![\"Flappy](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/novicenolonger.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/flappybird.gif?resize=500%2C322\")
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When a game like Flappy Bird is able to hold steady at the top of Apple\u2019s charts, it\u2019s easy to think that creating a hit app is easy. After all, how hard could it be to create a game like that? A few pixel animations, some tap controls, and you\u2019re done.<\/span><\/p>\n But, just like getting your scribbles featured in the Museum of Modern Art, creating a runaway hit application is a lot harder than it looks. Sure, learning to write the actual code can be a challenge, but these days there\u2019s a lot more working against you than that.<\/p>\n When the App Store first launched, simply creating a unique app could instantly propel you into the spotlight. If you had the only app in a certain category, you’d immediately hit it big by default. That’s sadly no longer the case. If you simply release your app with no marketing, it will quickly sink into the abyss.<\/p>\n Getting noticed without doing marketing is possible, but it’s equal\u00a0to winning the lottery.\u00a0With so many other apps, you need to find other ways to stand out.<\/p>\n You need to have a marketing strategy<\/a>, which includes setting a specific launch date, hyping your app, courting the press, and soliciting reviews. And this marketing effort can’t end when you finally release your app. You’ll need to constantly change and evolve your app to meet user’s needs.<\/p>\n Building your app is only the first step. The real work is letting your potential user to know you exist.<\/p>\n Have you ever downloaded an app, instantly hated it, and deleted it from your phone? If so, have you ever downloaded that same application again to give it a second try? For a majority of users, that first impression is everything.<\/p>\n I’ve mentioned that it’s difficult to get people to download your app \u2014 and it’s even harder to get someone to try your app again if you’ve already left them with a bad taste in their mouth.<\/p>\n This doesn’t mean that your app needs to be perfect before you release, but you need to plan your launch carefully. Things don’t always go as planned<\/a>.<\/p>\n Having a popular mobile app can be a good source of passive income \u2014 if you’re able to figure out a monetization strategy. Does your app cost money? Use ads? Offer in-app purchases? These are tough questions, each with their own upsides and downsides.<\/p>\n It’s important to do some calculations before releasing your app in the App Store, and take into account Apple’s 30 percent cut off the top of your earnings. How many apps sales will you need to make back your initial investment? How much advertisement exposure?<\/p>\n It’s much easier to make money in the Apple App Store<\/a> than in the Google Play store, but it’ll still a struggle. Reader Tracker<\/a> took over a year to recoup the development costs.<\/p>\n Searching the App Store or Google Play isn\u2019t like placing a web search on Google. App discovery is still light years behind web search, simply because there’s less information with which to build an effective search algorithm.<\/p>\n With websites, Google has a lot of information to inform rankings, such as the number of inbound links on a site and author authority. With apps, determining worth is a lot more difficult.<\/p>\n1. You’re up against millions of apps<\/h2>\n
2. First impressions are super important<\/h2>\n
3. Monetizing an app is hard<\/h2>\n
4. App discovery is broken<\/h2>\n