The Long Game

Why did you get into the independent app development business? No two people will answer that question the same way. While it’s tempting to think we’re all in the same business, the App Store isn’t really like a video rental store. Our products might all look the same with those rounded rectangle icons, but in fact, the hundreds of thousands of products on display are very different from one another, and people hire each of those products to do a very specific job. It stands to reason, then, that success also looks different to each of us.

The Long Game is about examining one of the many different approaches to success in independent development. It’s about building a company slowly, over time, with a suite of products that people love, and keeping yourself employed making your own products for decades. Learning to model your business after the great indie developers who are still around because they have loyal fans. Building products that improve people’s lives, rather than topping a sales chart. Pricing those products in a sustainable way, so that you’re working on 3.0 a few years from now, rather than lamenting over all the labors of love you’ve had to abandon. Most importantly, it’s about learning that there’s still plenty of opportunity for a small independent company to find its way, no matter what the numbers and pundits might tell you.

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59. joec@mac.com @jcieplinski: twitter @joec: adn