…and a couple other similar ones: Synthetic Bits on Youtube
We’ve been making videos of all our apps to include in the new and improved in-house ads we will run to promote our other apps when iAds doesn’t serve us any real ads. More on that once we submit the updated Explore Space! ad-supported app and try it out.
A free update that makes our FunkBox drum machine iphone app into a universal app, meaning it runs natively on both iPhone/Touch and now iPad, has been submitted to Apple and is currently waiting for review. These pictures show a preview of how FunkBox will look on your iPad.
For non-US developers who don’t have iPads yet here’s some screenshots of what the customer sees on the iPad’s App Store app:
For our eighth and ninth apps we decided to experiment with a free model that promoted our other apps and ran Admob ads. We made a free entry in our Puzzle Fun Pack series called Explore Space!, and a new one that helps you come up with really Terrible Baby Names. So far the initial results haven’t been that great, but we’ll give it some time and keep you updated as the experiment goes on.
So do we.
Puzzle Fun Pack: Wild Animals! is apparently huge in Portugal. We have no idea exactly why (other than it offers wonderful gaming value, delight, and wildlife fun – transcending borders to appeal to kids across the globe) but we’ll take it. Obrigado!
In Part 1 of our “asks of iTunes Connect and the iTunes App Store” series, we presented the argument for more data for app developers, and pushing for the move towards more sophisticated information to design, build, and market our iPhone and iPad apps.
With Part 2, we’re looking to address some opportunities that lie within the social space for iTunes.
CONNECT DEVELOPERS WITH CUSTOMERS
In it’s current state, the iTunes App store is a bit of a black box for developers. We design and build apps that we think people will like, we submit them into the App Store, and we wait to see what happens. When people buy our apps, we don’t know who they are, where they came from, or if they’ve bought our apps before. Sometimes we know if they like our apps, but usually we don’t.
In the past few years, we’ve had two negative reviews on apps that had issues with functionality or install. We had no way of contacting these people – the only clue we had was their iTunes username left within each review. Through some intense Google searching, we were able to trace those usernames to other usernames/email accounts, and finally contact both of them. We addressed both of their issues, and both changed their reviews from 1 star to 4-5 stars, with revised review write-ups. We are happy to jump through hoops to offer service to our paying customers, but we shouldn’t have to. And if someone gives us a 1-star rating without a written review, we have zero visibility into who they are or why they didn’t like our product. That’s not helping anyone out.
synthetictwits