Paid app or activation

robomedia · 18th Feb 2016, 09:03 AM

Hi guys,

I'm about to launch my first app for Android. It's very simple but useful or even a must have app for certain niche. There are quite a lot of similar apps, I just think mine is better because it's not bloated, it just does what it has to and looks clean. I see other apps have installs even up to 500k ( free ) - but same app paid has like 500 installs .

So I have few options :

1) I can give it away for free without ads - it's my first app, and it's quite useful - because there is no ads I'm sure I can have many installs - but then how do I monetise ?

2) Free with ads. I think that many people would switch to using my app because it wouldn't have any ads . With ads it's not going to be liked much .
But if I decide with ads - how should I then give the option to disable ads ? Do I have to put another one into the Store - full paid version . Or can I add a button : enter code to disable ads ? To buy a code you have to go to a website and pay with paypal. This way I wouldn't have to share with Google right ? or is it illegal ?

3) I can drop ads and give some content for free and some advanced content only in paid app . The question about activation is the same as in 2) .

thanks

Quarshie · 23rd Feb 2016, 01:04 PM

Hey robomedia,

Since its your first app, it will be difficult to get a large number of downloads because you haven't really acquired recognition and people might find it difficult to pay for an app they are not so sure about.

But there is a way out.

First, you can actually release a Lite Version and a Paid version. My strategy is to leverage the download numbers of a Lite (free) app and then upsell people into the paid version so they could have more features.

Makes sense, yeah? This way you can avoid ads altogether.

I hope this strategy will be applicable to your app.

Let me know if this was helpful.

robomedia · 24th Feb 2016, 01:34 AM

Thx, it is applicable, and I'm considering Lite and Paid version .

I'm just wondering if I can do something like : you download app once - for free - and in the app I have a button enter activation code - which when activated turns into full version of app.

This way I could - first - keep only single version of app in store so I have combined downloads total with lite/paid - second - I could skip AppStore/PlayStore margins.

It should be quite easy for me to do in code I guess. But first I don't know if it's legal to do so, and second if it's going to be a pro or a con - as buying an activation token would need some separate payment solution, and for sure most users are most likely to use default app payment .

Do you have any experience with such situation ?

thanks

Quarshie · 24th Feb 2016, 03:38 PM

Yes, the idea you have in mind will work. And it is legal.

So you only release one fully-functional package, put all of the functionality into the "free" version, and then release a key app which is just an empty package. Then you can add a function to the free version which checks whether the key app is installed. You can then use this function to selectively unlock certain features of the application.

This key app can be hidden from the app drawer, which should prevent the annoyance usually associated with having two apps.
This way you can have separate key apps for separate features in the free app.

Another benefit of this is that all user data remains within the free app, and once the user upgrades to pro, you do not have to take any further steps to move the data from free to pro. Also, even if the user uninstalls the pro key app, the data will still remain in the free app.

This way you could keep only the single version of the app in the store so you have combined downloads total with lite/paid.

18th Feb 2016, 09:03 AM	#1
robomedia Active Warrior Join Date: 2014 Posts: 84 Thanks: 5 Thanked 11 Times in 10 Posts	Paid app or activation Share on: Hi guys, I'm about to launch my first app for Android. It's very simple but useful or even a must have app for certain niche. There are quite a lot of similar apps, I just think mine is better because it's not bloated, it just does what it has to and looks clean. I see other apps have installs even up to 500k ( free ) - but same app paid has like 500 installs . So I have few options : 1) I can give it away for free without ads - it's my first app, and it's quite useful - because there is no ads I'm sure I can have many installs - but then how do I monetise ? 2) Free with ads. I think that many people would switch to using my app because it wouldn't have any ads . With ads it's not going to be liked much . But if I decide with ads - how should I then give the option to disable ads ? Do I have to put another one into the Store - full paid version . Or can I add a button : enter code to disable ads ? To buy a code you have to go to a website and pay with paypal. This way I wouldn't have to share with Google right ? or is it illegal ? 3) I can drop ads and give some content for free and some advanced content only in paid app . The question about activation is the same as in 2) . thanks

23rd Feb 2016, 01:04 PM	#2
Quarshie Warrior Member Join Date: 2016 Location: Ghana Posts: 6 Thanks: 5 Thanked 3 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Paid app or activation Share on: Hey robomedia, Since its your first app, it will be difficult to get a large number of downloads because you haven't really acquired recognition and people might find it difficult to pay for an app they are not so sure about. But there is a way out. First, you can actually release a Lite Version and a Paid version. My strategy is to leverage the download numbers of a Lite (free) app and then upsell people into the paid version so they could have more features. Makes sense, yeah? This way you can avoid ads altogether. I hope this strategy will be applicable to your app. Let me know if this was helpful.
	Appmages.com

24th Feb 2016, 01:34 AM	#3
robomedia Active Warrior Join Date: 2014 Posts: 84 Thanks: 5 Thanked 11 Times in 10 Posts	Re: Paid app or activation Share on: Thx, it is applicable, and I'm considering Lite and Paid version . I'm just wondering if I can do something like : you download app once - for free - and in the app I have a button enter activation code - which when activated turns into full version of app. This way I could - first - keep only single version of app in store so I have combined downloads total with lite/paid - second - I could skip AppStore/PlayStore margins. It should be quite easy for me to do in code I guess. But first I don't know if it's legal to do so, and second if it's going to be a pro or a con - as buying an activation token would need some separate payment solution, and for sure most users are most likely to use default app payment . Do you have any experience with such situation ? thanks

24th Feb 2016, 03:38 PM	#4
Quarshie Warrior Member Join Date: 2016 Location: Ghana Posts: 6 Thanks: 5 Thanked 3 Times in 2 Posts	Re: Paid app or activation Share on: Yes, the idea you have in mind will work. And it is legal. So you only release one fully-functional package, put all of the functionality into the "free" version, and then release a key app which is just an empty package. Then you can add a function to the free version which checks whether the key app is installed. You can then use this function to selectively unlock certain features of the application. This key app can be hidden from the app drawer, which should prevent the annoyance usually associated with having two apps. This way you can have separate key apps for separate features in the free app. Another benefit of this is that all user data remains within the free app, and once the user upgrades to pro, you do not have to take any further steps to move the data from free to pro. Also, even if the user uninstalls the pro key app, the data will still remain in the free app. This way you could keep only the single version of the app in the store so you have combined downloads total with lite/paid.
	Appmages.com