If you are a mobile app developer looking out for different ways of generating income from your mobile apps, the following information may be of good use to you. Although mobile app development is comparatively new, the heavy competition in the field almost chokes the income of app developers that are yet to establish their identity in the field. While the primary income of a mobile app developer should come from custom app development, there are myriad of ways to generate secondary and tertiary income from innovatively developed mobile apps.
1. Four Models Of Monetization
When it comes to monetizing your applications, there are four models currently in vogue. They include onetime paid apps, paid app with in-app purchases, free apps with advertisements, and free apps with premium services. All of the above monetization methods are capable generating decent income. However, considering the current scenario in the app stores, free apps with premium services have the potential to generate higher income than the other models.
2. Onetime Paid Apps
This is one of the oldest methods of monetization in the app store. The user pays a onetime fee to download and use the mobile app. The developer, however, provides all of the updates and additional content free of cost to the user throughout the life cycle of the app. There are several useful apps in the app store that can be purchased for a onetime fee.
3. Paid App With In-App Purchases
In this model, the user pays a onetime fee to download the app and he also has to pay additional fees to avail special features or to access additional content. Although it seems to be a great way to generate more income, it is not very popular among mobile users. However, a few developers that target businesses still continue to use this model.
4. Free Apps With Advertisements
Mobile app developers offer useful apps for free download and include nonintrusive advertisements in the app. While users can enjoy the app free of cost, advertisers will bear the cost of maintaining and updating the app. This model however is successful only when the app has a high number downloads and prolonged usage.
5. Free Apps With Premium Services
This model is otherwise called as freemium model. This is currently gaining much momentum in the app stores. Mobile users are getting smarter by the day and they seldom shell out on an app they had never tried before. This is why wise app developers create high quality mobile apps and let the users download them free of cost. Users can continue to use the app as long as they wish without having to pay anything. However, if the user decides to avail premium services, then a fee will be charged to access special features or additional content.
Conclusion
The best way to sustain mobile app development business is finding corporate clients and developing custom mobile applications for businesses. Businesses that wish to modernize and automate their processes are app hungry. Satiating their app needs is the right way to grow. However, when it comes to brand building and secondary income regularly releasing innovative mobile apps in the app stores is a good option.
