App Developer’s Corner: Dan Nelson of DN Publications
Today’s App Developer’s Corner features Dan Nelson of UK based DN Publications. In this interview, Dan shares with us his experience with releasing his first application and what he plans to do to market it going forward.
Give us a quick overview about yourself
I’m the Director and lead programmer of DN Publications Ltd, a UK based computer software company. I’ve developed several computer games in the past but these have been Amiga and PC based. BATAK Duel is my first iPhone and iPod touch game.
Why did you move into the mobile space and what was your incentive to use the iPhone platform?
I wanted to move into the mobile space because I see big potential there. It’s a large and growing market for at least the next 10 years. I chose the iPhone and iPod touch platforms because I believe they are the best designed and most supported mobile platforms out there. Apple have done a truly great job with the iPhone and currently it’s untouchable.
Seeing as you recently released your first application, what is your marketing plan going forward?
I intend to promote the BATAK Duel game in a variety of ways, for example, sending out press releases, requesting game reviews from mobile gaming websites, publishing YouTube videos and announcing it on gaming forums. I’ll also be doing interviews (like this one:) to raise our company profile.
How have you integrated Pinch Analytics, and how do you plan on using it as part of your overall marketing plan?
I’ve integrated Pinch Analytics into BATAK Duel so we can track things like which parts of the game users are spending the most time on. We also track how many users take advantage of the OpenFeint social networking features.
Pinch Analytics helps us to identify many other useful statistics, for example, how many people are using OS 3.0 or higher and how many people are still using first generation iPod touches. This is all useful information and means that we can identify important market trends and react accordingly. Every iPhone and iPod touch game that we do in the future will use Pinch Analytics to its full advantage.
Do you have any piece of advice for independent and new developers that you would like to share?
I would say don’t just launch your app and then sit back expecting to cash in, in most cases this just won’t happen. Be as proactive as possible in getting the word out, for the first month or so after launching your app spend a couple of hours a day marketing it and don’t give up!
You should notice that the more you promote your app then the more it sells, so just keep promoting it! Also, make sure you create an official website for your app and include a development blog and Twitter support.
Finally, make sure you support your app by replying to all customers’ emails (be polite!), fixing bugs as required and adding new features to your app. If you do all of this then you should do very well indeed.
If you would like to find out more about Batak Duel and DN Publications, check out the website. And if you would like to track how your marketing strategies translate into resulting user behavior, register for an account at Pinch Media and let us know if you have any questions getting started.
-Adit Shukla
