I always wanted to make an Acronym for a group :lol: :lol:
So, after reading the topic titled “App Store Ranking Sales”, UVRadiation mentioned we could help each other get our apps into the top spots in the app store by buying and rating each member’s app when it is released.
Why would this help you?
When you release an app to the appStore … it’s lost in a list of over 10,000 apps… and the only way someone will find it is if you drill down through the menus. The average iphone user won’t do that.
To have a successful app you need to land in the top 100. Once there you will get enough exposure to generate a user base and maybe even Apple’s attention to feature you on the main appStore page.
So why should you invest in others?
When you support another member of UISG :lol: you not only help them reach the top 100 … but you potentially help yourself.
When you join UISG, members will work together to purchase your app and help you get into the top 100 fast… in return you will do the same for other members.
So I’m sure you’re asking yourself “So how does this REALLY help me?” Here’s how…
When you view an app in the app store you will notice on the right hand side a section called “users who bought this app also bought…” If we work together and by each other’s apps… we will all share this space. So if a UISG member makes it into the top 100, we sorta all make it into the top 100 which will increase our sales.
This will also help Unity
If we do this the right way and everyone works together… not only will we help ourselves but we will help Unity as a whole. The Unity splash logo that we all “LOVE” will be a trusted sight to users after awhile. And also other developers will want to use Unity for their games.
I know this may sound like a long shot, or too good to be true. But I really think it could work if we give it a try.
If you’re interested please reply and we can get something started.
Reading that other thread ( http://forum.unity3d.com/viewtopic.php?t=16474 ) where the consensus seemed to be that those most bought/most downloaded lists are updated very frequently based on numbers in the last few hours i think such a support act ( ) would only require few participants but also only have short term effects mostly, so maybe good to kick things off or revitalize em in between.
I like the idea of helping each other, i already buy any iphone games by people here, on one side cause i´m curious to see what others make with unity and what´s possible on the device, on the other side i think its nice to support the others.
Well said TouchSoft!
I think we need some kind of system, so that people will know who bought their game from the community.
people are afraid that they will buy other peoples apps and the other people wont buy theirs back (self included).
Perhaps a screenshot image sent from the iPhone (clicking both buttons on the iPhone at the same time does that) to a specific email account, as a confirmation of purchase.
Also if people are afraid that they will have to buy loads of applications , I think we could start of by giving each UISG member ( sounds solid!) a limit of something like $3 worth of apps for per year that he can tell the members to buy.
Remember that if we buy loads of apps , this means loads of people will buy ours , so that’s a good thing!
Another problem we need to figure out , is that some people are members of different app stores , so if f.e I buy your app from the Israeli app store - it’s not going to have much of an impact, so we all have to find a way to make all of our purchases from the USA app store.
Anyway , I think it’s well worth the hassle for us to unite , we are competing with companies like SEGA , Namco and EA. the only way for us to succeed is together, not only in buying each others apps. Also by creating joined press releases, perhaps a joined site to display all of our apps , or maybe even putting a recommended app list with links inside our apps in the menu with links to the app store.
I am willing to pay a participation fee in advance for something like that , so that we’ll know that the members are serious about working together.
Count me in as well. As far as the site to display Unity iPhone games, Tom mentioned to me on IM that he’s planning to turn my “List Your Game Here” thread into a section on the Unity website at some point. So maybe if enough of us have content, we can get that bumped to a higher priority. Tom?
You know, I wasn’t seriously suggesting this in the other thread, but I am glad you ran with it. I mean, I’ve been buying copies of all games I see in the “unity iphone apps in the store” thread, so why not coordinate and help each other get into the top lists?
To make this work, you’ll need to pick a date time for all of us to make the purchase. Since we’re not totally sure of the 2-hour window (or when the window begins or ends) we’ll probably all need to buy the game around the same time.
Since Martin started the other thread, I’d say we should start with his game, but since most of us probably already have it, we need to wait for something new.
As a test, someone should release a new title (in as many store internationally as possible), and whoever volunteers to be in this group should buy it simultaneously (rather, within an hour or so) and report back here with which store they bought from, and the developer should share the sales and ratings metrics with us.
I’ve seen some great suggestions. I’m currently compiling a list of those and will present them to the community so we can plan a course of action. We definitely want this to be organized and fair.
A few suggestions I have:
Each developer gets the support of the community only once per quarter (every 3 months).
Target price range for community support is $0.99 - $1.99 (I personally think a price limit needs to be set on community supported apps, any apps higher than that are optional support).
When submitting an app for community support you must supply the community organizer (whoever we select for the position) with a cropped screenshot of your iTunes app purchase history (only showing apps from the community since the day you joined, just blur out other purchases or crop them out). Once the organizer approves your app for community support we will set a target date and time to push you up to the top (the best we can).
These are just some personal suggestions… but I would love to hear from others… I’ve done a lot of community organizing growing up and during college so this stuff is fun for me :lol:
My first peruse of the Unity forums, and what do I come across? A bunch of losers trying to figure out a way of conning the Ratings system, and their customers, by forming a “secret club” on a public forum!
Hilarious. And incredibly sad. This has got to be shared. Maybe I should link to this in reviews of your apps; see if that helps your sales, eh?
Seriously guys, get a life and act your age. You’re a disgrace and an embarrassment to people who actually sell games based on worth. Shame on you! Bad dog!
I just can’t stop laughing. I have this image in my head of Dad’s Army. Fantastic
It’s public because we have nothing to hide,
We are talking about buying each others apps, amongst other things, on a strategic time (instead of what we are doing now, which is on a random time) , paying money fair and square.
Trust me, this wouldn’t put anyone on the top paid apps by itself, only give a little kick start. still only the good games will rise and most will sink.
anyway I am glad we made you laugh, it’s healthy to laugh.
Peace and Love
UV
Shows again that everything in live can be seen from various angles.
“A bunch of losers trying to figure out a way of conning the Ratings system, and their customers”
It wasn´t intended to conning the ratings system, the idea was to give games the chance of a short time boost to get noticed, as UV said good games would then have a chance to get into the public eye, bad ones would be off the featured list again as soon as the next cycle kicks in (which seems to be around every two hours).
In case you weren´t aware big companies use all sorts of marketing ways to boost their sales, among those also to buy their own content several times.
I don´t see anything bad if indies buy others´ games to help them get noticed.
“forming a “secret club” on a public forum!”
You basically already have the explanation for why your statement is nonsense in the statement itself. If it was a secret club people wouldn´t talk about it on a public forum.
One could debate if it has to be done in such a structured manner, personally i already bought all games i liked from indies to support em in the past anyway, but yeah, again, i see nothing bad in helping other indies, if you don´t like to support others, well, just don´t, but its nonsense to try to sell that as if something illegitimate was done.
Oh come on, you can see I’m tickled pink, so the “secret club” jab can be taken with a pinch of salt.
Marketing companies use all sorts of terrible tactics to sell products and get airspace, but it doesn’t make it right.
People spend money on good faith - if you want to abuse that, and that’s what you’re discussing here no matter how you try to dress it up, then you should expect nothing less than derision and criticism.
The lie here attempting to fake the popularity of one or more paid products for personal gain.
You argue that you’re doing it for the “other indy developers”. You mean the other indy devs in your “club”.
I’m an indy developer and I don’t need any help promoting my software: I may have to work my backside off promoting my stuff, but that’s graft for you. That’s what it means to work for a living. You think you’re going to be able to win an argument with someone who works for a living to promote their work?
Anyone who claims they’re doing no more than a marketing company has a lot to learn, and there’s only one type of marketing company that I know of that would resort to fixing charts; the cowboy variety.
Which is exactly what this thread reeks of. Cowboy marketing; done badly at that.
And why the hell it’s in a development forum is way beyond me.
It wasn´t intended to manipulate anything, its not faking when people legitimately buy something.
It was also not the idea to write false reviews or anything, if people don´t like a game they would either not buy it or if they buy it write a negative review about it, the only thing such a group buy would bring would be that a game appears in a list for two hours so that others see it.
Hm, no, i support other indies where i can cause i feel as part of the indy group, i recently bought world of goo and regularly buy various indy games and i also pimp good indy games when i get to it like here:
Overall i´m sad if it gives a fishy feeling to someone, i felt like its a nice thing to support each other, didn´t think others would see it as such weird thing. Well, how do others here see this?
It figures that someone would look at this with a cynical eye. In truth this is just a simple way to get Unity games in front of a larger audience. Then that audience will decide what games are actually good. It’s a simple gesture of good faith among the members of a small community. We’ll make sure to exclude you though. Afterall, it would be a shame for you to lose your spot on the moral high ground.
First off, this topic is WAY to big for a single forum post. This should be a website all to itself. Also, there has to be a way of monitoring who buys what to make sure it’s ever (we dont want everyone to go to one app and leave other developer’s who invest their money left behind)
With an entire website dedicated to this, we could have “accounts” and somehow find a way to make sure the account-holder actually bought the app, maybe just taking a picture of their SpringBoard with the App Icons and names (these are very hard to copy and ensures the account-holder actually bought the app.
This interest’s me greatly and I’m glad to help out my fellow developers!
will be a trusted sight to users after awhile. And also other developers will want to use Unity for their games.
) would only require few participants but also only have short term effects mostly, so maybe good to kick things off or revitalize em in between.