iPhone Applications Market & Development Opportunities

If your organization understands the wealth of possibilities provided through social networking and Web 2.0 technologies, you have probably created a corporate application for Facebook and are already reaping the benefits.  You may wonder where you can expand your efforts with similar results.
 
You next step should involve developing applications for the iPhone.  In July of 2008, Apple opened the iTunes App Store which provides a place for third party developers to market and distribute their custom iPhone apps.  iPhone users can obtain both free and pay applications in a range of categories including games, productivity, social networking, and travel, just to name a few.

Although this may sound like an exciting opportunity, you may wonder how positive the reception to the Apple App Store has been.  Amazingly, consumer downloads exceeded more than 25 million applications within the first ten days of launch.  These numbers are almost as impressive as the sales of the iPhones themselves.  As the hardware continues to post strong sells, the software is sure to follow suit.

We have already received numerous enquires from our clients regarding which applications to develop and how to plan an effective strategy.  Here are a few tips to consider:

Find the Obvious
Large, complicated applications are rarely necessary for the iPhone.  Instead, users are looking for simple, familiar applications that address basic needs.  Do not dismiss a concept because it appears too simple and straight forward.  Some of the top sellers include tools like to-do lists and mobile versions of popular websites. 

Know Your Market
To create a useful application, you must understand who your target market is.  Each market will have unique needs to uncover and capitalize on.  For example, if you are targeting heavy business travelers you would want to consider related tools such as expense logs and time trackers.

Know the iPhone
You may understand the basics of an iPhone but you must know the details inside and out, including limitations, to understand where the greatest needs are.  For example, did you know that the iPhone does not include voice dialing?  This is a critical feature for some users.  Businesses who understood the impact early on have reaped excellent rewards by designing a voice dialing iPhone application.