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Tools to make killer apps: Quick guide for developers

This article serves as a guide for mobile app developers seeking to enhance their applications using third-party tools and SDKs. It provides a categorized overview of various tools necessary for managing customer lifecycles, including acquisition, engagement, monetization, and analytics, along with relevant pricing details. The author emphasizes the importance of selecting the right tools based on individual development needs and conducting additional research when choosing platforms.

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This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Tools  to  make  killer  apps:  Quick  guide  for   developers   By  Deepak  Abbot  (Connect  with  me  on  twitter  @deepakabbot)     If  you  are  a  superhero  app  developer  who  can  solve  all  problems  on  its  own,  then   this  article  is  not  for  you.  This  is  meant  for  developers  who  are  looking  to  make   their  mobile  apps  go  from  good  to  fantastic  using  the  right  third  party  tools  &   SDKs.   App   developers   should   focus   on   their   core   offerings   and   let   specialist   platforms  take  care  of  the  rest.       This  article  gives  you  a  snapshot  of  some  of  the  popular  tools/SDKs  available  in   the   market   to   help   you   manage   your   customer’s   lifecycle.   My   work   at   Paytm   involves  evaluating  various  tools  &  platforms  for  our  mobile  business  so  I  have   compiled   this   list   based   on   my   interactions   with   account   managers   of   various   below  mentioned  products  or  extensive  online  research.         I   have   divided   the   tools   categorized   under   various   CLM   stages   for   ease   of   understanding.   All   the   tools   mentioned   below   would   require   their   SDK   to   be   integrated  in  your  app  (unless  otherwise  stated)  so  select  wisely  and  choose  the   ones  fulfilling  your  most  important  needs.     Note:  This  article  does  not  provide  extensive  review  of  each  tool.  Please  do  your  research   before  selecting  the  tools  you  want  to  use.  It’s  a  guide  to  help  you  identify  popular  tools  in   the  market     1.  Acquire/Awareness     This  is  where  it  all  starts.  Once  the  app  is  out  in  the  market,  you  need  to  make  it   popular,  advertise  and  get  installs.  You  employ  various  means  to  get  traffic.  This   section  talks  about  all  the  tools  that  can  help  you  in  your  journey     1(a):  Attribution  Tools  –  Tools/SDK  that  allows  you  to  attribute  each  install  to   a  particular  source.    Its  an  extremely  important  tool  to  be  carried  in  your  app  to   ascertain   the   effectiveness   of   each   channel.   Here   are   some   of   the   popular   attribution  tools/SDK  (in  alphabetical  order)    
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       AppsFlyer  (http://www.appsflyer.com)  -­‐  Track  impressions,  clicks,  installation   and  first  launch  from  various  sources.  They  have  a  simple  SDK  to  integrate.  All   popular  ad-­‐networks  are  pre-­‐integrated.     Pricing:   Organic  installs  are  not  charged.  Paid  installs  tracked  using  their  link   will  cost  you  between  $0.01  and  $0.05.  They  have  a  special  offer  running  where   they  don’t  charge  for  first  5000  non-­‐organic  installs  so  you  save  $250  upfront   If  you  are  looking  at  high  non-­‐organic  installs,  this  will  prove  expensive.     Hasoffers   MAT   (http://mobileapptracking.com)   -­‐   They   are   one   of   the   most   popular  attribution  analytics  platform.  They  have  got  very  easy  to  understand   dashboard  and  it’s  pretty  easy  to  setup  too.  Their  dashboard  has  some  bugs,  that   sometime  shows  wrong  data  under  some  filters.  It’s  a  known  bug  acknowledged   by  their  support  team.  Hopefully  it  will  be  fixed  soon.    Most  ad-­‐networks  are  pre-­‐ integrated  including  some  popular  Indian  networks.  Their  support  team  is  top   class,  you  can  expect  revert  in  few  hours.   Pricing:  For  2mn  installs  they  will  charge  $0.001  per  event.     Be  careful,  the  cost  is  for  every  event  and  not  install  so  all  clicks  using  their  URL   is  charged  to  you.  This  can  prove  to  be  really  expensive  if  your  conversion  from   click  to  install  is  very  poor.     Kochava   (http://www.kochava.com)   -­‐   They   provide   attribution   for   Windows,   Kindle   &   Blackberry   in   addition   to   Android   &   iOS.   They   even   have   a   non-­‐SDK   solution  using  server  to  server  calls  incase  you  are  wary  of  adding  external  SDKs.     Pricing:  They  claim  that  they  can  match  the  pricing  offered  by  the  competition   so  you  just  write  to  them  and  negotiate  ☺     Segment.IO   (https://segment.io)   -­‐   In   addition   to   tracking   installs,   it   can   send   data   to   any   other   analytics   tool   you   use   like   GA,   Mixpanel,   Omniture   or   Salesforce.     Pricing:  $349  for  20mn  events/month  –  Most  economical  of  all.  Less  than  100k   events  are  free  so  it’s  pretty  good  for  beginners.       Tapstream  (https://tapstream.com)  -­‐  They  are  a  new  entrants  in  attribution   analytics.  Track  Install  to  LTV  using  their  SDK.     Pricing:  Free.  $495/month  if  you  want  to  integrate  with  your  other  analytics   platform     1(b):  Link  Exchange  –  If  you  are  an  Indie  developer  with  no  marketing  budgets,   then  you  need  to  look  at  some  of  the  advt/link  exchange  networks  to  grow  your   initial  base.  Some  of  the  popular  in-­‐app  traffic  exchange  networks  are:     AppFlood   Traffic   Exchange   (http://appflood.com/a/mobile-­‐traffic-­‐exchange)   Signup  at  the  above  URL  and  download  a  small  API  to  integrate  free  advts  inside   your   app.   Be   sure   to   remove   this   once   you   reach   a   desired   scale   as   traffic   exchange  is  not  advisable  beyond  a  point.     Exchanger  (https://exchanger.metaps.com)  -­‐  Customize  the  ad  units  you  want   to   display   in   your   app.   Similarly   you   can   customize   your   App   icon   which   you  
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       want  to  show  in  other  apps.  Their  SDK  promises  to  be  light  and  you  need  few   lines  of  codes  in  your  app  to  be  ready     TapForTap   (https://tapfortap.com/)   -­‐   This   network   offers   free   ad   banner   exchange  in  addition  to  paid  banners.  You  can  easily  switch  between  free  traffic   and  paid  traffic     1(c):  App  Distribution  –  These  platforms  allow  you  to  submit  your  Android  app   across  hundreds  of  App  stores  worldwide  with  minimal  effort     Inmobi  App  Publish  (http://www.inmobi.com/products/app-­‐publish)  –  One  of   the  easiest  and  free  to  use  tool  submit  your  apps  to  various  stores.  You  can  track   the   performance   and   revenue   details   from   Inmobi’s   dashboard.   This   is   highly   recommended  for  developers  looking  for  wide  global  audiences.  This  does  not   require  any  SDK  or  API  inside  your  apps.     Other  App  Stores  –  Besides  publishing  your  Android  app  on  Google  Play  store,   you   must   individually   upload   your   app   on   some   of   the   popular   stores   like   Amazon,   Getjar,   Opera,   Appslib,   Yandex,   AppsZoom,   Mobango,   Samsung   Apps,   SlideMe  among  others     1(d):  ASO  (App  Store  Optimization)  Tools  –  Taking  the  SEO  concept  to  apps,   ASO  is  about  getting  your  app  rank  improved  based  on  keyword  analysis  done  by   these  tools.  These  tools  will  also  track  your  rank  daily.  Please  understand  that   most  of  the  information  is  available  through  various  sources  –  they  just  make  it   more  meaningful  and  organized     Appnique  (https://appnique.com)  -­‐  It  offers  all  usual  ASO  techniques  including   Keyword   analysis,   competition   mapping   &   rank   monitoring.   In   addition   to   providing  insights  they  use  these  insight  to  identify  look-­‐a-­‐likes  and  help  you  do   targeted   mobile   app   install   campaigns   on   Facebook.   They   also   provide   pre-­‐ launch  analysis  in  their  pro  version.   Pricing:   Basic   version   is   free   which   tracks   one   app.   Most   practical   version   is   $149/month     FreshRankings   (http://www.freshrankings.com/app-­‐store-­‐optimization)   -­‐   Their  core  competency  lies  in  SEO  optimization  and  they  offer  App  optimization   as  an  additional  offering.  Their  tool  help  you  in  planning  before  you  launch  the   app.  They  suggest  content,  description,  title  for  your  yet  to  release  app.  Pricing  is   available  on  request  only.     MobileDevHQ  (https://www.mobiledevhq.com)  -­‐  Tool  which  does  competitive   analysis  for  you,  makes  keyword  recommendations  and  track  the  effect  of  these   changes  to  your  app  rank.  Work  for  both  Play  Store  &  iTunes  Store.  No  SDK  is   needed.  Just  signup  and  link  your  &  competitor’s  apps   Pricing:  They  have  a  free  version  that  does  not  provide  keyword  suggestions  &   India  store  compatibility.  Most  practical  version  will  cost  you  $350/month.      
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       SensorTower   (https://sensortower.com)   -­‐   In   addition   to   all   the   regular   ASO   tasks   achieved   by   others,   SensorTower   enterprise   version   provides   market   insights  too.  All  International  stores  are  supported.   Pricing:   Starts   from   $79/month   for   tracking   up   to   80   keywords   going   up   to   $399/month  for  400  keywords.  Both  these  packs  do  not  provide  international   store  data.         2.  Engage/Convert     Now  that  you  have  acquired  users,  it’s  important  to  keep  your  users  engaged  and   connected.  It’s  critical  to  sign  them  up  quickly  to  complete  the  acquisition.  There   are  some  tools  available  to  integrate  signup  &  social  engagement  in  your  apps.   These  tools  also  help  you  do  audience  segmentation  &  customer  profiling  and   reward  them  for  their  engagement.     2(a)  Social  Plugins  –  Tools,  which  can  quickly  make  your  app  go  interactive  and   viral     FB  SDK  for  Android  or  iOS  (https://developers.facebook.com/docs/android)  -­‐   If  you  want  people  to  signup  inside  your  app  then  you  must  not  omit  FB  SDK.  It   will  allow  you  to  add  FB  login,  import  social  graph  from  FB,  push  notifications   back  to  FB  wall  and  much  more  interactivity  than  you  can  build  yourself.  It’s  free   to  integrate  and  offers  tremendous  value  to  any  app  developer.  You  can  build   entire  app  or  mobile  business  based  on  this  SDK  à  la  Tinder  or  WeMatch     Google+   Platform   (https://developers.google.com/+/mobile/android)   -­‐   While   Google  does  not  admit  it  openly  but  its  your  hack  to  get  some  advantage  in  their   app  ecosystem.  So  I  would  suggest  that  you  should  go  for  it.  Just  like  FB  SDK,  it   allows  you  to  add  Google  signin,  pull  social  profile  and  sharing.  It  also  helps  you   to  push  over  the  air  install  for  your  app  from  your  website  incase  you  have  one.     Gigya   (http://www.gigya.com/solutions/mobile)   -­‐   Integrate   multiple   social   logins   with   just   one   line   of   code.   You   can   integrate   FB,   Twitter,   LinkedIn,   G+   among  others   Pricing:   Full   product   suite   can   cost   upto   $40k/year.   Basic   offerings   can   be   availed  for  $1500/month     Janrain   (http://janrain.com/product)   -­‐   Add   Single   Sign   on,   social   sharing   and   Registration  module  in  your  app.  It  also  provided  indepth  customer  profiling  and   ability  to  export  that  to  your  other  marketing  tools.   Pricing:   Free   below   2500   registered   users.   Tiered   pricing   starting   from   $1000/month  above  that.    
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       LoginRadius  (http://www.loginradius.com/developer#mobilesdks)  -­‐  Similar  to   Janrain,  it  offers  Social  login,  SSO  and  engagement  analytics.  They  support  over   100  logins  and  also  allow  you  to  export  data  to  your  analytics  tools.     Pricing:  Starting  from  as  low  as  $8/month  for  less  than  20k  users.  $400/month   for  more  than  100k  users.     Twitter  Login  (https://dev.twitter.com/docs/ios)  -­‐  If  you  are  looking  to  engage   wider  &  open  community  then  Twitter  login  is  important  for  your  app.  It  also   makes  sharing  to  twitter  in  your  app  a  much  more  native  experience.     2(b)  In-­‐App  Gratifications  or  Cross  Promotion  –  Its  not  easy  to  make  sticky   apps  and  some  of  these  tools  makes  it  easy.  They  help  your  users  to  gain  more   out  of  your  app  resulting  in  high  repeat  percentage.       Chartboost  (for  Games)  (https://www.chartboost.com/platform#platform)  -­‐  If   you  are  developing  a  game  and  want  to  segment  and  show  custom  offers  to  your   users  based  on  their  achievements  then  you  need  Chartboost  SDK  in  your  game.   It  helps  you  cross  promote  your  app,  upsell  to  your  users  or  even  customize  the   message   for   specific   users   on   the   fly.   Same   SDK   also   allows   you   to   sell   your   inventory  incase  you  don’t  use  it  for  cross  promotion.     Getjar   Rewards   (https://developer.getjar.com/android/offerwall-­‐for-­‐android)   -­‐  If  you  are  looking  to  reward  your  users  or  introduce  some  in-­‐game  currency   then  Getjar  gives  the  best  user  gratification  platform.  It  not  only  keep  your  users   engaged  but  also  helps  you  earn  revenue  from  the  sponsored  rewards.  Its  only   available  for  Android  and  their  SDK  requires  a  simple  integration.     Tapjoy   (http://developers.tapjoy.com)   -­‐   One   of   the   most   popular   incentivized   install  platform  banned  by  Apple  once  came  back  with  in-­‐app  reward  program.   You  can  get  your  non-­‐paying  users  to  start  contributing  by  availing  offers  from   Tapjoy  inside  your  app.  Tapjoy  pays  you  for  these  users  who  were  earlier  not   yielding  any  money  to  you.  It’s  a  win  win  for  users  and  developers.       Upsight   (http://www.upsight.com/marketing)   -­‐   It   allows   you   to   do   in-­‐app   targeting  to  your  own  app  users.  You  can  offer  rewards,  make  announcements  or   collect  data  from  your  own  users  without  updating  your  app.     Pricing:  Free  version  is  recommended.  Paid  options  range  from  $500/month  to   $10k  depending  on  MAUs     3.  Monetize     Objective  of  every  app  is  to  make  money,  right?  This  is  how  you  do  it  if  you  are   relying  on  Advertisement  as  your  revenue  model:  
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by         Adcolony   (http://adcolony.com)   -­‐   Integrate   high   quality   Video   Advts   in   your   app.   You   can   use   any   3rd   party   reporting   with   them.   Go   for   them   if   you   have   traffic  from  North  America.     Airpush   (http://www.airpush.com)   -­‐   They   offer   Rich   Media   advts.   They   even   have  push  notification  advts  for  Android.  Promise  weekly  payouts  to  developers,   which  is  great.  They  claim  to  offer  great  fill  rates  across  the  globe.     Brightroll   (http://www.brightroll.com/videosolutions/publishers)   -­‐   Brightroll   is   one   of   the   most   popular   mobile   &   desktop   video   ad-­‐networks   and   claim   to   offer  high  CPMs  and  decent  fill  rates  across  the  globe.       Flurry   (http://www.flurry.com/AppSpot.html)   -­‐   They   started   as   app   analytics   and   started   offering   monetizing   opportunities   to   developers,   couple   of   years   back.  Backed  by  strong  data  gathered  from  over  100k  apps,  they  claim  to  be  good   at  personalized  targeting  and  delivering  better  ROI  for  Advertisers  &  Publishers     Google  Adwords  for  mobile   (http://www.google.com/ads/innovations/adwordsformobile.html)  -­‐  This  is   without  doubt  one  of  the  most  popular  monetization  platform  for  app   developers.  Google  gets  you  better  fill  rates  across  the  globe.  However  their  yield   may  not  match  some  premium  ad-­‐networks  in  few  regions  but  its  one  of  the   safest  ad-­‐network  to  integrate  with  for  most  developers.       iAD   (https://developer.apple.com/iad)   -­‐   This   is   Apple’s   own   ad-­‐network   offering  premium  advertising  for  iOS  devices.  They  haven’t  made  much  dent  into   the   ecosystem   but   they   are   making   subtle   changes   to   ad   policies   for   app   developers,  which  might  force  some  of  them  to  shift  to  iAD  in  future.       Inmobi  (http://www.inmobi.com/monetize)  -­‐  Born  in  India  gone  global,  Inmobi   is  one  of  the  most  respected  ad-­‐network  worldwide.  They  have  recently  made  a   big  push  towards  native  ads,  which  in  my  opinion  is  great  for  apps  not  looking  to   clutter  their  screen  space  with  fixed  ads.    If  you  are  still  building  your  apps,  I   suggest  you  think  of  creative  ways  to  integrate  native  advertising.       Komli  (http://www.komli.com/in/publishers/komli-­‐mobile)  -­‐  Another  network   that  has  roots  in  India  and  is  spread  across  the  world.  Their  core  competency   still  lies  on  desktop  but  they  seem  to  have  made  good  progress  on  the  mobile   front.  Their  team  is  top-­‐notch  and  always  ready  to  help.  Specially  recommended   for  developers  looking  to  monetize  in  India.     Millennial   Media   (http://www.millennialmedia.com/monetize)   -­‐   They   are   probably   among   top   5   networks   in   the   world   with   strong   presence   in   US   markets.  They  have  a  great  self-­‐serve  platform  plus  they  offer  both  performance   &  brand  campaigns  on  their  platform.      
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Mobclix   (http://mobclix.com/developers.html)   -­‐   They   have   a   great   mediation   SDK  that  allows  you  to  serve  ads  from  any  of  your  favorite  ad-­‐network  without   updating   your   app.   Good   solution   if   you   want   to   switch   between   multiple   networks  and  see  which  one  performs  better.     Seventynine  (http://www.seventynine.mobi/index.php/products/app-­‐jacket)  -­‐   India   based   mobile   ad-­‐network   boasts   of   a   unique   product   called   App-­‐Jacket   which  auto  wraps  your  app  with  preroll  video  advts  without  making  change  in   the  code.  They  claim  that  integration  will  not  take  more  than  400  milliseconds.   Sue  them  if  its  not  true  ☺     Smaato   (http://www.smaato.com/developers)   -­‐   They   are   a   RTB   exchange   giving   you   access   to   tonnes   of   inventory   worldwide   from   various   DSPs   &   ad-­‐ networks.       Vdopia   (https://www.vdopia.com/index.php?page=publishers)   -­‐   They   offer   video   and   rich   media   advts   to   publishers.   Their   core   strength   lies   in   India   market.       Vserv   (http://www.vserv.mobi/mobile-­‐app-­‐monetization-­‐for-­‐developers)   -­‐   They   revolutionized   feature   phone   advertising   with   their   first   of   its   kind   AppWrapper.  They  now  offer  same  seamless  integration  for  Android  plus  regular   SDK  integration  for  all  other  OS.         4.  Analyze     Everything  you  do  needs  to  be  monitored  and  analyzed.  Analytics  tools  are  the   most  critical  SDKs  to  go  in  any  app.  My  personal  advice  is  -­‐  never  release  an  app   without  at  least  one  analytic  tool  integrated.       Apsalar  (https://apsalar.com)  -­‐  They  provide  in-­‐depth  analytics  for  Android  &   iOS  apps.  The  depth  of  analytics  will  depend  on  the  integration  method.  Their   dashboard   UI   is   extremely   bad   but   reports   are   pretty   good.   Data   is   fairly   accurate.  It  also  provides  attribution  but  that’s  not  their  core  strength.     Pricing:  Basic  version  is  Free  but  does  not  provide  unlimited  attribution.  Most   practical  version  is  $999/month     Flurry   (http://www.flurry.com/flurry-­‐analytics.html)   -­‐   They   were   the   early   birds  and  one  of  the  most  popular  analytics  platform  for  mobile.  Only  issue  with   flurry  is  delayed  data  upto  48  hours  which  is  a  big  downer  in  today’s  age.  Also  it   does  not  give  you  unified  view  of  data  across  multiple  apps.     Pricing:  Completely  Free    
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Google   Analytics   for   Apps  (http://www.google.co.in/analytics/mobile)  -­‐  If  ou   have  been  using  GA  for  your  website  then  it  will  look  familiar  to  you  for  mobile   too.  No  cohorts  available  "  Cant  track  iOS  installs.  Data  is  delayed  by  36  hours.   Surprisingly  they  do  not  have  a  common  platform  for  web  &  mobile.     Pricing:  Free     Localytics  (http://www.localytics.com)  _  Its  fast  climbing  the  popularity  charts   due  to  its  in-­‐depth  data  representation  and  excellent  support.  It  also  provides   push  notification  service  +  A/B  testing  tool.     Pricing:  $1000  for  100k  active  users.  Please  note  that  in  addition  to  active  users,   they  have  a  limit  on  data  points  you  can  access.  For  apps  with  large  base  of  over   1mn,  the  effective  cost  can  come  to  $5000/month.       Mixpanel  (https://mixpanel.com/segmentation)  -­‐  It  provides  combined  view  of   your   website   &   app   in   a   single   dashboard.   It   even   has   the   ability   to   track   individual   customers.   Mobile   attribution   is   not   its   strength   but   on   desktop   it   works  great.   Pricing:  Starts  Free  and  can  go  up  to  $2000/month  for  20mn  data  points     Adobe   Analytics   (Omniture)   (http://www.adobe.com/in/solutions/digital-­‐ marketing/mobile-­‐services.html)   -­‐   While   Omniture   is   considered   as   gold   standard   for   web   analytics,   it   is   yet   to   reach   the   level   in   mobile   which   some   newer  players  mentioned  above  has  achieved.     Pricing:  Starting  from  $50k/year       5.  Serve     Your  users  expect  to  be  served  with  the  best  experience,  they  want  to  be  heard   and  would  love  to  see  their  feedback  helping  in  improving  the  app.  This  section   would  cover  some  tools  to  improve  the  UX  of  your  app,  test  your  app  and  collect   feedback  from  your  users       5(a)   Testing   &   UX   Enhancement  –  Users  are  merciless  so  its  important  that   you  continue  to  test  and  improve  your  app  for  providing  the  best  experience  to   them     Appiterate   (http://appiterate.com)   -­‐   It   provides   easy   A/B   testing   mechanism   with  inbuilt  WYSIWYG  editor  and  custom  messaging  based  on  conditions  defined   by  developers.  It  provides  easy  to  understand  analysis  of  test  results.     Pricing:  Free  to  start  but  goes  to  $199/month  if  you  have  around  25k  MAUs    
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Apptimize   (http://apptimize.com)   -­‐   Another   tool   to   do   real   time   A/B   testing.   You   can   even   decide   the   numbers   of   users   you   want   to   see   new   features/changes.     It   has   verification   framework   to   check   your   code   before   deployment.   Pricing:  Free  up  to  25k  MAU.  $300/month  for  300k  MAUs     Arise.io  (http://arise.io)  -­‐  Usual  A/B  testing  features.  Nothing  new  but  it  works.   Pricing:  Free  for  5000  users.  $299/month  for  testing  on  250k  users     Heatma.ps  (https://heatmaps.io)  -­‐  Its  pretty  useful  if  you  want  to  see  where  you   users  are  touching  inside  the  app.  It  proves  useful  when  you  want  to  know  where   to  place  your  most  important  components  in  the  app.  It’s  not  going  to  give  you   anything  drastically  different  than  usual  pattern  seen  in  most  apps  but  its  always   good  to  prove  the  hypothesis.   Pricing:  $19/month  starting  price  going  to  $399/month  for  100k  data  samples     Optimimo  (http://www.optimimo.com)  -­‐  A/B  Testing,  Heatmaps  &  user  surveys   all  in  one  solution.     Pricing:  $49/month  for  10k  users.  $349/month  for  200k  MAUs     Swrve   (https://www.swrve.com)   -­‐   It’s   a   multi   utility   service   offering   A/B   testing,  push  notifications  and  in-­‐app  messaging  with  data  analytics.   Pricing:  Free  to  try.  $2500/month  for  500k  users     Taplytics   (https://taplytics.com)   -­‐   A/B   testing   tool   exclusively   for   iOS.   Allows   real  time  changes  &  real  time  analytics.   Pricing:  Free  to  start.  $150/month  for  unlimited  MAUs  (Best  value  for  money   incase  you  only  have  iOS  app  to  test)     Vessel  (https://www.vessel.io)  -­‐  Just  another  A/B  testing  tool  claiming  to  have   all  the  usual  features   Pricing:  $150/month  to  start.  $650/month  for  500k  MAUs       5(b)  Feedback  &  Fixes  –  Collect  feedback,  identify  issues  and  reduce  negative   ratings  for  your  app     Apphance  (http://www.utest.com/apphance)  -­‐  Best  testers  can  easily  report   bugs.  It  provides  crash  reporting  and  in-­‐app  user  feedback.   Pricing:  Can  go  up  to  $10k/month  depending  on  what  features  you  select     Apptamin   (http://www.apptamin.com)   -­‐   Create   demo   video   for   your   app   for   explaining  the  usage  of  your  app.  It  generates  professional  looking  videos  which   can  be  used  to  promote  in  app  store  or  external  marketings   Pricing:  Starting  from  $1050      
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Apptentive  (http://www.apptentive.com)  -­‐  It  collects  in-­‐app  feedback  and  stops   negative  feedback  to  go  to  app  store.  You  can  also  provide  in-­‐app  support  to  your   users.  It’s  a  highly  recommended  addition  to  your  app.   Pricing:  Starts  from  $0.  Pay  $299/month  for  unlimited  transactions     BugSense   (https://www.bugsense.com)   -­‐   Get   instant   crash   report   from   your   app.  It  can  integrate  with  PivotalTracker  and  Github   Pricing:  Free  for  beginners.  $99  for  pro  version     Crashlytics  (http://try.crashlytics.com)  -­‐  Real  time  crash  reporting  for  Android   &  iOS  apps.  USP  of  Crashlytics  is  its  beautiful  dashboard  &  reporting   Pricing:  Free     Crittericsm   (https://www.crittercism.com)   -­‐   They   call   is   mobile   application   performance  management  –  whatever  that  means.  In  my  personal  opinion,  it  is   one  of  the  most  effective  bug  reporting  tool.   Pricing:  Free  for  basic  version.  $500/month  for  plus  version       6.  Win  Back     For  every  App,  there  will  be  users  who  will  go  inactive.  You  have  to  ensure  they   come  back.  There  are  some  tools  which  help  you  do  that  effectively     Appboy  (http://www.appboy.com/products)  -­‐  Send  push  notifications  to  get   users  back  to  your  app  or  create  news  feed.  You  can  even  set  email  push  from   your  app  based  on  consumer  segments.  It  will  help  you  to  keep  in  touch  with   your  users.   Pricing:  Free  for  1000  users.  $5k  for  1mn  users     Betaglide  (http://www.betaglide.com)  -­‐  Its  like  an  in-­‐app  CRM  offering  in-­‐app   feedback,  personalized  push  notifications  and  consumer  targeting  based  on   location,  demographics  &  engagement  levels.   Pricing:  NA     Boxcar  (https://boxcar.io/developer)  -­‐  Plain  simple  universal  push  notification   tool.     Pricing:  $350  for  1500  pushes  per  minute.  Exact  clarity  on  price  structure  is  not   available     Push.IO  (http://push.io)  -­‐  Push  notification  +  conversion  analysis  =  just  another   tool.     Pricing:  $350/month  average  
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by         Shephertz   App42   (http://api.shephertz.com/app42-­‐docs/push-­‐notification-­‐ service)   -­‐   India   based   Shephertz   offers   its   App42   cloud   APIs   which   helps   you   integrate  push  notifications  in  your  apps.     Pricing:  On  Request  from  sales@shephertz.com     Urban  Airship  (http://urbanairship.com)  -­‐  Gold  standard  in  push  notifications.   It  offers  features  like  personalized  pushes,  segment  builder,  event  based  pushes   and  actionable  analytics.  Highly  recommended   Pricing:  Pay  as  you  go  $0.001  cents  per  push.  $10k/month  for  Enterprise  edition     7.  Development  Toolkits   At   the   end,   here   is   the   collection   of   some   development   tools,   which   will   help   developers  build  apps  rapidly  without  spending  too  much  time  coding.     AppBuilder   (http://www.apps-­‐builder.com)   -­‐   Quickly   create   apps   without   writing  a  piece  of  code.  Works  across  platforms  and  give  you  real  time  preview   as  you  develop.  You  can  even  create  commerce  apps  by  adding  cart  functionality.     Pricing:  $39/month     App   Press   (http://www.app-­‐press.com)   -­‐   Create   native   apps   on   the   fly   for   Android  &  iOS  with  drag  &  drop  features.  No  coding  experience  needed.   Pricing:  Starting  from  $75/month     AppMakr  (http://www.appmakr.com)  -­‐  Use  simple  browser  based  tool  to  create   iPhone  &  Android  app.  No  coding  experience  needed.   Pricing:  $9/month  for  both  Android  &  iOS  app     Taplynx   (http://taplynx.com)   -­‐   Develop   native   iPhone   &   iPad   apps   using   Taplynx  framework.  Does  not  create  native  looking  apps.  Not  recommended     Mobivite  (http://mobivite.net)  -­‐  India  based  Mobivite  helps  you  create  beautiful   looking  mobile  apps  &  WAP  site  in  a  jiffy     Pricing:  Free  to  start.  $8/Annum  for  premium  version     Appcelerator   (http://www.appcelerator.com)   –   Copied   from   their   site   ☺     >>   Deliver  native  cross-­‐platform  apps  at  the  speed  of  web,  mobilize  any  data  source,   and   drive   success   with   real-­‐time   analytics   –   all   from   an   open,   cloud-­‐based   platform.   Pricing:  Open  source  version  is  free       Parse   (https://parse.com)   -­‐   Complete   framework   for   building   native   apps.   Includes  common  backend  to  develop  multi  OS  app.  Their  framework  includes   APIs  for  push  notifications,  analytics  and  content  management   Pricing:  Basic  version  is  Free.  Pro  version  is  at  $199/month      
This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Here  is  a  quick  snapshot  of  all  the  tools  mentioned  above  categorized  for  easy   viewing:        

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Tools to make killer apps: Quick guide for developers

  • 1.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Tools  to  make  killer  apps:  Quick  guide  for   developers   By  Deepak  Abbot  (Connect  with  me  on  twitter  @deepakabbot)     If  you  are  a  superhero  app  developer  who  can  solve  all  problems  on  its  own,  then   this  article  is  not  for  you.  This  is  meant  for  developers  who  are  looking  to  make   their  mobile  apps  go  from  good  to  fantastic  using  the  right  third  party  tools  &   SDKs.   App   developers   should   focus   on   their   core   offerings   and   let   specialist   platforms  take  care  of  the  rest.       This  article  gives  you  a  snapshot  of  some  of  the  popular  tools/SDKs  available  in   the   market   to   help   you   manage   your   customer’s   lifecycle.   My   work   at   Paytm   involves  evaluating  various  tools  &  platforms  for  our  mobile  business  so  I  have   compiled   this   list   based   on   my   interactions   with   account   managers   of   various   below  mentioned  products  or  extensive  online  research.         I   have   divided   the   tools   categorized   under   various   CLM   stages   for   ease   of   understanding.   All   the   tools   mentioned   below   would   require   their   SDK   to   be   integrated  in  your  app  (unless  otherwise  stated)  so  select  wisely  and  choose  the   ones  fulfilling  your  most  important  needs.     Note:  This  article  does  not  provide  extensive  review  of  each  tool.  Please  do  your  research   before  selecting  the  tools  you  want  to  use.  It’s  a  guide  to  help  you  identify  popular  tools  in   the  market     1.  Acquire/Awareness     This  is  where  it  all  starts.  Once  the  app  is  out  in  the  market,  you  need  to  make  it   popular,  advertise  and  get  installs.  You  employ  various  means  to  get  traffic.  This   section  talks  about  all  the  tools  that  can  help  you  in  your  journey     1(a):  Attribution  Tools  –  Tools/SDK  that  allows  you  to  attribute  each  install  to   a  particular  source.    Its  an  extremely  important  tool  to  be  carried  in  your  app  to   ascertain   the   effectiveness   of   each   channel.   Here   are   some   of   the   popular   attribution  tools/SDK  (in  alphabetical  order)    
  • 2.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       AppsFlyer  (http://www.appsflyer.com)  -­‐  Track  impressions,  clicks,  installation   and  first  launch  from  various  sources.  They  have  a  simple  SDK  to  integrate.  All   popular  ad-­‐networks  are  pre-­‐integrated.     Pricing:   Organic  installs  are  not  charged.  Paid  installs  tracked  using  their  link   will  cost  you  between  $0.01  and  $0.05.  They  have  a  special  offer  running  where   they  don’t  charge  for  first  5000  non-­‐organic  installs  so  you  save  $250  upfront   If  you  are  looking  at  high  non-­‐organic  installs,  this  will  prove  expensive.     Hasoffers   MAT   (http://mobileapptracking.com)   -­‐   They   are   one   of   the   most   popular  attribution  analytics  platform.  They  have  got  very  easy  to  understand   dashboard  and  it’s  pretty  easy  to  setup  too.  Their  dashboard  has  some  bugs,  that   sometime  shows  wrong  data  under  some  filters.  It’s  a  known  bug  acknowledged   by  their  support  team.  Hopefully  it  will  be  fixed  soon.    Most  ad-­‐networks  are  pre-­‐ integrated  including  some  popular  Indian  networks.  Their  support  team  is  top   class,  you  can  expect  revert  in  few  hours.   Pricing:  For  2mn  installs  they  will  charge  $0.001  per  event.     Be  careful,  the  cost  is  for  every  event  and  not  install  so  all  clicks  using  their  URL   is  charged  to  you.  This  can  prove  to  be  really  expensive  if  your  conversion  from   click  to  install  is  very  poor.     Kochava   (http://www.kochava.com)   -­‐   They   provide   attribution   for   Windows,   Kindle   &   Blackberry   in   addition   to   Android   &   iOS.   They   even   have   a   non-­‐SDK   solution  using  server  to  server  calls  incase  you  are  wary  of  adding  external  SDKs.     Pricing:  They  claim  that  they  can  match  the  pricing  offered  by  the  competition   so  you  just  write  to  them  and  negotiate  ☺     Segment.IO   (https://segment.io)   -­‐   In   addition   to   tracking   installs,   it   can   send   data   to   any   other   analytics   tool   you   use   like   GA,   Mixpanel,   Omniture   or   Salesforce.     Pricing:  $349  for  20mn  events/month  –  Most  economical  of  all.  Less  than  100k   events  are  free  so  it’s  pretty  good  for  beginners.       Tapstream  (https://tapstream.com)  -­‐  They  are  a  new  entrants  in  attribution   analytics.  Track  Install  to  LTV  using  their  SDK.     Pricing:  Free.  $495/month  if  you  want  to  integrate  with  your  other  analytics   platform     1(b):  Link  Exchange  –  If  you  are  an  Indie  developer  with  no  marketing  budgets,   then  you  need  to  look  at  some  of  the  advt/link  exchange  networks  to  grow  your   initial  base.  Some  of  the  popular  in-­‐app  traffic  exchange  networks  are:     AppFlood   Traffic   Exchange   (http://appflood.com/a/mobile-­‐traffic-­‐exchange)   Signup  at  the  above  URL  and  download  a  small  API  to  integrate  free  advts  inside   your   app.   Be   sure   to   remove   this   once   you   reach   a   desired   scale   as   traffic   exchange  is  not  advisable  beyond  a  point.     Exchanger  (https://exchanger.metaps.com)  -­‐  Customize  the  ad  units  you  want   to   display   in   your   app.   Similarly   you   can   customize   your   App   icon   which   you  
  • 3.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       want  to  show  in  other  apps.  Their  SDK  promises  to  be  light  and  you  need  few   lines  of  codes  in  your  app  to  be  ready     TapForTap   (https://tapfortap.com/)   -­‐   This   network   offers   free   ad   banner   exchange  in  addition  to  paid  banners.  You  can  easily  switch  between  free  traffic   and  paid  traffic     1(c):  App  Distribution  –  These  platforms  allow  you  to  submit  your  Android  app   across  hundreds  of  App  stores  worldwide  with  minimal  effort     Inmobi  App  Publish  (http://www.inmobi.com/products/app-­‐publish)  –  One  of   the  easiest  and  free  to  use  tool  submit  your  apps  to  various  stores.  You  can  track   the   performance   and   revenue   details   from   Inmobi’s   dashboard.   This   is   highly   recommended  for  developers  looking  for  wide  global  audiences.  This  does  not   require  any  SDK  or  API  inside  your  apps.     Other  App  Stores  –  Besides  publishing  your  Android  app  on  Google  Play  store,   you   must   individually   upload   your   app   on   some   of   the   popular   stores   like   Amazon,   Getjar,   Opera,   Appslib,   Yandex,   AppsZoom,   Mobango,   Samsung   Apps,   SlideMe  among  others     1(d):  ASO  (App  Store  Optimization)  Tools  –  Taking  the  SEO  concept  to  apps,   ASO  is  about  getting  your  app  rank  improved  based  on  keyword  analysis  done  by   these  tools.  These  tools  will  also  track  your  rank  daily.  Please  understand  that   most  of  the  information  is  available  through  various  sources  –  they  just  make  it   more  meaningful  and  organized     Appnique  (https://appnique.com)  -­‐  It  offers  all  usual  ASO  techniques  including   Keyword   analysis,   competition   mapping   &   rank   monitoring.   In   addition   to   providing  insights  they  use  these  insight  to  identify  look-­‐a-­‐likes  and  help  you  do   targeted   mobile   app   install   campaigns   on   Facebook.   They   also   provide   pre-­‐ launch  analysis  in  their  pro  version.   Pricing:   Basic   version   is   free   which   tracks   one   app.   Most   practical   version   is   $149/month     FreshRankings   (http://www.freshrankings.com/app-­‐store-­‐optimization)   -­‐   Their  core  competency  lies  in  SEO  optimization  and  they  offer  App  optimization   as  an  additional  offering.  Their  tool  help  you  in  planning  before  you  launch  the   app.  They  suggest  content,  description,  title  for  your  yet  to  release  app.  Pricing  is   available  on  request  only.     MobileDevHQ  (https://www.mobiledevhq.com)  -­‐  Tool  which  does  competitive   analysis  for  you,  makes  keyword  recommendations  and  track  the  effect  of  these   changes  to  your  app  rank.  Work  for  both  Play  Store  &  iTunes  Store.  No  SDK  is   needed.  Just  signup  and  link  your  &  competitor’s  apps   Pricing:  They  have  a  free  version  that  does  not  provide  keyword  suggestions  &   India  store  compatibility.  Most  practical  version  will  cost  you  $350/month.      
  • 4.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       SensorTower   (https://sensortower.com)   -­‐   In   addition   to   all   the   regular   ASO   tasks   achieved   by   others,   SensorTower   enterprise   version   provides   market   insights  too.  All  International  stores  are  supported.   Pricing:   Starts   from   $79/month   for   tracking   up   to   80   keywords   going   up   to   $399/month  for  400  keywords.  Both  these  packs  do  not  provide  international   store  data.         2.  Engage/Convert     Now  that  you  have  acquired  users,  it’s  important  to  keep  your  users  engaged  and   connected.  It’s  critical  to  sign  them  up  quickly  to  complete  the  acquisition.  There   are  some  tools  available  to  integrate  signup  &  social  engagement  in  your  apps.   These  tools  also  help  you  do  audience  segmentation  &  customer  profiling  and   reward  them  for  their  engagement.     2(a)  Social  Plugins  –  Tools,  which  can  quickly  make  your  app  go  interactive  and   viral     FB  SDK  for  Android  or  iOS  (https://developers.facebook.com/docs/android)  -­‐   If  you  want  people  to  signup  inside  your  app  then  you  must  not  omit  FB  SDK.  It   will  allow  you  to  add  FB  login,  import  social  graph  from  FB,  push  notifications   back  to  FB  wall  and  much  more  interactivity  than  you  can  build  yourself.  It’s  free   to  integrate  and  offers  tremendous  value  to  any  app  developer.  You  can  build   entire  app  or  mobile  business  based  on  this  SDK  à  la  Tinder  or  WeMatch     Google+   Platform   (https://developers.google.com/+/mobile/android)   -­‐   While   Google  does  not  admit  it  openly  but  its  your  hack  to  get  some  advantage  in  their   app  ecosystem.  So  I  would  suggest  that  you  should  go  for  it.  Just  like  FB  SDK,  it   allows  you  to  add  Google  signin,  pull  social  profile  and  sharing.  It  also  helps  you   to  push  over  the  air  install  for  your  app  from  your  website  incase  you  have  one.     Gigya   (http://www.gigya.com/solutions/mobile)   -­‐   Integrate   multiple   social   logins   with   just   one   line   of   code.   You   can   integrate   FB,   Twitter,   LinkedIn,   G+   among  others   Pricing:   Full   product   suite   can   cost   upto   $40k/year.   Basic   offerings   can   be   availed  for  $1500/month     Janrain   (http://janrain.com/product)   -­‐   Add   Single   Sign   on,   social   sharing   and   Registration  module  in  your  app.  It  also  provided  indepth  customer  profiling  and   ability  to  export  that  to  your  other  marketing  tools.   Pricing:   Free   below   2500   registered   users.   Tiered   pricing   starting   from   $1000/month  above  that.    
  • 5.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       LoginRadius  (http://www.loginradius.com/developer#mobilesdks)  -­‐  Similar  to   Janrain,  it  offers  Social  login,  SSO  and  engagement  analytics.  They  support  over   100  logins  and  also  allow  you  to  export  data  to  your  analytics  tools.     Pricing:  Starting  from  as  low  as  $8/month  for  less  than  20k  users.  $400/month   for  more  than  100k  users.     Twitter  Login  (https://dev.twitter.com/docs/ios)  -­‐  If  you  are  looking  to  engage   wider  &  open  community  then  Twitter  login  is  important  for  your  app.  It  also   makes  sharing  to  twitter  in  your  app  a  much  more  native  experience.     2(b)  In-­‐App  Gratifications  or  Cross  Promotion  –  Its  not  easy  to  make  sticky   apps  and  some  of  these  tools  makes  it  easy.  They  help  your  users  to  gain  more   out  of  your  app  resulting  in  high  repeat  percentage.       Chartboost  (for  Games)  (https://www.chartboost.com/platform#platform)  -­‐  If   you  are  developing  a  game  and  want  to  segment  and  show  custom  offers  to  your   users  based  on  their  achievements  then  you  need  Chartboost  SDK  in  your  game.   It  helps  you  cross  promote  your  app,  upsell  to  your  users  or  even  customize  the   message   for   specific   users   on   the   fly.   Same   SDK   also   allows   you   to   sell   your   inventory  incase  you  don’t  use  it  for  cross  promotion.     Getjar   Rewards   (https://developer.getjar.com/android/offerwall-­‐for-­‐android)   -­‐  If  you  are  looking  to  reward  your  users  or  introduce  some  in-­‐game  currency   then  Getjar  gives  the  best  user  gratification  platform.  It  not  only  keep  your  users   engaged  but  also  helps  you  earn  revenue  from  the  sponsored  rewards.  Its  only   available  for  Android  and  their  SDK  requires  a  simple  integration.     Tapjoy   (http://developers.tapjoy.com)   -­‐   One   of   the   most   popular   incentivized   install  platform  banned  by  Apple  once  came  back  with  in-­‐app  reward  program.   You  can  get  your  non-­‐paying  users  to  start  contributing  by  availing  offers  from   Tapjoy  inside  your  app.  Tapjoy  pays  you  for  these  users  who  were  earlier  not   yielding  any  money  to  you.  It’s  a  win  win  for  users  and  developers.       Upsight   (http://www.upsight.com/marketing)   -­‐   It   allows   you   to   do   in-­‐app   targeting  to  your  own  app  users.  You  can  offer  rewards,  make  announcements  or   collect  data  from  your  own  users  without  updating  your  app.     Pricing:  Free  version  is  recommended.  Paid  options  range  from  $500/month  to   $10k  depending  on  MAUs     3.  Monetize     Objective  of  every  app  is  to  make  money,  right?  This  is  how  you  do  it  if  you  are   relying  on  Advertisement  as  your  revenue  model:  
  • 6.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by         Adcolony   (http://adcolony.com)   -­‐   Integrate   high   quality   Video   Advts   in   your   app.   You   can   use   any   3rd   party   reporting   with   them.   Go   for   them   if   you   have   traffic  from  North  America.     Airpush   (http://www.airpush.com)   -­‐   They   offer   Rich   Media   advts.   They   even   have  push  notification  advts  for  Android.  Promise  weekly  payouts  to  developers,   which  is  great.  They  claim  to  offer  great  fill  rates  across  the  globe.     Brightroll   (http://www.brightroll.com/videosolutions/publishers)   -­‐   Brightroll   is   one   of   the   most   popular   mobile   &   desktop   video   ad-­‐networks   and   claim   to   offer  high  CPMs  and  decent  fill  rates  across  the  globe.       Flurry   (http://www.flurry.com/AppSpot.html)   -­‐   They   started   as   app   analytics   and   started   offering   monetizing   opportunities   to   developers,   couple   of   years   back.  Backed  by  strong  data  gathered  from  over  100k  apps,  they  claim  to  be  good   at  personalized  targeting  and  delivering  better  ROI  for  Advertisers  &  Publishers     Google  Adwords  for  mobile   (http://www.google.com/ads/innovations/adwordsformobile.html)  -­‐  This  is   without  doubt  one  of  the  most  popular  monetization  platform  for  app   developers.  Google  gets  you  better  fill  rates  across  the  globe.  However  their  yield   may  not  match  some  premium  ad-­‐networks  in  few  regions  but  its  one  of  the   safest  ad-­‐network  to  integrate  with  for  most  developers.       iAD   (https://developer.apple.com/iad)   -­‐   This   is   Apple’s   own   ad-­‐network   offering  premium  advertising  for  iOS  devices.  They  haven’t  made  much  dent  into   the   ecosystem   but   they   are   making   subtle   changes   to   ad   policies   for   app   developers,  which  might  force  some  of  them  to  shift  to  iAD  in  future.       Inmobi  (http://www.inmobi.com/monetize)  -­‐  Born  in  India  gone  global,  Inmobi   is  one  of  the  most  respected  ad-­‐network  worldwide.  They  have  recently  made  a   big  push  towards  native  ads,  which  in  my  opinion  is  great  for  apps  not  looking  to   clutter  their  screen  space  with  fixed  ads.    If  you  are  still  building  your  apps,  I   suggest  you  think  of  creative  ways  to  integrate  native  advertising.       Komli  (http://www.komli.com/in/publishers/komli-­‐mobile)  -­‐  Another  network   that  has  roots  in  India  and  is  spread  across  the  world.  Their  core  competency   still  lies  on  desktop  but  they  seem  to  have  made  good  progress  on  the  mobile   front.  Their  team  is  top-­‐notch  and  always  ready  to  help.  Specially  recommended   for  developers  looking  to  monetize  in  India.     Millennial   Media   (http://www.millennialmedia.com/monetize)   -­‐   They   are   probably   among   top   5   networks   in   the   world   with   strong   presence   in   US   markets.  They  have  a  great  self-­‐serve  platform  plus  they  offer  both  performance   &  brand  campaigns  on  their  platform.      
  • 7.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Mobclix   (http://mobclix.com/developers.html)   -­‐   They   have   a   great   mediation   SDK  that  allows  you  to  serve  ads  from  any  of  your  favorite  ad-­‐network  without   updating   your   app.   Good   solution   if   you   want   to   switch   between   multiple   networks  and  see  which  one  performs  better.     Seventynine  (http://www.seventynine.mobi/index.php/products/app-­‐jacket)  -­‐   India   based   mobile   ad-­‐network   boasts   of   a   unique   product   called   App-­‐Jacket   which  auto  wraps  your  app  with  preroll  video  advts  without  making  change  in   the  code.  They  claim  that  integration  will  not  take  more  than  400  milliseconds.   Sue  them  if  its  not  true  ☺     Smaato   (http://www.smaato.com/developers)   -­‐   They   are   a   RTB   exchange   giving   you   access   to   tonnes   of   inventory   worldwide   from   various   DSPs   &   ad-­‐ networks.       Vdopia   (https://www.vdopia.com/index.php?page=publishers)   -­‐   They   offer   video   and   rich   media   advts   to   publishers.   Their   core   strength   lies   in   India   market.       Vserv   (http://www.vserv.mobi/mobile-­‐app-­‐monetization-­‐for-­‐developers)   -­‐   They   revolutionized   feature   phone   advertising   with   their   first   of   its   kind   AppWrapper.  They  now  offer  same  seamless  integration  for  Android  plus  regular   SDK  integration  for  all  other  OS.         4.  Analyze     Everything  you  do  needs  to  be  monitored  and  analyzed.  Analytics  tools  are  the   most  critical  SDKs  to  go  in  any  app.  My  personal  advice  is  -­‐  never  release  an  app   without  at  least  one  analytic  tool  integrated.       Apsalar  (https://apsalar.com)  -­‐  They  provide  in-­‐depth  analytics  for  Android  &   iOS  apps.  The  depth  of  analytics  will  depend  on  the  integration  method.  Their   dashboard   UI   is   extremely   bad   but   reports   are   pretty   good.   Data   is   fairly   accurate.  It  also  provides  attribution  but  that’s  not  their  core  strength.     Pricing:  Basic  version  is  Free  but  does  not  provide  unlimited  attribution.  Most   practical  version  is  $999/month     Flurry   (http://www.flurry.com/flurry-­‐analytics.html)   -­‐   They   were   the   early   birds  and  one  of  the  most  popular  analytics  platform  for  mobile.  Only  issue  with   flurry  is  delayed  data  upto  48  hours  which  is  a  big  downer  in  today’s  age.  Also  it   does  not  give  you  unified  view  of  data  across  multiple  apps.     Pricing:  Completely  Free    
  • 8.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Google   Analytics   for   Apps  (http://www.google.co.in/analytics/mobile)  -­‐  If  ou   have  been  using  GA  for  your  website  then  it  will  look  familiar  to  you  for  mobile   too.  No  cohorts  available  "  Cant  track  iOS  installs.  Data  is  delayed  by  36  hours.   Surprisingly  they  do  not  have  a  common  platform  for  web  &  mobile.     Pricing:  Free     Localytics  (http://www.localytics.com)  _  Its  fast  climbing  the  popularity  charts   due  to  its  in-­‐depth  data  representation  and  excellent  support.  It  also  provides   push  notification  service  +  A/B  testing  tool.     Pricing:  $1000  for  100k  active  users.  Please  note  that  in  addition  to  active  users,   they  have  a  limit  on  data  points  you  can  access.  For  apps  with  large  base  of  over   1mn,  the  effective  cost  can  come  to  $5000/month.       Mixpanel  (https://mixpanel.com/segmentation)  -­‐  It  provides  combined  view  of   your   website   &   app   in   a   single   dashboard.   It   even   has   the   ability   to   track   individual   customers.   Mobile   attribution   is   not   its   strength   but   on   desktop   it   works  great.   Pricing:  Starts  Free  and  can  go  up  to  $2000/month  for  20mn  data  points     Adobe   Analytics   (Omniture)   (http://www.adobe.com/in/solutions/digital-­‐ marketing/mobile-­‐services.html)   -­‐   While   Omniture   is   considered   as   gold   standard   for   web   analytics,   it   is   yet   to   reach   the   level   in   mobile   which   some   newer  players  mentioned  above  has  achieved.     Pricing:  Starting  from  $50k/year       5.  Serve     Your  users  expect  to  be  served  with  the  best  experience,  they  want  to  be  heard   and  would  love  to  see  their  feedback  helping  in  improving  the  app.  This  section   would  cover  some  tools  to  improve  the  UX  of  your  app,  test  your  app  and  collect   feedback  from  your  users       5(a)   Testing   &   UX   Enhancement  –  Users  are  merciless  so  its  important  that   you  continue  to  test  and  improve  your  app  for  providing  the  best  experience  to   them     Appiterate   (http://appiterate.com)   -­‐   It   provides   easy   A/B   testing   mechanism   with  inbuilt  WYSIWYG  editor  and  custom  messaging  based  on  conditions  defined   by  developers.  It  provides  easy  to  understand  analysis  of  test  results.     Pricing:  Free  to  start  but  goes  to  $199/month  if  you  have  around  25k  MAUs    
  • 9.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Apptimize   (http://apptimize.com)   -­‐   Another   tool   to   do   real   time   A/B   testing.   You   can   even   decide   the   numbers   of   users   you   want   to   see   new   features/changes.     It   has   verification   framework   to   check   your   code   before   deployment.   Pricing:  Free  up  to  25k  MAU.  $300/month  for  300k  MAUs     Arise.io  (http://arise.io)  -­‐  Usual  A/B  testing  features.  Nothing  new  but  it  works.   Pricing:  Free  for  5000  users.  $299/month  for  testing  on  250k  users     Heatma.ps  (https://heatmaps.io)  -­‐  Its  pretty  useful  if  you  want  to  see  where  you   users  are  touching  inside  the  app.  It  proves  useful  when  you  want  to  know  where   to  place  your  most  important  components  in  the  app.  It’s  not  going  to  give  you   anything  drastically  different  than  usual  pattern  seen  in  most  apps  but  its  always   good  to  prove  the  hypothesis.   Pricing:  $19/month  starting  price  going  to  $399/month  for  100k  data  samples     Optimimo  (http://www.optimimo.com)  -­‐  A/B  Testing,  Heatmaps  &  user  surveys   all  in  one  solution.     Pricing:  $49/month  for  10k  users.  $349/month  for  200k  MAUs     Swrve   (https://www.swrve.com)   -­‐   It’s   a   multi   utility   service   offering   A/B   testing,  push  notifications  and  in-­‐app  messaging  with  data  analytics.   Pricing:  Free  to  try.  $2500/month  for  500k  users     Taplytics   (https://taplytics.com)   -­‐   A/B   testing   tool   exclusively   for   iOS.   Allows   real  time  changes  &  real  time  analytics.   Pricing:  Free  to  start.  $150/month  for  unlimited  MAUs  (Best  value  for  money   incase  you  only  have  iOS  app  to  test)     Vessel  (https://www.vessel.io)  -­‐  Just  another  A/B  testing  tool  claiming  to  have   all  the  usual  features   Pricing:  $150/month  to  start.  $650/month  for  500k  MAUs       5(b)  Feedback  &  Fixes  –  Collect  feedback,  identify  issues  and  reduce  negative   ratings  for  your  app     Apphance  (http://www.utest.com/apphance)  -­‐  Best  testers  can  easily  report   bugs.  It  provides  crash  reporting  and  in-­‐app  user  feedback.   Pricing:  Can  go  up  to  $10k/month  depending  on  what  features  you  select     Apptamin   (http://www.apptamin.com)   -­‐   Create   demo   video   for   your   app   for   explaining  the  usage  of  your  app.  It  generates  professional  looking  videos  which   can  be  used  to  promote  in  app  store  or  external  marketings   Pricing:  Starting  from  $1050      
  • 10.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Apptentive  (http://www.apptentive.com)  -­‐  It  collects  in-­‐app  feedback  and  stops   negative  feedback  to  go  to  app  store.  You  can  also  provide  in-­‐app  support  to  your   users.  It’s  a  highly  recommended  addition  to  your  app.   Pricing:  Starts  from  $0.  Pay  $299/month  for  unlimited  transactions     BugSense   (https://www.bugsense.com)   -­‐   Get   instant   crash   report   from   your   app.  It  can  integrate  with  PivotalTracker  and  Github   Pricing:  Free  for  beginners.  $99  for  pro  version     Crashlytics  (http://try.crashlytics.com)  -­‐  Real  time  crash  reporting  for  Android   &  iOS  apps.  USP  of  Crashlytics  is  its  beautiful  dashboard  &  reporting   Pricing:  Free     Crittericsm   (https://www.crittercism.com)   -­‐   They   call   is   mobile   application   performance  management  –  whatever  that  means.  In  my  personal  opinion,  it  is   one  of  the  most  effective  bug  reporting  tool.   Pricing:  Free  for  basic  version.  $500/month  for  plus  version       6.  Win  Back     For  every  App,  there  will  be  users  who  will  go  inactive.  You  have  to  ensure  they   come  back.  There  are  some  tools  which  help  you  do  that  effectively     Appboy  (http://www.appboy.com/products)  -­‐  Send  push  notifications  to  get   users  back  to  your  app  or  create  news  feed.  You  can  even  set  email  push  from   your  app  based  on  consumer  segments.  It  will  help  you  to  keep  in  touch  with   your  users.   Pricing:  Free  for  1000  users.  $5k  for  1mn  users     Betaglide  (http://www.betaglide.com)  -­‐  Its  like  an  in-­‐app  CRM  offering  in-­‐app   feedback,  personalized  push  notifications  and  consumer  targeting  based  on   location,  demographics  &  engagement  levels.   Pricing:  NA     Boxcar  (https://boxcar.io/developer)  -­‐  Plain  simple  universal  push  notification   tool.     Pricing:  $350  for  1500  pushes  per  minute.  Exact  clarity  on  price  structure  is  not   available     Push.IO  (http://push.io)  -­‐  Push  notification  +  conversion  analysis  =  just  another   tool.     Pricing:  $350/month  average  
  • 11.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by         Shephertz   App42   (http://api.shephertz.com/app42-­‐docs/push-­‐notification-­‐ service)   -­‐   India   based   Shephertz   offers   its   App42   cloud   APIs   which   helps   you   integrate  push  notifications  in  your  apps.     Pricing:  On  Request  from  sales@shephertz.com     Urban  Airship  (http://urbanairship.com)  -­‐  Gold  standard  in  push  notifications.   It  offers  features  like  personalized  pushes,  segment  builder,  event  based  pushes   and  actionable  analytics.  Highly  recommended   Pricing:  Pay  as  you  go  $0.001  cents  per  push.  $10k/month  for  Enterprise  edition     7.  Development  Toolkits   At   the   end,   here   is   the   collection   of   some   development   tools,   which   will   help   developers  build  apps  rapidly  without  spending  too  much  time  coding.     AppBuilder   (http://www.apps-­‐builder.com)   -­‐   Quickly   create   apps   without   writing  a  piece  of  code.  Works  across  platforms  and  give  you  real  time  preview   as  you  develop.  You  can  even  create  commerce  apps  by  adding  cart  functionality.     Pricing:  $39/month     App   Press   (http://www.app-­‐press.com)   -­‐   Create   native   apps   on   the   fly   for   Android  &  iOS  with  drag  &  drop  features.  No  coding  experience  needed.   Pricing:  Starting  from  $75/month     AppMakr  (http://www.appmakr.com)  -­‐  Use  simple  browser  based  tool  to  create   iPhone  &  Android  app.  No  coding  experience  needed.   Pricing:  $9/month  for  both  Android  &  iOS  app     Taplynx   (http://taplynx.com)   -­‐   Develop   native   iPhone   &   iPad   apps   using   Taplynx  framework.  Does  not  create  native  looking  apps.  Not  recommended     Mobivite  (http://mobivite.net)  -­‐  India  based  Mobivite  helps  you  create  beautiful   looking  mobile  apps  &  WAP  site  in  a  jiffy     Pricing:  Free  to  start.  $8/Annum  for  premium  version     Appcelerator   (http://www.appcelerator.com)   –   Copied   from   their   site   ☺     >>   Deliver  native  cross-­‐platform  apps  at  the  speed  of  web,  mobilize  any  data  source,   and   drive   success   with   real-­‐time   analytics   –   all   from   an   open,   cloud-­‐based   platform.   Pricing:  Open  source  version  is  free       Parse   (https://parse.com)   -­‐   Complete   framework   for   building   native   apps.   Includes  common  backend  to  develop  multi  OS  app.  Their  framework  includes   APIs  for  push  notifications,  analytics  and  content  management   Pricing:  Basic  version  is  Free.  Pro  version  is  at  $199/month      
  • 12.
    This  article  is  brought  to  you  by       Here  is  a  quick  snapshot  of  all  the  tools  mentioned  above  categorized  for  easy   viewing: