iPhone Apps Suffer From One Night Stands, Too
— -- Listen up, iPhone lovers: You may to think twice before shelling out your cash for that next app. A new report compiled by iPhone analytics firm Pinch Media finds the majority of people stop using apps the very day after they download them. Where's the love?
You Promised You'd Call...
The data, presented at this week's New York iPhone Developers Meetup, is actually geared toward developers--but there are some interesting insights for average App Store users, too. Here are three fun facts for any smartphone fan:
• Fact #1: With free apps, a whopping 80 percent of people abandon their selections the day after their first interaction.
• Fact #2: When it comes to paid apps, less than a third of users go back for more the following day.
• Fact #3: Only 1 percent of people end up developing a long-term usage relationship with any given app. Instead, most tend to lose interest after only a few minutes.
Is it just me, or is this all starting to sound eerily like an average night after the singles bar?
Getting Down to Business
Dating comparisons aside, Pinch Media found apps focused on games and entertainment seem to outlast other categories when it comes to long-term engagement. Even if it can't complete when it comes to stamina, though, snagging a spot in one of the App Store "top 100" lists can help an app more than double its downloads. "Top 25" or "top 10" placement, not surprisingly, is the best place to be.
The presentation goes on to discuss some of the business aspects of the App Store. Dropping a price, for example, increases an app's demand by 130 percent. Raising a price, on the other hand, causes the app's demand to fall by 25 percent.
The company also says typically, developers are better off charging for an app than offering it for free. Even with the higher usage rate of free apps, Pinch found developers can't come close to the earning potential provided by a pay-to-play program.
You can see the entire Pinch Media report here. Or, if you're so inclined, you can see how to make a pinch pot out of clay here.
Hey, just trying to offer something for everyone. I'm here to please.
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