As I’m writing this blog entry, I’ve noticed something interesting on the App Store. Have you been there lately? With Apple’s newest update, they’ve redesigned the home screen so that their top free and top paid app charts are on the right-hand side. But now they’ve added a new chart: top grossing apps. And do you know what is in the #1 spot right now out of 100 top grossing apps?

An application that costs $89.99.

Yes, you read that right. $89.99. In fact, in the top 20, there’s even an app that costs $99.99 and two that cost $29.99. Sure, there are the $.99 and $1.99 apps, but there’s a greater abundance of apps with a higher price point. Of course, a lower priced app is going to generate a lot more downloads than a higher priced app, but for an $89.99 app to be in the top spot tells me that it’s been downloaded enough to be #1 and make a healthy profit. I just find it very interesting that the highest grossing app is not a $4.99 game, but a very expensive app that actually increases the user’s productivity and helps make their life better.

See, it’s easy to think apps that sell well are the ones that are cheap, simple, and entertaining. That’s true, but we have to keep in mind that there is plenty of room in the App Store—and on customer’s iPhone’s—for expensive, complex, and valuable apps that actually improve their lives. And as we are seeing right now, those are actually the ones that are making the most money.

So don’t sell yourself short! If you have a great idea for a simple game, then Apps Maps Productivity Suite is the way to go, giving you the tools and resources to make it as good as it can be.

But if you have a great idea for a deep, complex application geared toward the business world, then make it! Charge a premium price for it! There is a market for that kind of app and the potential for generating healthy revenues are certainly there! But just like with a low-priced app, you can’t expect to slap a high sticker price on your app and expect people to just buy it (duh!). It has to be good!

That’s why you need Apps Maps Productivity Suite. No matter the price point, no matter the level of complexity, no matter if you’re wanting to help a customer waste a few minutes on the subway or enable them to read documents from their computer while on a business trip in Singapore, the Suite will help you design it. You’ll be able to focus more, keep track of revisions, update on-the-fly, and have a clear roadmap for what needs to be worked on next.

So dream big and let Apps Maps Productivity Suite turn that dream into reality!

Okay, so do you want the good news or the bad news first? Actually, let’s start with the good news, then the bad news, then the really good news. How’s that?

First, the good news. You can quickly make a ton of money by creating a killer app for the iPhone. Consider the success of Ethan Nicholas, a programmer at Sun Microsystems (for the time being, at least). Facing devastating medical bills that nearly forced his family to sell their home, he developed iShoot, a simple, yet highly addictive, tank game. The game has become a huge hit and turned Nicholas into a millionaire almost overnight. Apple’s pricing structure certainly helps (for every dollar earned, they keep 30%; the rest goes to the developer). Certainly, a fun, well-made app (iShoot’s average rating is four stars!) can lead you to wild success.

But now the bad news. It’s easy for apps to get lost in the App Store. There are over 36,000 apps available and thousands of new apps are added every month. Most of them never get the attention they deserve. Popular apps get listed on one of the store’s best seller lists and become even more popular. If you’re fortunate enough to break into the top 100 list, then expect to see your sales go up about 250%. But getting there is the hard part.

This is where the really good news comes in! While we certainly can’t guarantee a hit—we’re not that good!—we can guarantee that with Apps Maps Alive! and iGiki Apps Development Suite for iPhone that you will have the tools you need to create the best application you can dream up. From creative layout designs, to instant syncing so that your app comes alive right before your eyes, to helping you connect with professionals for advice, to tools that you need to market your app and give it the attention it deserves for its entire lifespan, we’ve got what you need to turn your app idea into reality.

If you’re looking to create a hit on the App Store, look no further. Think of iGiki Apps as your own personal life-preserver in a sea of applications.

A couple blog entries ago I mentioned how easy it is for apps to get lost in the App Store. And as you might guess, an app that you pay for will usually generate fewer downloads than a free app. Why? Because people would rather get something for free!

So it’s understandable that when an app’s price falls to 99 cents—which is the lowest price point Apple allows—that their number of downloads can double. That might be all the help you need to move your app up one of the top 100 lists, which gives your app even more exposure, which can lead to even more downloads.

Now, with that line of thinking, it seems that the next logical conclusion is that if you offer your app for free but have in-app advertising, then the revenue generated from the advertising will be potentially be greater since the number of downloads will increase. That makes sense, right?

Well, it’s not quite that simple. According to Pinch Media’s App Store usage report (http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09/02/19/iphone_app_usage_declining_rapidly_after_first_downloads.html), only about 5% of apps are used past the first month they were downloaded and only 20% of users will use a free app past the first day! Pinch Media’s recommendation? If you want to make money with your app, make people pay for it! Otherwise, the in-app advertising simply won’t generate as much revenue as a paid-app, even through the downloads may be less.

Now this all sounds complicated, and it can be, but it doesn’t have to be. When you use iGiki Apps Marketing Toolkit (part of the iGiki Apps Development Suite), you will be given powerful tools that will help you predict the amount of revenue that is possible when certain features are added to your app. You’ll better understand how successful your app might be in the current app landscape. You’ll have a much better sense of what kind of app should be free and which should be paid for. You’ll even be guided toward a price point that might work best for your application.

Stats are helpful in that they give us a snapshot of what potential customers are doing with our apps. But the Marketing Toolkit can give you the resources you need to use that information to create the best app possible.

Look down at your feet. Go ahead, do it. I won’t tell anyone. You are now standing (okay, you’re probably sitting since you’re reading this on a computer…just go with it) at a crossroads. Did you realize that? It’s true. Let me explain…

The old path leads to doing things the way you’ve always done them. Conventional. Standard. Predictable. It’s the life you’ve always lived. Maybe even safe and secure, but unchallenging. Anything wrong with that? Nope! Except that you’ve always felt ready for something more.

The new path leads to a new reality. Exciting. Uncharted. Passionate. The life you’ve always wanted. Probably risky, a bit dangerous, maybe even unpredictable. But fulfilling. What you were made for. Creative.

So you’re at a crossroads, wondering which path to take. Fortunately, you’re not alone.

Here at iGiki Apps, we’re with you every step of the way. No matter if you choose the easy-to-use Apps Maps Alive! or the powerful iGiki Apps Development Suite for iPhone, we will be walking with you on your journey. Cheering you on. Giving you tips. Keeping you updated with up-to-the-second news and information from the world of iPhone applications. Helping you get the most out of your new software. Your success is our success.

So what are you waiting for? Welcome to your future!

The hot app idea on the horizon is what’s known as “augmented reality.” Sounds cool, but what is it?

Imagine pointing your iPhone at a city street and an application gives you a heads-up display in real-time of interest points like restaurants, hotspots, museums, ATMs. It takes current GPS point-of-interest data already used in map apps and lays them right on top of what you see through the lens of the camera.

This idea is being developed for the U.S. eventually, and is already out in the Netherlands for Android phones. But because the idea is so complex, it relies on specific features that only the iPhone 3G S—and not the standard iPhone 3G—possesses: namely, it’s magnetometer which fuels it’s built-in compass. So this app, unless a developer figures out an ingenious work-around, could only be available for the iPhone 3G S.

But still, if it could work, it’d be amazing. Can’t you see yourself walking around scanning streets and blocks as if you’re holding a tricorder from Star Trek? And who’s to say that this idea could only apply to location-specific apps? There’s already an app that let’s you take a picture of a product’s bar code which will then tell you the store—both online and off—that offers that product for the cheapest price. Why couldn’t this same idea apply to mechanics or medicine, where an engine or a body is scanned and any abnormalities are displayed? Hmmm…where’s my iGiki Apps Development Suite? I need to fire it up right now!

But if augmented reality becomes a killer app, it has to combine several unique iPhone features: GPS, magnetometer, camera, compass. That is a complex structure that needs a clear plan in order in order to pull it off.

What combination of iPhone features will you use for your app? The iGiki Apps Development Suite can help you leverage those features in the best way possible to allow you to bring all kinds of Star Trek-like ideas into reality today. It may be complex, but it doesn’t have to be confusing.

So let your ideas run wild! And think about it: What is your killer app?