- First, determine if your idea for an application has not already been done. If it has, see if your idea improves significantly upon it. If there is no application like yours, consider whether yours solves a particular problem in a way that would be appealing to iPhone users like yourself.
If you do not already have an iPhone or iPod touch, you should invest some time with one before you decide to create an iPhone application. The best design ideas come from personal experience, not abstract thought. You should be the user---or intimately know the needs of your imagined user---for whom you are building an application. You should also go to the App Store to look at the top paid and top free applications for the category your application would fit into. You should know what similar applications iPhone users are already buying. - Join the Apple iPhone Developer Program on the iPhone Dev Center website. Once you do, you can download iPhone SDK 3.1.2, which has the tools you will need, as well as an iPhone simulator, with which you can design and troubleshoot your idea. This investment is not the only one you will have to make. A successful iPhone app will take a great deal of time to sketch, develop, and test.
- Spend time with iPhone applications you like and do not. Borrow design ideas from the applications you like. Work with the limitations of the iPhone, such as its small screen compared to computers and the different kind of typing skills it requires, when you sketch and tinker with your design ideas. Your application should be interactive, have features that people need, and be easy to navigate. The most common complaint about iPhone applications is that they do not include key features that people need. Make sure that you include features that will distinguish your application, even from those similar to yours. If you are not familiar with how to write the code to create the application you imagine, ReadWriteWeb recommends 13 different tools to help you.
- Submitting your application to Apple is not the end of your work. Promoting your application is crucial. You may be excited to start work on another application once you have finished your first. But your first application needs to launch well. Start building buzz before yours is launched. Contact iPhone bloggers who write about applications similar to yours. Create a Facebook fan page for your application. You should also start thinking about adding new features to your application. Each new version you launch will generate new publicity.
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