The art of the app store: the business of apple development (paperback)

It takes more than a great idea to succeed at iPhone and iPad app development.This indispensible guide provides an in-depth look into the perils and potential of the iPhone and iPad app landscape. The Art of the App Store presents tried and tested methods for competitive research, findingyour niche, understanding customer expectations, setting goals and milestones, and managing app development from concept to post-launch. You will find guidelines for developing and pricing your app using the most up-to-date trends, a plan for viral marketing using social networks, metric tracking, taking advantage of feedback, and much more.

The Art of the App Store:

• Shows how the App Store has evolved and how to take advantage of the changes

• Helps you identify potential costs and decide where to invest your time and money

• Analyzes successful and unsuccessful apps, examines existing niches, andshows how to create successful hybrids

• Compares the risks and rewards of free, freemium, and premium apps

• Explains how to advertise and market your free and lite apps

• Offers tried-and-true advice on marketing your apps through social networks

• Demonstrates post-launch update strategies to maintain app awareness

Wrox books are crafted to make learning programming languages and technologies easier than you think, providing a structured, tutorial format that will guide you through all the techniques involved.

Chapter 1: A Brief History of Time in the App Store 1

Time in a Table 1

The Early App Store 5

Novel Uses of the Touch Screen 6

Simplicity Succeeds While Complexity Fails 8

The Modern App Store 9

The Slow March Toward Complex Apps 10

How Niches Have Changed from the Early App Store 10

Summary 11

Chapter 2: Setting Your Goals, Costs, and Expectations 13

Confronting the "Hero Inventor" Syndrome 13

Benefitting by Doing It Yourself 14

Outsourcing 15

Avoiding the Pitfalls of Going It Alone 20

Considering Your Fundamental Costs 23

Programming 24

Factoring in UI/UX for Game/App Design 25

Factoring in Art Design 26

Considering Your Optional Costs 26

Audio Costs 26

Special Effects Costs 27

Localization for Foreign Markets 27

Quality Assurance/Testing 28

Public Relations and Marketing 29

Advertising Costs 30

Managing Your Expectations 31

The App Store as a Crowded Zoo 31

Planning for Cost Overruns 32

Scheduling with an Iron Fist 32

Summary 32

Chapter 3: Researching the App Store Market 33

Examining the Numbers and Trends 33

Making Decisions Based on Research 36

Opportunity Size: Is There a Hole in the Market? 37

Choosing Your Niche 38

Perform Due Diligence Early 39

Summary Decisions 40

Analyzing Successful Apps 41

Exploring Popular Features 48

Exploring Visual Styles 49

Exploring Social Integration 50

Exploring the iPhone Hall of Fame 51

Avoiding Pesky Ego Traps 51

Game Concepts: Old versus New 53

Analyzing Unsuccessful Apps 55

Learning from Other People"s Mistakes 57

Learning from Other People"s Complaints 58

Mixing and Matching 59

Borrowing Style and Functionality from Mainstream

Applications/Games (the Picasso Way) 59

Pulling Out Successful Features for a Twist 60

Summary 60

Chapter 4: Knowing Your Customer 63

Understanding App Store Demographics 64

Casual and Traditional Gaming Pillars 65

iPhone Casual versus Traditional Casual 68

Meeting Your Customer's Expectations 68

Visual and Graphical Expectations 69

Gameplay and Feature Set Expectations 69

Competitive Feedback Research 91

Summary 91

Chapter 5: Plotting the Stages of Development 93

Leadership and Your Team 94

Assumptions about Your Role 95

Your Starting Lineup 95

A Controlling Idea to Kick Things Off 98

Concept through Release 100

Maximizing Your App through Agile Development 101

Planning - Envisioning Your Vision 104

Scheduling 107

Production and Stages of Development 115

Coordinating Marketing 119

Summary 121

Chapter 6: Guidelines and Expectations for Developing Your App 123

Potential Risk and Reward 124

Paid Apps Are Seen as WYSIWYG 124

What Incentives Can You Provide When Sales Dwindle? 124

Are You Planning on In-App Purchases? 124

Can You Go Free? 125

Like Winning the Lottery 125

Revenue Like a Rollercoaster 126

App Store Business Models 127

Free Apps 127

Paid App Revenue Models and Price Expectations 129

Creating for a Multitasking World 132

Understanding the Effects of Multitasking on the Brain 133

Seeing the Phone as the Ultimate Multitasking Tool 133

The Half-Second Window...