

Ask HN: What to expect and how to launch a non-gaming iPhone app? - adityakothadiya

Hi HN,<p>I'm about to launch my productivity/utility based iPhone app - JustRemindIt (http://justremindit.com) in just few weeks. It's a voice call based reminder app. Simply type message and reminder details, and it will remind a receiver via a voice call. I've demoed it to many people during development phase and everyone thought it's a really cool app. But I've this feeling that, however cool it is, it's not cool as playing games. App store, which is predominantly dominated by Gaming app success stories, I was wondering how can a productivity/utility based app make success? I've read few posts on HN about iPhone app launch marketing, but many were targeted for gaming apps. So what steps shall I take to launch productivity/utility app successfully to generate initial buzz?<p>Also, in the long-term, what shall I expect (revenue, download wise) from a productivity/utility based apps? Can anyone share their experience in launching non-gaming apps, and seeing successful results?<p>PS: This is my first iPhone app launch. The app will be FREE to download, but users will have to buy reminder credits via in-app purchasing to send reminders. There are different packages based on number of credits that you can buy.<p>All suggestions and comments will be very helpful.<p>Thanks!
Aditya
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stevenp
My experience with Routesy (a public transit prediction application) is that
it continues to sell steadily over time, even when it's not updated for a long
time, and even when it's not new anymore. I think there's a major difference
between applications that people play with for fun and ones that they intend
to use every day.

If I were in your shoes (and I sort of am!) I would recommend really focusing
a lot on user retention, and make sure you have analytics set up in your
application (I use Flurry). You want to make sure that the people who are
using your app like it enough to make it a part of their routine. If not, you
need a good communication channel to figure out how to make improvements.

Your idea sounds really cool and buzz-worthy, so I would recommend checking
out some of the recently posted articles here about how to pitch to bloggers.
If you can pull it off, you should also create a spiffy demo video, and make
it funny if you can.

Good luck Aditya, and please share your story and let us know how it goes! :)

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adityakothadiya
Thanks for great insights and suggestions! Yeah, retention is key for my app,
as it's sort of subscription based model. So thanks for analytics suggestion.
Will cook up demo video as well.

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adityakothadiya
Here is a clickable link in case you want to see the preview and earn some
free credits before launch - <http://justremindit.com>

