Sales Tip: Categories in iTunes
scitunes
Member, Sous Chef Posts: 4,047
So I have been playing around with putting XMB in different game sub-categories. Here's what I have found so far.
First the obvious. Action, Arcade and Adventure are very popular and if you can get in the Top 100 where people can see you on their devices it's great, but it is very competitive and very hard for indie devs like us to get in the top 100 without the marketing $$$ of the bigger firms.
My Experiment:
XMB has stayed in the Top 100 for Racing for the last 13 days. For my second sub category I have been changing it to see how it compares. When XMB was in the 70s for racing it was around 130-150 for strategy and about the same for simulation. The kids category was only slightly better around 120-140. This morning I changed it to board games and it is now around 90 for Racing and 98 for Board Games.
I haven't tried all of the categories, but so far of the ones I mentioned above racing and board have been the easiest to break into the Top 100.
It would be cool if we could come up with a rank ordered list from least competitive to most competitive.
First the obvious. Action, Arcade and Adventure are very popular and if you can get in the Top 100 where people can see you on their devices it's great, but it is very competitive and very hard for indie devs like us to get in the top 100 without the marketing $$$ of the bigger firms.
My Experiment:
XMB has stayed in the Top 100 for Racing for the last 13 days. For my second sub category I have been changing it to see how it compares. When XMB was in the 70s for racing it was around 130-150 for strategy and about the same for simulation. The kids category was only slightly better around 120-140. This morning I changed it to board games and it is now around 90 for Racing and 98 for Board Games.
I haven't tried all of the categories, but so far of the ones I mentioned above racing and board have been the easiest to break into the Top 100.
It would be cool if we could come up with a rank ordered list from least competitive to most competitive.
Comments
No way of knowing if it is a cause and effect relationship or mere coincidence. If I was looking for an iphone board game and saw XMB I doubt I would buy it. But it can't hurt to have twice the visibility.
Anybody have experience with other categories that seem a bit easier to compete in?
I would think your sales would be about the same, but perhaps being more visible in the top 100 in another category would boost your sales
I'll report back about sales tomorrow.
@JC - I see what you mean about it being underhanded. I was really just trying to experiment to figure out what is easiest to compete in. I am going to pull XMB out of board games today as it will probably just confuse people. Still not sure what other category to try, but now I know that if I make a true board game app it may have a decent chance of making a bit of money.
@Jaxter - I have found that free and paid are two completely different ballgames. XMB Lite stayed in the top 100 for Adventure for quite awhile and has now been DLed over 50,000 times. The paid version was not even close when listed in Adventure!
As far as I can see having done two apps, not with salad that is coming next, that there is no rhyme or reason to anything on Itunes. Apple is so close mouthed that they leave everyone but the very elite from knowing what is going on. That also leads me to believe that probably no body is making any money from this store. I have seen cool games that were fun to play and they get nothing I have seen other games that are total garbage and they make it to NandN or elsewhere.
So, does anyone have any insight, I am totally clueless? But that might be a personal problem. hehe
XMB is 88 in racing and 123 in sports.
I also think that the extra exposure that XMB got in the board games top 100 may have been out weighed by people being confused and thinking "How the hell is barreling down a mountain in a bus a BOARD game!?" So I switched it out of board games and into sports which means it is only in one top 100 category, but there should be less confusion about what type of game it is.
I am making an average of $23 for the last two weeks without any exposure from apple. I would sure be nice to get noticed by apple in the NandN or hot new games or something.