Most apps will never make any money. Over half of all apps found through the Apple and Google stores are free. 90% of all paid apps will only make about $1250 per day on a global scale. This is great news for consumers, but not great news for those making apps. If you look at these facts and figures, it’s easy to assume making money as an app designer is something you’re never going to manage.
This isn’t the case, though. There are ways to become a success and generate the revenue you want. In this article, we’re going to take a look at how you can make money as an app designer.
What about Free Apps?
If your app is free, you don’t have to make it into a paid app in order to make money. There are advertisers who are willing to pay app designers to feature ads within their apps. There are so many potential advertisers that it’s impossible to list them here, but a quick Google search will bring up any number of people who want to pay you to feature their advertisement on your app.
Take note that because there are so many apps available, some companies will want to see that you have a certain number of regular users before they’ll consider you.
Just make sure that any advertisements you do feature aren’t too invasive.
Social Media Marketing
App designers often don’t have any marketing skills. This is just because they haven’t been brought up this way. They assume they can release an app and it will turn into the next Candy Crush Saga. The same sales tricks that work for other products will work for apps. If nobody is talking about your app, people aren’t going to buy it. You need to get people to talk about it.
As it stands, trying to target SEO won’t work. Social media is the platform of the day. Make a social media profile on Twitter and Facebook and start building up a following. This isn’t something that’s going to happen overnight. It’s a type of long game that you have to play.
Is Your App Sellable?
There are so many apps you can create, but not every app can be sold commercially. For example, if your app is a copy of an already existing app, you can’t sell it because why would someone pay for something they can get for free? It’s simply not going to work.
Another point you have to consider is whether your app solves a problem and accomplishes a goal. Nobody is going to buy something that doesn’t enhance their life. With so many free apps and so many other solutions on the market, you need to find something unique if you’re going to make the big money.
Think of the Long Game
Understand that most successful apps far exceeded their maker’s expectations. The long game for an app designer is about making more and more apps. Let’s get one thing straight now. You’re probably not going to become a millionaire because of an app you created. The vast majority of working app designers make their money through a large marketplace of apps that make a few dollars a day.
Rather than thinking about the apps that are going to make you thousands of dollars in a month, think about the selection of apps that each make about five dollars a month. This will quickly build up as you increase the number of products you have to offer.
If you keep plugging away, you’ll quickly find that you’ve picked up an enormously healthy income just from getting the basics right.
Image source: Grapefruit
