Let's blame ourselves not Apple - lets get fired up!!

JamesZeppelin

I'm just uploaded my free version and started working on my next IPHONE game lol

I'm not gonna slow down at all...

We just get spoiled because a lot of the marketing happens for us with the rankings and what not. I am certainly including myself in that.Can't give up just because no one "found" your app by chance.

There is still a bigger market and potential with the app store than just about anywhere

There are 30 IPAD apps or so featured and I'm sure there are closer to 100 that are doing well. What are they doing that we are not? Self Marketing. Maybe they have an existing fan base but they had to get it first. PvsZ was huge from day one but you know pop cap worked their asses off before that game hit the app store.
There is no other business in the world where you can just sit back and let the good times roll at first. Sure it's nice when it happens but..... It doesn't always as we are seeing now. But, if you still have a product you believe in push it.

I played music for about 12 years and was fairly successful. It payed the bills and i saw a lot of things and had a lot of fun.

We opened for some descent bands, sold a some records and played a lot of the cool clubs like House of Blues and the Hard Rock.

All because we worked our Butts off marketing. I for one just gotta get back to that mentality.
I plan on it too!!

that my 2 cents

Feel free to pipe in...

scitunes

Thanks, coach!

I agree. I think I saw you post somewhere that you used admob before. How did that work out for you? Do you recommend it? What kind of return did you get on your investment?

Other than this forum, touch arcade, other app review sites, facebook...
What else is there?

Eastbound

Well I don't think anybody has stopped working due to this crap iPad launch.

And, the Developers that are the 40 or so featured have much more going for them than "self-promotion." They have teams of many people, they had iPads to test on before launch, and they have their brand name and instantly recognizable apps.

The little guy just got screwed out of this launch. Plain and simple.

However I do expect it to change soon, because seemingly nobody is happy with the current store layout.

Eastbound

The main thing I see wrong with your post is the title. The content was fine, but I don't think anybody should be blaming themselves.

Most of us did work hard to get apps out there, and no amount of plausible self-promotion will get anybody noticed in the iPad store.

Photics

It's not about blame... it's about math... my Android Games have been more successful than my Apple iPhone / iPad / iPod Touch games. The market is highly-competitive. For example, I published Photics: Revisions to Android and the iPhone OS. The Android version destroys the amount of iPhones sales. It's the same content... one sells... one does not.

Plus, Apple makes money at every transaction...

You need a Mac to be a developer
You need to register as a developer
You need Apple hardware to fully test your games
You need to give a percentage of your earning to Apple

So far for me, the only one making money here is Apple.

So... I'm waiting for Gendai Games to branch out... Android... Web... PC.

JamesZeppelin

Absolutely we got screwed. I agree

But don't get all worked up just because the word blame was used.

my point is only that we can compete.

And maybe i dont speak for everyone but i put some blame on myself.
I made the basic required posts and got my promo codes out and was ready to sit back and enjoy the ride (again just me)

I would never take that route and never have with anything else i've ever done.

I'm usually the guy that would be at the apple store handing out cards with promo codes and meeting people to start a buzz...

My point is that I am gonna get back to that.
Not just that but thats part of it

Photics

We can compete... but I see the games I'm up against. They're really REALLY good. I don't think it's wise to attack that head on. I don't want to spend the next year making a really good game and having it fall off the charts because of something that Apple changed or a computer glitch.

I think GameSalad should support AdMob. It's a tough economy. I don't expect consumers to take a chance on an unknown. I've had much more success with advertisement based games.

scitunes

My big hope is that GS will focus on improving the software so that we can make our games even better. Then when 1.0 is out I REALLY hope admob, android, etc. can be implemented so that our great games have more ways of getting noticed. Hard work will still need to be part of the equation, but more ways of directing that hard work would be nice. Hopefully this is in the long term plans for GS.

bladeolson

I wish we could get more attention on our apps , but I agree, you gotta hoof it and push your stuff every day. It is draining when you try hard and nothing happens. Just gotta keep plugging away.

I think the Apps store is an amazing opportunity, you just gotta stick to it. I think the cooperation of this team has been great too. We really should try to figure out how to do it even better together. We have a pretty big team if we think of it like one.

blade

butterbean

Don't think that was a " mistake or error " that Apple just "forgot" to include categories for iPad apps to make them more visible

They 120% struck a deal with those companies that were featured under N&N and other sections. After all, they also received devices early on to test out their iPad apps right?

Once they include categories so people can actually "Search" for iPad apps... what a concept!!

Then hopefully we'll get more visibility and more sales... until then... the bigger companies are enjoying their sales figures for sure

Business is Business.... it's unfortunate, but hopefully in the next few weeks once the playing field is fair, we'll see some sort of pay off

JamesZeppelin

"I don't want to spend the next year making a really good game and having it fall off the charts because of something that Apple changed or a computer glitch"

Not gonna happen. If its good you can get it noticed.
Also if you spend a year droid may not even be here... or apple who knows.

and
Yes, Yes
I agree with all of you!
Please dont think i dont.

@scitunes (sorry if this next part is boring as its mostly to answer scitunes)
Yes i did some admob advertising
It did ok but, the thing is there is no instant payback for your money with that.
I spent about $200 and it got my game up to the top 20ish in only a catagory just for a test. It stayed a few days.
Ultimately i made about $700 before it dropped back down just because it sucked lol
From my understanding you need to spend big bucks to get high in the over all 100 and high up. You may spend 100k doing it and not make your money back for months but if your game is good it will stay up there a while. THATS THE KEY you are paying to shove it up the flag pole... and see who will solute it. You are not making a dollar to dollar investment.
There are marketing firms that tell you "we can buy you this position, here is the cost"
just based on teh FACT a certain percentage of people will click and a small percentage will buy.
I have picked up the phone and called a few of them. Most are friendly and tell you how it is.
Probably some of the better insight into the app store than i have found on any forum.
I even had a pretty good 40 or so minute conversation with the guy who was hired by lima sky.

My point... the biggest common thing i hear and read is if you rely on the release date page you probably are missing something pretty important. Like FMG said, if you have a good game it will shine. I could be wrong but there aren't a lot of truly great games that just sit at the bottom. Maybe not at the top but they are making some money.

But, we really can compete.
Droid support will be nice i agree with that too but, the grass is always greener on the other side
There are millions upon millions of people right here right now that are just like you and me.
Show me one more opportunity with a $99 investment fee that, all be it hard, has that.
Droid may be easier to get noticed right now but that wont last.

I also cant wait until we can ad admob... I mean jeez we need to insert ONE line of code to do it.
I have three free apps that together have done over 300k now.
but..
How much would someone pay to put there add up 300 thousand times?
Apparently i have wasted those unless i can get some back with updates.

We dont have addmob but why not make a crappy app with a good icon that is free?
Advertise on it. Its the same kind of place your add will end up anyways.
Make your own addmob.

Better yet I'm sure its not too difficult to make a soundbaord or something without GS
to generate some income with admob while your work... I'm just saying....

chosenonestudios

James good insight and thinking:)

"We opened for some descent bands, sold a some records and played a lot of the cool clubs like House of Blues and the Hard Rock."

House of Blues Orlando!? I've been there a couple times! Whats the name of your band?

JamesZeppelin

No, the only HoB i played was the sunset one in Hollywood, Probably not as big as Orlando.
lol we played with Europe
I played in a band called Squelch in the late 90s
I also owned a small record label
Was back when taking credit cards online meant getting the numbers from the forms and physically running them through the machine at the end of the night lol
Looking back we really sucked but it was fun.
My last band was more of a working band that payed the bills