Tips on being an app millionaire

Designing your apps ^[1] is a huge business with the likelihood of making huge success and generating large revenues especially in our current world of smartphones and tablets. Apps are hot sellers now. For example the Angry Birds App which has been downloaded for up to 200 million times more than even Michael Jackson's biggest selling album, Thriller which sold only 110 million.
However, creating an App is not a feat to be achieved overnight. It requires a lot of hard work.
Below are a few tips to help you become an app Millionaire.

1. Having an Idea.

This is really important. To create an app, it is very imperative that you have an idea and work out your idea to determine if something similar already exists. Ensure you get a target audience. You can take a poll to determine how useful people think your app is going to be. Generally, successful apps can either be for problem solving or simply for fun like the Angry Bird App. You can think of what really is lacking in your everyday life. You can also develop an app which you think is inadequate in what it should be doing.

Nick Kuh, developed the Tap to Chat 2 App for I phones/ipad for instant messaging. Here is what he said, 'I met my business partner Chris Ross at the Brighton iPhone Creators group in November last year. The collaboration was agreed over a coffee. We took a good look at all the competition and realized they were all very similar. None met the main requirements of the average 'chatter': keep it simple and visual. This became the focus of Tap to Chat before a single line of code was written: create a powerful but very simple-to-use chat app.'

2. Do some research.

The essence of making a research is to ensure that the idea you have is a fresh one - that some else hasn't already the idea or something close. If that is the case, there is a chance that this will jeopardize your chances of marketing your App. You may also be risking a legal action. To test your ideas you may get feedback from friends and family on your app if it is something they would want to buy and use.

3. The Specs.

This involves meeting and speaking with someone who has undergone the process of developing an app. You need to have an understanding of how it works this will inform you on how easy or otherwise your app is to make. An app doesn't need to be complex to make in order to determine how much income it will generate in the future. It is easier to go for an app which is easier and cheaper to make.

You may need the advice of IT specialists at this stage.

4. Making the App.

This is the stage where you build the app ^[2]. You may not necessarily be the one to build the app. Don't worry if you do not have the skills as this will not stop you from achieving your dreams of owing an app. You can make use of the services of an app developer or you get yourself a partner who is more technically minded to match your vision.
Oli Christie developed Flick Football App for iphones/ipads and she stated as follows:

'We needed a variety of different people with different skills to make this game. I had none myself - just a sketch of an idea. I had been a copywriter in a previous life, so I wrote all the commentator's comments, all the copy that pops up when you share the app with a friend via Facebook or Twitter or email. The design of the Flick Football app was the part that took the longest to crack. I found a developer to program it - but his 'pay' was that he became a partner. We then hired a designer, a 3D artist when we needed one, and got a friend to do the voiceovers. None of us worked in the same office - we all worked from home and stayed in touch via the net.'

We asked some development company ^[3] what they think about this and they said alternatively there is an app that does the work of a developer, MEDL Mobile's App Incubator, available via the Apple store.

5. Submit your app.

It is important that you submit your product for approval before you start marketing it. What Apple does in this regard is to vet all apps sold through its App store. The process of approval is to test the quality of the app and also to take away any unnecessary stuff.
It is also very important that you be very sure about the versions of operating system of the app and what devices will be most receptive for it to avoid releasing an App which doesn't work on certain systems or devices. If that is the case, you will end up with unhappy customers and this is not good for any business.

7. Start marketing.

Do not under estimate the power of networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, etc.
Mobilize friends as well to help in putting out the app to the public. It is also helpful to build webpages to market your app. Put out your app in whatever way possible; let people know about it. Don't forget more conventional ways of publicizing your app as well.