Fairlady Media

Indie iOS Dev Networking: Good Fun and Good Business

Posted on March 15, 2011 in

Last year James and I attended the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco (March, 2010). As indie iOS developers, we weren’t really sure how much we’d get out of the conference. At that point, we’d had some moderate success on the App Store with our first free game, Spazzle (critter-whacking fun). It had had over a million downloads in 2009 and brought in enough ad revenue to support Fairlady Media as a part-time business. What could we learn at the conference to help us grow our business and build on our successes?

It’s important to note that, for us, GDC was a very expensive excursion… with plane tickets, plus hotel and meals and the conference pass, we’d be spending thousands of dollars. Plus, it would mean a week away from our work. So the question we had was, “What will we gain from this?” Sure, GDC offers great workshops, tutorials, and sessions on game design and development. But in addition to that, now we can see that GDC 2010 was the start of forming a great network of friends and colleagues in a rapidly changing market. This network has helped us stay afloat while so many developers are struggling for visibility on the App Store. Attending GDC 2011 allowed us to spend a bit more time with these really creative and talented developers, and it’s inspired me to encourage others to create or join networks of their own.

Benefits of Indie Networks

-       Alpha and beta testing. Other devs can be a great resource for beta testing… they know what is possible and what has already been done. They also know how to describe how to replicate that bug in your app!
-       Cross promotion. Apps can be promoted in other apps through ads or in-game news, or on websites. Everyone benefits from cross-promotion… when one app gets into the Top 25, it has a lot of visibility and can promote other apps. Plus, companies like Linkshare allow devs to benefit from putting links to the App Store into their apps. This week, we’re launching the iPhone version of our newest game, Bust-A-Marble, and it will be cross-promoted in several other successful games. When we have a large audience for that game, we can return the favor to another developer.
-       News. Are the rankings frozen or whacky on the App Store today? When is the next iOS beta coming out? How’s that new iPad2? You’ll be the first to know about the news that affects your business.
-       Tips. An indie network can share everything from code debugs and marketing to great contractors for sound, music, artwork, and code.
-       Friendships. It’s great fun to meet other devs in person; often, you’ll have more in common than just App Store strategizing. We’ve found that the members of our group have a rich mix of personalities and experiences, and we’ve had great conversations about everything from kids and travel to home-brewing beer!

Risks of Indie Networks

-       Competition within the network could lead to “stealing ideas” or other undesirable business practices.
-       Too many people and ideas could create too much “noise” to find valuable information.

Some Strategies for Creating a Successful Network

Thus far, we have found that the benefits outweigh the potential risks. Our advice to new indie devs? Get connected! A few ways to connect:

-       Make regular posts on Facebook, Twitter, discussion forums, blogs, etc.
-       Attend conferences and seek out other devs with similar apps.
-       Attend local meetups.
-       Tell your friends and family that you’re an iOS developer; often they know someone else who is a developer too.
-       Send replies to promising “cold call” emails… often there are opportunities for marketing and advertising that you have not yet thought of.
-       Consider joining more formal groups such as the International Game Developers Association (IGDA) or cross-promotion companies.

James and I are not the organizers of our group, but as we’ve participated in the group we’ve begun to learn what works. If you are organizing a group of indie developers, consider the following strategies for success: 1) create a listserv or group forum to share ideas, 2) select new members carefully to make sure they will add value to the group, 3) set up guidelines for sharing information (e.g. NDAs, frequency and type of posts), 4) plan to meet in person at conferences and meetups, 5) keep the group small enough so that you’ll be able to get to know the people in the group well (less than 50 seems ideal), and 6) share ideas freely to encourage others in the group to do so as well.

Oh, and by the way, if you see us at the next GDC or 360iDev, come on over and say hi.

- Connie, aka fairlady

Tags: advice, App, App Store, article, community, develop, developer, Fairlady Media, game, games, iOS, iPad, iPhone, iPod, news, tips