Tag Archives: developers
10 Effective Ways to Beat Your Competitor in App Store
About the Author: Chirag Leuva is a CEO of an iPhone app development company named Yudiz Solutions where he works to bring client ideas to reality. He enjoys pushing the limits of user interaction and finding ways to create awesome reusable components within a mobile environment.
As mobile devices and smartphones increasingly outpace desktops for all sorts of web needs, the focus is now on native apps. Naturally, app stores on various platforms are becoming the favored marketplace for millions of apps and the number is rising at rapid speed. It is no longer easy enough to get featured by app stores if you do not work towards increasing downloads, retaining your users, and become one of the top apps on the featured list. So, just like SEO, app store optimization (ASO) is becoming the order of the day to beat competition in app store. Here are 10 effective ways to use ASO to get ahead:
1. Tell your existing audience about your app
Telling any existing web users or subscribers about your mobile app is the first step to build a loyal user base. Here are some ways to do it more effectively:
- Give your users an idea about your apps with a few screenshots and pitch the benefits.
- Ask them to subscribe to your mailing list to stay updated about your upcoming app.
- On launch day, inform every one of your web users. You can consider making a promotional offer as well, but that depends on your niche.
2. SEO and keyword research
Even if your app is not yet launched or you haven’t finsihed all of your content, start SEO efforts for your app site early on.
- From the very beginning try to make your app site SEO friendly by optimizing headings …
The Benefits of Crowdtesting Your App
About the Author: Kayla Matthews is a business productivity blogger with a passion for startups and independent creations. Follow her on Google+ and Twitter, or check out her blog Productivity Theory, to get updates on her latest posts!
There are over 1 million apps in both the Google Play store and the Apple App store. In other words, you have a ton of competition, and that number is increasing every day.
In order for your app to be successful, in addition to providing utility, it needs to be flawless across platforms, easy to use and intuitive. If your app doesn’t work like you intend it to, chances are the person who downloads it will seek to replace it. And with so many options, they will find a substitute quickly.
One way you can ensure your app is ready to roll is by testing it extensively. This, however, can obviously be expensive and time-consuming, and in today’s globalized marketplace, you might not be able to see certain aspects of your app that could be tweaked to accommodate more of an international audience.
Adding In-App Purchasing to Your iOS App
About the Author: Tejas Jasani is a founder and CEO of an iPhone development company named The APP Guruz. His major focus is on how to improve mobile user’s smartphone experience through development of mobile games and apps.
In-app purchases are an alternative method for earning revenue from your apps, and they are particularly effective when monetizing mobile games, as users are prompted to buy additional items, features, or game levels. For iOS apps, in-app purchasing is implemented using the StoreKit Framework, introduced with iOS 3.0 and Mac OS 10.7. (Please note that in-app purchasing works for Mac apps too).
StoreKit communicates with the AppStore on behalf of your application, prompting the user for payment and securely authorizing any subsequent transaction. In turn, your application receives information from StoreKit alerting you to when a user makes a purchase and StoreKit then delivers that purchased item to the user. Without StoreKit, you would not be able to showcase products in an in-app store.
Implementation:
The StoreKit implementation can be divided into three main sections:
1) Set up of products done in iTunes Connect and Xcode
2) Purchase process itself on the device.
3) Verify the purchase and transaction.
Top 10 Programming Languages to Learn in 2014:
Whether you are a seasoned programmer or a beginner just starting out, you know that the tech world is constantly shifting and evolving. New programming languages and offshoots of older languages are increasing in popularity and support for these languages are spreading across the web, platforms, and operating systems.
If you’re interested in learning programming for the first time or expanding your coding repertoire, here are the top 10 programming languages for 2014 (in no particular order):
1. SQL
SQL (Structured Query Language) manages data in relational management systems. SQL’s most popular feature is its ‘Query’ function, which can easily search through informational databases. Extensions of SQL can be used in the creation of mobile and web applications.
Online Resources: Lynda.com, SQLCourse.com, TutorialsPoint.com, SQLZoo.net
2. Java
An object-oriented programming language, Java is one of the most popular and in-demand programming languages. Java is a staple in enterprise software, mobile apps, and the Android operating system (thought it has cross-platform support)
Online Resources: Udemy, Lynda.com, Oracle.com, LearnJavaOnline.org
New Game Subcategories Help Indie Devs
In April 2014, Google rolled out and update to the Google Play Store. In this update, Google made a lot of changes to the “Games” app category. Instead of the original 6 main game sub-categories, Google expanded the number of subcategories to 18.
These new categories are much more specific and specialized than the original categories, making it easier for users to find the games they want. And, these new changes had a positive impact on the Google Play Store’s revenue as well. According to a new report from Distimo, from February 2014 to April 2014 revenue from gaming apps increased by over 15%!
Take a look at the changes from February 2014 to April 2014:
Clearly, the volume of installs is much more spread out than it was before. Casual games and arcade games still dominate, but each of the remaining categories shows an impressive opportunity for growth.
Developer Tools Are On The Rise
As the number of mobile apps and the number of app developers increases, the mobile app economy is starting to spawn an economy of its own: the SDK economy. Today, the demand for SDK companies is so high that there is 1 SDK startup emerging for every 1,000 app developers who enter the market.
With over 1,000+ developer tools now on the market, competition for SDK providers is becoming fierce. But there are some people who can only benefit from this new SDK economy: developers.
There are developer tools out there for nearly every stage of the app development process ranging from cloud storage, to monetization (our favorite!), to cross-platform tools.
Below is a list of some developer tools from every stage of the development cycle which are definitely worth checking out.
Feel free to click through the links to see if a tool could be right for you!
May Madness Promotion
What’s better than one May promotion?
Two May promotions!
That’s right! May Madness is here and we are rolling out two awesome promotions to help you earn even more revenue from your mobile apps.
5 Ways to Improve Your Latest App
About the Author: Kayla Matthews is a business productivity blogger with a passion for startups and independent creations. Follow her on Google+ and Twitter, or check out her blog Productivity Theory, to get updates on her latest posts!
Developers across the globe all have their eyes set on the same goal: selling their apps with as much frequency as is possible. And that’s important, after all, because there are more than one million apps for sale at the iTunes Store. There are also more than one million Android-based apps as well.
With these figures in mind, the task of differentiating your apps from those developed by your competitors becomes that much more difficult. How do you get the eyeballs to fall onto your product amidst a seemingly endless sea of other apps?
Let’s take a look at five steps any determined programmer can leverage in order to ensure that they are offering the best iteration of their apps, enabling them to sit back and watch their total number of downloads increase:
Read Reviews
What better way to improve your app then to start by submerging yourself into a sea of user reviews? After all, these are the comments and thoughts of your end users. By reading all of the reviews associated with your app, you’re able to identify trends that will let you know what parts of the app are working, what parts are not working and what areas could certainly stand to see some expansion or improvement. Programmers keen on continually improving their apps should regularly read such reviews.
The Importance of a Sleek App Design
About the Author: Kayla Matthews is a business productivity blogger with a passion for startups and independent creations. Follow her on Google+ and Twitter, or check out her blog Productivity Theory, to get updates on her latest posts!
With about one million apps in the Apple store and more than 1.1 million Android apps on the market, differentiating your particular app among a seemingly endless sea of competitors is certainly not an easy task. Not only does your app have to add functionality to the user experience, it has got to carry a strong, user-friendly design that is easy to navigate and easy on the eye.
When it comes to digitization, we live in an increasingly cluttered world. With over two million apps on the market—a number that inches upwards every single day—it is imperative that designers sculpt their apps in such a way that grabs the attention of the potential user. Human beings are very visual creatures, and even if you design the strongest, most helpful app, if the interface looks horrible, there is a great chance that the popularity of the app will never take off.
StartApp Partners With Fiverr
We are proud to announce a brand new partnership with Fiverr!
Fiverr is an online and mobile marketplace where registered users can sell their expertise and services for as little as $5. Available for both iOS and Android, the Fiverr app allows you to browse through thousands of “gigs”, or services for sale, ranging from music composition to mobile app icon design.
And from now until the end of April, StartApp developers are eligible for a special deal on Fiverr!
Be one of the first 1,000 developers to purchase a gig on Fiverr, and we will reimburse your $5 purchase. It’s as simple as that! You will be able to choose between dozens of gigs which will help you improve your app, whether it is updating the design of your UI or creating a professional-looking app icon.
But, remember to act fast! Only the first 1,000 StartApp developers will be eligible
Browse all available gigs on Fiverr now —->
Have any questions or concerns? Please email us at support@startapp.com
(Limited to mobile app services only; limit one $5 bonus per StartApp/Fiverr account)