Developer of bestselling iPhone app says just 5% of buyers opt for in-app purchases

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 32
    jpcgjpcg Posts: 114member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by OrangeGroupApps View Post


    The In-App Purchase rate depends on a number of factors, including, but not limited to, whether the app itself is free or paid, how good the In-App Purchase feature is, and the business model for said app.



    Be that as it may, it is both interesting and helpful to see these specific figures and numbers from this well known developer.



    Thank you for this article!



    +1



    But keep in mind, that the article offered in-app purchase for Camera+ is pretty weak. They offer picture effects like those in Hippstamatic while they already offer a lot of picture effects for free. I would rather get a seperate free app or Hippstamatic if I wanted such a functionality.
  • Reply 22 of 32
    dennyldennyl Posts: 28member
    I have Camera+ and I had not realised that there are in app purchases available. I just found an item called 'Restore purchases' in the Menu. Is this it? When I tapped on it it asked for my iTunes password so I didn't go any further in case it cost money. I didn't see "I (heart) Analog".



    This leaves me confused. What does I (heart) Analogue do??
  • Reply 23 of 32
    nasseraenasserae Posts: 3,167member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by franktinsley View Post


    Did you try having the in app purchase available for a time while app B was not? Maybe it's cannibalizing?



    For me it doesn't really matters whether they buy the standalone app or the in app part. I priced them both the same and the IAP part was basically the standalone app added to app "B". So either way I am still making money. I just find it interesting that IAP is not that attractive. I am glad I know this because this will keep me away from depending too much on this feature for revenues.
  • Reply 24 of 32
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DennyL View Post


    I have Camera+ and I had not realised that there are in app purchases available. I just found an item called 'Restore purchases' in the Menu. Is this it? When I tapped on it it asked for my iTunes password so I didn't go any further in case it cost money. I didn't see "I (heart) Analog".



    This leaves me confused. What does I (heart) Analogue do??



    1) Make sure you are using the latest version

    2) Take a picture or Edit an existing picture in your camera roll

    3) On the BOTTOM toolbar, click on "FX Effects"

    4) You'll see a few groups of effects, like Color, Retro, Special, and then one called "I (heart) Analog". It's the nine effects under I (heart) Analog that cost an additional 99 cents to use (you are allowed to try them before buying them)
  • Reply 25 of 32
    robogoborobogobo Posts: 378member
    shocker! people like free.
  • Reply 26 of 32
    sflocalsflocal Posts: 6,092member
    For me, in-app purchases are like aggressive panhandlers. They really get on my nerves. I'd rather buy the app in its entirety.
  • Reply 27 of 32
    nagrommenagromme Posts: 2,834member
    One annecdote is not much info: one app will perform very differently from another.



    That said, 1-in-20 sounds amazingly high! Especially once a free app gets in a Top list, a ton of people will try it who have little real interest and didn’t think too hard about clicking that Free button. If 1 in 20 of them really do want to pay, that sounds pretty decent to me.



    EDIT: another instance of this effect is the phenomenon where making an app free apparently causes ratings to drop! Because with a paid app, you get more users who have thought about the app and made sure they know what it is. With a free app, you get a larger slice of impulse downloaders who probably shouldn’t have bothered. (This problem was worse, supposedly, when Apple asked for ratings upon deleting apps!) Ugh—I hope (no, plan!) to release my iOS game some day, and the app market is anything but simple! I’m steeled for whatever good or bad luck I may have...



    As for the large number of people who get the free upgrade, well, that’s automatic.
  • Reply 28 of 32
    n42n42 Posts: 34member
    This article is FUD. I've been sitting here hunting for the in-app purchases in Camera+ and can not find them. It's no wonder they are complaining about lack of purchases. And 5% is very high considering I can't even figure out where the hell they are.
  • Reply 29 of 32
    2oh12oh1 Posts: 503member
    I guarantee that Hipstamatic gets far better than 5% in-app purchases.



    Did TapTapTap ever consider that their in-app purchases aren't worth the money? Or that the user interface of the editing half of their app is annoying? The camera half of their Camera+ app is excellent. I think it's currently the best camera app available, but the editing UI is dumb.



    Developers underestimate the importance of a good UI.
  • Reply 30 of 32
    2oh12oh1 Posts: 503member
    "Casasanta challenged reports that mobile apps are "quickly discarded" by using data showing that half of the purchasers of Camera+ upgraded to version 2.2 of the app within 6 days of the update's release."



    That's bogus. It just means users updated their iphones within six days, but it doesn't mean they still have the app on their iPhones. I see 159 apps in my iTunes library, but less than a third of them are on my iPhone. I wish iTunes had a way to sort apps that are and aren't on my iPhone. It would make it easier to delete stuff I don't want.
  • Reply 31 of 32
    typemrttypemrt Posts: 4member
    For me it's a value perception. I would rather pay $2 for the complete app than $1 + a $1 in-app purchase that only adds a little functionality. Photogene is a perfect example of wacky pricing. On the iPad it's $2.99 with a $7.99 PRO pack in-app purchase. I emailed the Dev and he wouldn't tell me specifically what the PRO pack included. Why would I pay any $ for an app when the desrciption mixes included and in-app purchase features? I want to know upfront what I'm paying for and what costs extra.
  • Reply 32 of 32
    palegolaspalegolas Posts: 1,361member
    In-app purchases for CONTENT makes me happy.

    In-app purchases for FUNCTIONS makes me feel ripped off.

    These two factors I think are the most fundamental as to what kinds of in-app purchases will work. Paying for functions is a bit like paying for QuickTime pro to be able to play videos in full screen back in the days, remember? It's all there just waiting to be used, and it makes me feel ripped off.

    Better to make a standard version, and a pro version that differs enough to be considered good enough to spend the extra money.
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