Should we quit developping on Android/mobile?

Monetizing, Advertising & Marketing Marketing Methods
1

Back in 2013 I made a choice: become a developer and try to pay my bills with it.
I did some decent app and payed a few bills, not enough, but revenue was increasing.
Then I quitted for a little while following other jobs and since one year I’m back on this.

I remember very well when Google, in 2013, changed the Google Play search and ranking engines to meet up with Apple’s very high level of apps: back in 2012/13 was not necessary to advertize an app, because it entered straight the rankings and was immediately visible. Then, it was up to you if it was successful.
After that line, advertize has become mandatory. And it’s not even enough.
What I have been experiencing in this year is that no matter how much I spend my own pocket’s money to advertize an app, no matter how good it is, no matter how much time I spend in making videos, sharing on socials, writing for blogs, choosing keywords without competitors, making better graphics, translating in dozens of languages, focusing advertizement on single countries or on single segments of population, avoiding bad habits like buying fake downloads… no matter all this, the result is ZERO.

Zero flat, like banging my head on the wall.

I’m not saying that the results are small, they are ZERO FLAT. Indeed, actually they are negative, because to hope you have to spend.

Back in the good old days there was a difference: if I made something wrong, I got less money. Money was not a lot anyway, but there was something and at least one could learn from his own errors.

Now you can follow any hint, marketing tutorial, big experts’ suggestions, the result is always, forever ZERO FLAT.

I try to spend some money on advertizement and I get exactly to buy some users: no matter how high I can get on the rankings, as soon as I stop advertizement downloads go back to ridiculous amounts, no matter videos, graphics, forums and facebook pages.

In the meantime, all the market money is shared among few: Ketchapp, King, Supercell and few others. 8.6 billion of dollars was offered for Supercell, I write it down: 8.600.000.000 $, and we are fighting to get 10 cents a day!

Now this is a mockery! Developping has become the work with the lowest rate between difficulty and money!

Not to count that IAP is mainly effective on high-scale games, so small developpers must only rely on advertizement where there is no money.

Look at the google play store: what did they get favouring those bigs?
We have hundreds of identical stupid game for brainless housewives: dozens of clones of ketchapp minimal games. Many games with testimonials like Frozen, Lego or others. Some clones of Clash of Clans. A hundred clones of 3 in a row strawberries. Clones, clones, clones.

What’s the point? Should I invest 200.000$ to enter the main ranking with a clone?

What should we do?

I think that indie developers should get their voice high with Google. They are killing the market. Why should 10 societies keep 99.99999% of the market and indie developers spend to hope to even be considered?
This is the death of Google’s philosophy where ideas and meritocracy emerge.

Im very very very sad.

2

I agree with you 2012 -> 2015 was a year of success with more Than 100k$/years, but this years i’m very very sad, i spend 1000$ Advertising/month to win 2000$, google kill all indie dev, i need to return working in full time job with 600$/month :frowning: :frowning: :frowning: in my country :frowning: :frowning: :frowning:

3

I think the google play is full with too many low quality spam apps and google are not doing anything about it.
like fake apps with lots of uneeded permissions, I think if google did something regarding those apps then we will have a better chance in the competition.

And yea I see it myself with new apps I develop it’s harder to get downloads, I use cross promotion and invest in promoting apps but without it those apps will see 0 installs.

4

Very sad to know you are having such a tough time, i guess many big companies have entered and are investing huge sums in promotion, google wants money and hence allows such unfair treatment of small and medium developers…

We have some decent budget but seems even that won’t be enough, i guess like the flash games market where the big players swamped and eventually the market died, something similar might happen here, no place for small guys … very sad, seems its always better to invest in “brick and mortar” business …

Or the small developers can get together and have their own ad network and promote their apps in that network , this will help a lot …

Hope you do well this year …

Regards
Rajiv

5

The fact is that if the trend continues, within 2-3 years indie developers will be not there anymore… how much stress can we support? How many times will we see Supercell sell at 8.6mld$?
Is there something we can do?

6

No, there is many niche that you can use to have a better ROI business, such as virtual anroid game …
Get the trend and you will be the king

7

Android app dev income will slide down just like website/YouTube video business. Now it’s lifetime achievement to get a successful website/video channel and earn 1000’s of dollors per month from it. IMO it’s better to have some plan for future where it’s not possible to pay your bills with mobile apps income.

8

Yeah, we know every industry will get through a tough period. For Google markets or mobile markets, is was indeed a tough journey before. But now, how? It comes back to us with energy, hope and future. So you should not give up and need to be more passionate with developing mobile.

Nowadays, most of people have one phone at least and they pay much time on playing apps in the devices. So it will benefit you from app developing. Of course, there are millions of apps in the Store, only few of them boost in the market. In order to get installs and sales, app quality is the most important factor. Only the app is suitable for users, they will install and play it. After you get the high quality app, you need to try methods to promote it in publish, otherwise, how can people know it is good app or not?

There are many free ways or paid ones, so you can choose some ones you need.

Free ones[/b]

Exchange installs & reviews

There are many groups on networks where publishers can exchange installs and reviews each other. However, generating installs or reviews from users will take much longer time.

Social media networks

Having a Facebook Page for your app is a must-have where you can ask them how they like your app designs and features and any get feedbacks. Also, you can share any news about your app, etc. However, remember not to make your posts only about your app, though. That is boring. It’s like talking to someone at a party who only talks about themselves.

Paid ones

Buy app rating & reviews

One app can get reviews, it must get installs firstly. Reviews provider like BestReviewApp will guide real users to install app, play and reviews it with ratings. This method will rank app top in a short period. At the same time, the traffic is from real users which is organic. It will Not have bad impact on apps.

Paid advertisements

Run advertisements on some Android forums, Google ads or social media, it is one common method for publishers to promote app. But you know, there are many people browsing Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. There are less targeted audience for your app.

Generate installs

Higher ranking is extremely helpful for app visibility. App can get installs from users directly via download link. Or drive install via keyword search. The former method is straight forward install amounts singly. While latter one aims at helping app ranking in App Store search results. Keyword optimization also will guide real users to install the app via targeted keywords relevant to your app.

9

Maybe I am too naive, but I don’t think the market is that bad. For example, I started developing APPS January of this year, I released an Audio Recording app in May (There are so many in the market), I spent 40 on advertising and now I am getting 60+ Organic installs per day and that number is slowly increasing over time. So what does that say to you ?

As BestReviewApp mentioned, promotion + the quality of the product in which you are promoting is the key. If your app is clone or crap, then 9/10 times you wont excel; be unique and build quality apps that you know aren’t saturated in the market, if you are going to build a clown, atleast add new features/something different that would make the user choose yours over your competitors. DO it because you love it and not only the money, which usually causes the downfall and some developers to drop out the game. Don’t stigmatize the industry, we all have a choice/option to be successfully…so make use of yours.

10

nop we shouldnt I still have new apps that get 100+ downloads (which is few) but it will grow.