My app charted on the App Store, and that sucked

My app charted on the App Store, and that sucked(hiblog.pages.dev)

30 points by _dnb8 337 days ago | 23 comments

joshstrange 337 days ago |

> The reason I chose to make Danish Names a paid app from the beginning was simply that I think it's a lot more honest and upfront to charge a small one-time fee before the download, as opposed to claiming your app is free and then charging a high fee or even a subscription inside the app. There's an honesty and straight-forwardness to paid apps that I like: You pay once, and then you don't get bothered with requests for paid upgrades when you're using the app.

I understand what you are going for here but I have no qualms with "Free, with IAP" as long as when I look at the IAP I see things like:

- Unlock Full Version

- Remove Ads

- 1 Month/1 Year (for certain types of apps where that makes sense)

- Lifetime Unlock

and not:

- 100 Gems

- Pack of Coins

- Subscription for an app that I only plan to use a handful of times

theluketaylor 336 days ago | |

Since Apple doesn't offer trials I have no issue with a dev offering some limited free download with IAP to unlock. The limits need to match the app in some way, like a limit on total queries or a timer.

Subscriptions have to be either something that has recurring costs to the developer (like they depend on a 3rd party API that charges for access) or the dev is upfront that it's an optional opportunity to support them. I'm also fine with some nice-to-have features locked behind a paywall if they are not core to the app functionality.

joshstrange 336 days ago | | |

Apple does not offer trials for paid upfront apps but they do offer trials for subscriptions.

Also I’ve seen developers do things like X searches for free (either one time or per month/week/day) then you have to subscribe or pay a one-time unlock fee.

CallSheet (an IMDB replacement) does this and it’s nice to be able to try out the app a few times before you decide if it’s worth the $12/yr or whatever it costs.

chrismatheson 336 days ago |

>The reason I chose to make Danish Names a paid app from the beginning was simply that I think it's a lot more honest and upfront to charge a small one-time fee before the download, as opposed to claiming your app is free and then charging a high fee or even a subscription inside the app. There's an honesty and straight-forwardness to paid apps that I like: You pay once, and then you don't get bothered with requests for paid upgrades when you're using the app.

The resonated with me. I'm trying to get my own app from 80% to 95% so I can release and ill be going the upfront cost route for these say reasons.

isntThatSth 336 days ago | |

Based on the numbers I've seen and the comments I've read here, I'd go for in-app purchases instead. Good luck with your app!

paxys 337 days ago |

Why are you against a free trial then pay-to-unlock option for your app? That's a lot more transparent and honest than a model where you have to pay up front without knowing what you are going to get.

isntThatSth 337 days ago | |

Well, in this case the screenshots show you exactly what the app provides. Having said that, in the future I'll probably go for an in-app purchase model like you suggested, given how few people download paid apps.

andrewmcwatters 337 days ago |

I have mostly found that all app store apps, no matter what app store, are 100% garbage unless they come from a Fortune 500 company and even then, a lot of those are garbage.

It seems like if you’re big enough, you’re obligated to be on an app store, and incidentally your software quality is only going to be on par because you’re large enough to afford designers who actually adhere to design guidelines, maybe.

I will never forget how Schiller wanted the App Store to be a Nordstrom experience but instead it always feels like a dollar store. Because the quality of the apps are bottom-tier, there’s overwhelming amounts of Chinese knockoffs, and the apps, if paid, are literally sometimes at dollar store prices.

The app stores are ghetto. Don’t publish there. It’s mere coincidence that large companies like Spotify are there. And they’re not there because the app stores are good.

beeftime 336 days ago |

Frankly, I'm surprised that you got four downloads!

I'm not saying your app is bad, I'm sure it's perfectly fine and does what it purports to do. The UI looks nice. I just find it incredibly difficult to believe that any sort of market exists for the product you've produced: people who are expecting a child, and want that child to have a Danish name, and are unwilling to Google search (or ask ChatGPT etc) for eg "Danish boy names" AND are willing to pay $4.99 (mostly) sight unseen for a premium experience with baffling features ("Names you have favorited can easily be shared with your loved ones directly from the app"? Surely I could just, like... tell them the name?)

The conclusion you seemed to reach ("no one is buying paid apps") doesn't make a lot of sense. Plenty of people are buying paid apps. What you have discovered is that the Dutch Lifestyle section of the app store gets very little traffic and that an extraordinarily niche app can rank with a user base you can count on one hand.