGupta
17.APPBUSINESSACCOUNTINGBASICSAreyouserious?Youreallyneedtoknowaccounting?
YES!Foranybusiness,whetherit’sanAppBusinessoraClothingStore,youwillrequireaccounting to help keep track of sales revenue, expenses, and even paying your ownpayroll!MostGovernmentsaroundtheworldhaveaninternalbodythatgovernsthetaxeswepayontheincomeweearnandinturnhelplocalcommunities,suchasyourown,tobuildandgrow.Yourtaxesthereforearethereasonwhyyouexperiencebetterroads,safercommunities,highereducationandmanyothergreatbenefitsdependingonwhereintheworldyoumaylive.
That being said, there are two MAIN reasons why we want to keep track of ourtransactions:
Tofigureoutthetaxesthatwewillberequiredtobepaidattheendoftheyear
1. To see where we are spending our money the most so that we can make futurebusinessdecisionsbasedonwhatweseefromthenumbers.
2. To help secure various services or loans such as bank loans, asset insurance,mortgagesonproperty,etc.
Agreatstatementthatisoftenstatedisthat,“Thenumbersdon’tlie”.Attheendofthedayyoucanseepositivecashflowcomingin,howeverifyoudon’ttrackyourexpenses,youmayseethemoneyleaveasfastasitcomesin.Youmaythinkyouaremakingmoney,butif your “BOTTOMLINE” (This is the number calculated after all costs are subtractedfrom all the income basically) is not positive, you’re LOOSINGMONEY and you doNOThaveaprofitablebusiness.Thereforetrackingwhereyourcompanyisspendingcanhelpdeterminewhereyoucanpossiblysavemoneyinthefuture.
Other reasons why we want to learn both accounting and taxation is due to massivesavingsinyourAppBusiness!YoucouldbeloosingMASSIVEMONEYjustbecauseofnotknowingsomeverybasicimportanttaxlaws!
TIP:IfyouareaninternationaldeveloperlikemyselfwhoisoutsidetheUnitedStatesofAmerica, then make sure you setup a US EIN number also known as an EmployerIdentificationNumber.ThiswillrequireyoutofilloutUSTaxesyearly,howeverthatwillsaveyouawithholdingfeeof30%thattheIRSwilltakefromyourearningsifyoudonothaveanEINandfilloutUSTaxes.
FormoredetailsonhowtoobtainanEINvisit
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/000030003id=98350000300.html/
FINDINGANACCOUNTANTItishighlyrecommendedthatyougoouttoalocalcollegeoruniversityandtakeasinglecrash course onAccounting 101 orAccountingBasics. In it youwill learn basic bookkeepingaswellasgeneratingreports.Thebasicdifferenceisthatbookkeepingisfocused
just on inputting information (Like receipts and invoices), but accounting focuses ontakingthat informationandgeneratingreportsandchartsandanalyzing that informationsothatenduserssuchasbusinessownersorvariousentitiescanmakeDECISIONSbasedonthatanalysis.
For example, you hire a BOOK KEEPER to help you put all your receipts into youraccounting computer software. Your accountant then goes ahead and generates variousreportstoshowyouandadvisesyouonvariousdirectionsthecompanycantake.Youasthebusinessownerwouldthendecideontheactualdirectionstotakebasedonthatinfo.
Doyoucutdownonofficesupplyspending?
Doyouincreaseinmarketingtogeneratemoresales?
Dowehavethemoneytohireanotherstaffmemberordoweneedtostartmakingcutstostaff?
AN ACCOUNTANT can help you determine this by generating reports from yourBOOKS.
Solearnthatdistinctionwell!Toomanypeoplebelievethatabookkeeperandaccountantare theSAMEthing.Theyarenotand theybothhaveaverydifferentpurpose.Abookkeeperwillnotbeabletotellyouthesethings,theirmainpurposeistoenterinreceiptsandinvoicesandmakesurethatthatinformationisuptodate.
ThereisaTHIRDtypeofaccountantisaTAXACCOUNTANT.Onceagainweendupassumingthatanyaccountantiscapableoftaxesaswell.Aregularaccountantmayonlyfocusonhelpingabusinessownermakedecisionsbyshowingthemreportsoftheirbooks,but a TAX ACCOUNTANT focuses on tax savings and tax obligations. The TaxaccountantsroleistohelpinplanningtosaveonTAXESortohelpreducethetaxespaidbyeducating thebusinessowneronnewgovernmentprogramsthatmaybeavailableorotherthingsthatcanhelpintaxation.
InyourbusinessyouwillbedealingwithallthreelevelsofAccountants.YoumayALSOlearnhowtodoafewofthemyourself.Forexample,youmaygotoabasicaccountingcourse, obtain a book keeping and accounting software package like Quick Books orSimplyAccountingandthenenterthebooksyourselfandgeneratereportsyourselfusingthesoftware.ThatisalsoapossibilityandwouldthenrequireyouonlytofocusonfindingagoodTAXACCOUNTANT.
Knowing this distinction between the types of accountants can help save you a lot ofmoneyandheadachebynothiringaccountantswithoutunderstandingtheirfunction.ToomanytimesinthepastIwouldhireaccountantsthinkingthattheyalldidthesamething,andendeduppayingthemmoneyforonly1partofthejobwhenIthoughtthey“DIDITALL”.
Don’tmakethatmistakeonyourown,gettheRIGHTtypeofaccountantforyourneeds!
Sohowdoyoufindthem?WORDOFMOUTH!Askyourfriends,askyourfamily,asklocalbusinessownersiftheyknowagoodaccountant.Gotovariousbusinessesthatyouknowaresucceedingandaskthemwhotheiraccountantisandiftheywouldbewillingto
takeonanewclient.
“Successhappensbytakingactiononthebigdreamsby putting it into a calendar…otherwise it is just adreamandwillalwaysremainthatway…”
—AbhinavGupta
18.WINNINGSCREENSHOTSANDICONSTo create winning icons and screenshots, you want to start by telling a STORY!Customers loveabrandanda story, especially in apps! I’ve seenapps that arehorriblewhenyoudownloadthem,butwhenyouseethescreenshots,thestoriesandiconsyouenduphitting thebuybutton.That’swhereweget the term,PEOPLEBUYTHESIZZLE,evenifthefoodtastesbad,it’sallaboutthehype.
Nowifyoumixyourhypewithagreatproduct,you’llhaveevenmoredownloads,butI’veseentoomanyAMAZINGAPPSgodeadandintoOblivion.Somesolidappshavebeenthrownout,notduetothembeinghorrible,butbecausetheirscreenshotsandiconsanddescriptionwerejustnotgoodenough,peopledisregardedtheapp.
Great icons and screenshots anddescriptions all tell aGREATSTORY!They show theEMOTIONSthatauserwillbeabletogetoutofaproductandgooverthefunpartsoftheirappsinanEASYway.Ratherthandiscussing“FeatureA”,“FeatureB”,etc.,greatappsdiscussaSTORY!
Belowisasummaryofwhatyouwanttodowhencreatingiconsandscreenshots:
1.WinningIcons
a.Keepitsimpleandtothepoint(KISSMETHOD)
b.FollowyourTHEME(Ifyourscreenshotshaveacertaintheme,keepthecolorsandimagessimilar)
c.MakeitSTANDOUT!
d.AddlittlethingslikeCALLSTOACTIONinsidetheicon.Forexampleasimplebannersayingtheword“HOT”canincreaseyoursales.Itworkedforoneofourappsandgotourdownloadstoincrease.Blacktextonyellowbannerstendtoworkreallywell.
e.DetailiniconscangoaLONGway!
f.Thinkabouthowyouriconwilllookamongstothericonsinasearch
g. Draw attention to your icons using your target market. Ex. If your app targetschildren, putting in a sexy woman would probably not attract that audience. Ifhowever your targetmarketwasmales ages 18-35 a sexywomanmay just do thetrick! Ifyouwere targetinga certaindemographic,knowingwhatyouare targetingWILLHELP!
h.Knowyourmarketsoyoucantarget!
i.KNOWYOURMARKETSOYOUCANTARGET!
j. Your icon is the FIRST thing a person sees along with your app title, make itCOUNT!
k.TryNOTtohavetextinyourappiconifyoucanavoidit.Textinanappiconjustinmostcasesdoesnotworkwell.
l. As you grow and gain more apps, start BRANDING! Redo your icons with aBRAND symbol so your apps areRECOGNIZABLE!Your customerswill start tofollowyourbranding.
2.WinningScreenshots
Onceyouhavesuccessfullycreatedyourappicon,creatingcorrespondingscreenshotsisveryimportant!Herearethetopthingsyouwanttodotomakewinningscreenshots!
a.Alwaysdrawyourscreenshotinsideofaframeortablet.Thistendstogiveabetterpresentationofyourapp.Insomecasesdependingonapp, thismaynotbe thebestthing to do, but in most cases drawing your app screenshot inside of a virtualdevice/photo frame (like a Polaroid picture) in a screenshot usually has a morepowerfuleffect.
b.Listsinglephrasesinyourapporsinglelinesinyourappforhowtouseyourapportellingastory.DONOToverpopulateyourscreenshotwithtext,that’shorrible!
c.Don’toverloadyourscreenshotwithimageseither.LESSISMORE!
d. Ifyouhaveagameor anappALWAYS try anduseyourmain stars topromoteyourapp!Peoplelike toseecharacters/peoplepromotinganappanddefinitelylovewhena characterpromotes anapp.For example ifyouhaveavideogame,use thevideogamecharacterstohelpyousellyourapp!
e.Havea color scheme thatmatchesyour icon.Always try andmake the iconandscreenshotsmatch.
f.3-4screenshotsarealwaysbest!
g.ADVANCEDSCREENSHOTSare those thataremadeupof3-4 imagessidebysidetocreateanentireimage.Peopleusethistechniquetodrawattentiontotheirapp.Itsanothergreattrickthatcanbeusedtogetattentiontoyourapp.
h.UNDERPROMISE…OverDeliver!Ifyourscreenshotsshowabasicsetofthingsthatyourappdoesand theuserdownloads it for thatand theygetevenmore, theywillLOVEYOURAPP!
i.Theeasiest thingtodois listyourmainfeaturesandemotional touchpoints.Askyourself,“Whatwillmyapphelpauserdo/feel?”Forexampleacalculatorappmayhelpsomeoneovercometheirtaxes.Afeelingofreliefwhentheyachievetheirmathhomeworkorcompleteamathassignment.Youcouldusethisemotionofreliefasasimplestatement,“Easyandfast,helpstakecareofeventhemostchallengingmathassignments and will make your accountant smile!” Rather than putting, “Has 10buttons.”
j.MakeitrelevanttoyourTARGETMARKET!Herearestatementsforacalculatorforvarioustargetmarkets(NOTE:ThesewouldbeDIFFERENTcalculatorsmadebasedonthetargetmarket):
i.Children“Funandcolorfulwithlargekeysforthesmallestoffingers!”(Showanimageofachild/children)
ii.Seniors“Largefontssoyouwontneedyourglasses!”(Showanimageofaseniorwithglasses)
iii.Men“HelpstaketheguessworkoutofthatnexthomeDIYproject!”(Showamanstandingwithatapemeasure)
iv.Women“Stylishandsexybuttonswithvariousthemestochoosefrom!”(Showastylishwomaninprofessionalattire)
v.Thoselateontaxes“Getthosecalculationsdonerighteverytimeandmakeyouraccountantdrool!”(Showapersonsittingwithpaperworkonatablelookingstressedout)
vi.HighSchoolStudents“Cooltoolsbuiltinsoyoucanaceanymathexam!”(Showateenagerwithabackpackholdingbooks)
k.Puttingextrathoughtintoyourscreenshotscanhelpmakeyourappssellbetter.
3.WinningDescriptions
GreatappdescriptionsareSHORT,spell-checkedandhighlightskeyfeatures,differencesandacalltoactiontobuy!
Nowweknowthatmostusersrarelylookatdescriptions.InfactonlytheTOPpartofthedescription (usually the first three lines) is readmost of the timewith the bottom halfbeingskippedonmostoccasions.KnowingthisshouldhelpyoutoputthemostrelevantinfoATTHETOP!
Anyawards,reviews,rankingsoranythingthatisaSPECIALthingaboutyourappshouldbeplacedattheverytopofallyourdescriptions.
Hasyourappbeengivena10/10starreview?PUTITATTHETOP!
HasyourappbeenfeaturedinNewandNoteworthy?PUTITATTHETOPWITHTHEDATEITWASFEATURED!
Hasyourappgoneonsaleforafewdays?PUTITATTHETOPWITHTHEPROMODETAILS!
UserswillrarelyclickontheMOREbuttontoreadadescription,mostusershavealready
decided tomake apurchase from the icon and screenshots. In fact thewayausergoesthroughanappisusuallyasfollows:
1.Icon
2.Screenshots
3.USERREVIEWS
4.Description(Iftheyhavenotbeensoldalready)
That being said, awinningdescription tends todo littlewithyour actual app andmorewithwhatyourapphasaccomplishedorachieved.Ofcourseyouwanttoputwhatyourapp does inside your description as well, but place that information right after all thenoteworthythings.
Forexampleforthecalculatorappabove(whichweweretalkingabout)youcouldputallthefullfeaturesandfunctionalityrightAFTERallthewinningdetails.
Thebiggestmistakeishidingthepointsthatmakeyourappshine!Toomanypeopleleaveoutnewandnoteworthyitemsorapprankingsorevenappreviews.
REMEMBER You’re goal is to CONVERT the user to a sale, not simply describesomethingtothem.Youwantyourfeaturesthere,butyourfocusshouldbefirstonhowwonderfulyourapphasdoneandwhatothershavebeensaying.
Imagineacerealboxatyourlocalstore.Haveyoueverseenacerealboxthatlistsallthenutrients and all the ingredients as the FACE of the box? NEVER! It’s always tuckedneatlyawayonthesideasADDITIONALinformation.
On the front of a cereal box you see the AWARDS and RECOGNITION the cerealcompanyhasornewthingsthatmakethecerealsogreat.
Alwaysput acall toactionwheneveryouget achance!Something thatmakes theuserwanttohitthebuybuttonASAP!
WeusedthistechniqueinMelina’sConquestandthathelpedincreaseoursalesaftertheappwentintoOblivion:
Nowyouknow the secrets to creatingwinning app icons, screenshots anddescriptions.Thismethodologywillhelpyouincreaseyoursalesforsure!
“Ittakesjustasmuchenergytothinkgoodthoughtsasitdoestothinkbadthoughts…sostart thinkingof thebest!Youdeserveit!”
—AbhinavGupta
19.BOOKMARKSLISTHere is a short list of items that I highly recommend you keep in your web browserbookmarks. These are all the items I have gone over in the book thus far plus severaladditionalwebsites Ihave foundalong theway. I’mconstantlyupdating this liston theAppTrillionaires special page I havemadeonmywebsite,which you can access onceagainusing thepasswordonetrillion and by visiting http://www.gamescorpion.com.Asstatedearlier,I’dhighlyrecommendjoiningthenewsletterandyou’llevengetachancetogetinonfutureprograms,toolsandresourcesthatIamconstantlycreatingformobileappdevelopers!
A.GoogleDocs-https://docs.google.com
B.LUAProgrammingDocs-http://www.lua.org/pil/index.html
C.ShiVaForums-http://www.stonetrip.com/developer/forum/
D.ShiVaWiki-http://www.stonetrip.com/developer/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page
E.ShiVaDocumentation-http://www.stonetrip.com/developer/doc/
F.CGTexturesRoyaltyFree-http://www.cgtextures.com/index.php
G.SoundSnapRoyaltyFreeSounds-http://www.soundsnap.com/
H. iTunes Connect Developer Page -https://itunesconnect.apple.com/WebObjects/iTunesConnect.woa
I.GooglePlayDeveloperPage-https://play.google.com/apps/publish
J.BlackberryISVPortal-https://appworld.blackberry.com/isvportal/
K.AmazonDeveloperPortal-http://developer.amazon.com/
L.BarnesandNobleDeveloperPortal -https://nookdeveloper.barnesandnoble.com/sign-in.html
M.TopAppCharts-http://www.topappcharts.com/
N.AppAnnie-http://www.appannie.com/
O.Gimp–http://www.gimp.org
P.Audacity-http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/windows
Q.Gmail–http://www.gmail.com
“As you get closer to success, it will seem like theworld isworkingharder tokeepyoufromit…keepatit,youarealmostthere!”
—AbhinavGupta
20.FINALTHOUGHTSANDNEXTSTEPSSobynowifyou’vebeenfollowingmyrecommendedstepsthatI’veoutlined,youshouldbewellonyourwaytoasuccessfulappbusiness.
Yournextstepwouldbetogoandvisitmywebsiteathttp://www.gamescorpion.comandclickontheAppTrillionaireslink.Afterthatusethepasswordonetrillionandstartoffbydownloadingall the toolsanddocuments there thatwillhelpyouonyour journeyasanapp developer. SIGN UP to my newsletter and if you can, join one of my monthlyprograms where you’ll even get a chance to see me via my live webinars and onlineseminarsgoingoverthelatesttips,techniquesandmethodsofappdevelopmentandappmarketing. I am looking forward tomeeting you and getting to know you as you startgrowingyourappbusinessandbecomingapartofthemobileappindustry!
I wish you a lot of blessings in your new business and truly hope and pray you willbecomearesponsiblesuccessfulbusinessownerinoneofthehottestbusinessestogetintorightnow!
After you have made your first app and put it into a market successfully, I highlyrecommendreplicatingitandmakingnewappsandalsogettingintoasmanymarketsasyoucan.
Useseveralof thekillermarketingmethodsI’vediscussed tohit the rightsweetspot togainevenmoremoneyandsalesandkeeponbuildingyourappkingdom!
Itmostlikelywon’thappenovernight,butIcanassureyouthatifyoujuststicktoitandkeepreplicatingthings,keeptweakingandtestingvariousmethodsofmarketing,youwilleventuallygettoapointwherethiswillreallymakeyouaverysteadyincome,evenwhileyousleep!
Theworldofappsisgrowingexponentially…willyoubethenextAppTrillionaire?
“Todayisabeautifulday!Youareawinner!Youwillachieve success! Believe in your dreams, they WILLcometrueaslongasyoubelieve!”
—AbhinavGupta
AboutTheAuthorAbhinavGuptaistheLeadDeveloperandCEOofGameScorpionInc.HeisanAppDeveloper,AppBusinessTrainerandevenaMotivationalSpeakerintheMobileandTechnologyIndustry.
Recognized as a professional in the field, he has had his hand in building andsuccessfullypublishingover25+appsinover10+markets includingApple,GooglePlay,Amazon,BarnesandNoble,Blackberry,HPWebOS,andseveralothers.Hehasbeendevelopingappsandgamesforseveralyearsandhasapassionforcreatingnewthings. The apps he and his team have created have been downloaded hundreds ofthousandsoftimesacrosstheworldinvariousmarkets.
Withover10yearsintheITField,AbhinavhasfocusedontrainingnewandexistingMobileAppandVideoGameDevelopersonthelatestmethodsofcreatingandevenmonetizingMobileApplications.WithhisdiverseexperienceintheITField,Abhinavhasstartedtopavethewayfornewandupcomingappdevelopersandhelpingtogrowthebusinessesofcurrentappandgamedevelopersworldwide.
With books, programs and tools specifically created for theMobileApp andGameBusiness, Abhinav’s hand’s on experience are well respected in the industry. Hecurrently develops his apps and games using ShiVa 3D, a powerful cross platformgamecreationtool.
Hehaswrittenseveralpiecesonthesubjectofmobileappsandmobilebusinessandhas even been seen discussing his apps, courses and training in several prestigiousvenues.
1ObtainedfromWikipediahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contrasting_and_categorization_of_emotions
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