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归纳Android应用开发商需知的免费运营模式要点

发布时间:2011-04-25 11:05:18 Tags:,,

游戏邦注:本文原作者是移动服务平台供应商Urban Airship首席执行官斯科特·凯维特(Scott Kveton),他是手机应用策略和云基础设施方面的专家,对应用运营模式、用户黏性、开发者生态圈和云计算等领域颇有研究。他在本文总结了Android应用开发商创收需执行的事项和禁忌。

Android平台的应用内置付费功能是现在最有吸引力的应用创收途径之一,许多Android应用开发商正通过提供可开启内容、付费下载模式、应用升级、游戏扩展内容以内容数据包等方式从该平台获利。

Android应用开发商在产品中植入内置计费系统(以下简称IAB)时需要要注意几个事项,以下是游戏邦编译的相关内容:

android-market

android-market

需执行的事项:

标注该应用含有内置付费功能。要在第一时间告知用户,这款应用含有大量可升级的潜在功能或内容。

显示具体的支付流程。不可让用户感觉自己是在无意间付费下载应用,也不能让他们对自己点击购买按钮后的下一步操作茫然无措。另外需要注意的是,一定要避免用户退款的情况发生。

尝试不同的定价策略。可以推出不同售价的内置付费功能,有些用户可能不喜欢一次性花20美元买下功能齐全的应用,而是希望以更低的价格下载简装版应用,应该为不同用户提供多种选项。

注意:iOS和Android平台的应用定价模式存在较大差异。苹果应用的定价采取了“分级”策略,第一级就是0.99美元,并由此逐渐递增,而且苹果还可以针对国际市场转换货币单位。而Android却没有这种“分级”系统,开发商只能制定一个固定售价,Android才刚开始采用国际货币转换服务,但目前还并不是很可行。开发者需要关注谷歌在这方面的政策走向。

要善于评估免费运营模式的营收策略是否有效。用户一般都没有应用具有多少价值的概念,有些用户最初可能甚至不愿意为之消费0.99美元,但他们对其形成依赖后就不一定了。只要他们对应用投入一定的时间后,就有可能在不知不觉为为额外功能和内容付费。开发商采用免费运营模式,可以更有效地吸引用户,这种方式比自己直接为应用定价更容易为用户所接纳。

注意:应用内置付费功能可增加每一次下载量所创造的价值。免费应用的下载量是付费应用的10倍左右,用户规模扩大了,付费用户转化率也会随之上升。要记住,付费下载应用只能向每名用户收取一次费用,而应用内置付费功能却可以通过每名用户源源不断地创收。

利用移动渠道的优势,重新包装并发布历史性的内容。多数公司都具备一些可转变为内置付费功能的内容。例如一款新闻应用,就可以将过期刊物甚至是单独的一篇文章作为内置付费功能。而一款艺术家唱片应用,也可以推出在线版曲目和录音版等内置付费功能。许多品牌公司都有不少粉丝愿意花钱消费的历史性内容,开发商应充利用这一创收优势。

要考虑应用内容的大小。在原版应用的基础上添加内容有两种方式可供选择:一是让用户下载后开启其中隐藏的内容,二是提供内置下载的额外内容。多数应用都有一个限制性的大小,iOS允许用户通过WiFi网络下载20MB以上的应用,而Android却将应用大小限制在50MB以内。在这一方面,含有待开启内容的应用,远不如带额外下载内容的应用更有弹性。因为这种应用已经是一个完整的体系,如果要在其中添加或者更改内容,唯一的途径就是更新应用版本。开发商需留神,这些额外内容可能增加应用的复杂性。

订阅付费模式值得考虑。对任何应用来说,订阅模式都是一种实际可行的方法。开发商可以先提供一些免费内容,向用户展示其潜在价值,然后通过订阅模式提供付费内容或无限量内容,这种策略远比仅采用移动广告网络更有效。

需避免的情况

不可低估市场潜力。据独立市场数据分析公司AndroLib调查显示,Android应用增长率在过去几个月中势头不减,Gartner也预测Android智能手机市场占有率在2012年将达49.9%,总之Android平台发展潜力无限。

不可仓促推出功能不完善的“半成品”。最理想的状态应该是让应用自成体系,同时又能够刺激用户消费更多内容。一款无实际用途的产品,或者价格虚高的应用,根本无法促使用户付费购买更多内容功能。而一款只有具备9.99美元内置付费功能才能运行的免费应用,也同样会让用户大倒胃口,消灭他们的消费欲望。

不要抱怨谷歌或苹果的30%收益抽成。这两个平台都为开发商带来了大量用户,30%的抽成是它们应得的报酬。

不可推出功能缺失或内容无吸引力的免费版应用,以免让用户彻底丧失兴趣。开发商需把握好让用户觉得产品物有所值,同时又愿意再度为之买单的平衡性。

不可忽视应用的持续更新。新功能和内容可不断增加回头客的数量,而这些用户正是最可能购买额外内容的付费用户。《愤怒的小鸟》就是这方面的典型,它通过不断推出新关卡增加了用户黏性。取悦用户是开发商的终极目标,只有实现了这一点才能够顺利创收。

不要轻视应用内置付费功能或计费服务的难度。这些功能的设置需要开发商投入大量的时间和精力,但如果实现了这一功能,开发商就有可能获得丰厚的回报,总之千万不可忽视正确植入内置付费功能的重要性。

iOS和Android平台之间的关键区别

谷歌IAB通过Google Market/Checkout处理所有的交易。该系统的所有政策条款均适用于Android IAB,所以Android应用开发商必须自行处理税收和相关记录等事务。而iOS却与此不同,苹果会妥善处理所有与应用有关的项目,除此之外,还提供了所有的国际缴税等相关服务,而且还支持发行商了解这一过程的所有情况。

Android用户通过Google Checkout帐户才可以完成交易。在这个过程中,与谷歌服务相关的信用卡和支付信息总会不时弹出应用界面。而iOS的应用内置付费功能则与用户的iTunes帐户绑定,所以不会带有其IAP的品牌广告。需要指出的是,虽然Android平台主要采用Google Checkout作为支付选项,但其他第三方计费服务也在不断增加,开发商应时刻关注这一平台的新动向。

谷歌的应用内置付费功能API无法传达应用目录(包括价格)的所有信息。而iOS却支持开发商更便捷地设置相关信息,因为该平台可通过开发商的iTunes Connect帐户直接调用其产品售价和产品描述。

Android和iOS这两者在识别终端用户等服务方面都还不是特别理想,这就为退款操作带来了麻烦。但在这一点上,谷歌的做法略占优势,因为其应用发行商可以使用Market/Checkout帐户的工具打点好一切,这些工具支持开发商取消用户订单、处理退款流程等事务。苹果iOS则根本没有退款策略。

苹果的货币兑换服务更容易为开发商所理解,而谷歌在方面的才刚刚起步。

无论开发商使用的是哪个平台,都需要清楚应用内置付费功能是一个机遇无限的市场。(本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译,转载请注明来源:游戏邦)

Boosting In-App Purchases: Best Practices for Android Developers

Scott Kveton is the CEO of Urban Airship, a mobile services platform provider. He is an expert on mobile app strategy and cloud infrastructure and speaks frequently on app monetization and engagement, developer ecosystems and cloud computing.

In-app purchasing (or in-app billing) on the Android platform is one of the most attractive ways to monetize a mobile app. Android developers now have access to a source of previously unavailable revenue. They can offer premium features, including unlocked content, paid downloads, upgrades and expansions for games and content packages.

As Android developers start to integrate in-app billing into their mobile offerings, they should know what works and what doesn’t. Drawing from my company’s experience helping thousands of customers optimize their products with in-app purchase features, I’ve compiled this list of best practices.

The Dos

Do make it clear in the description that the downloaded app can be augmented with additional features via in-app purchase. This is an app’s first opportunity to market future add-ons and they should let users know upfront that the app is feature-rich and expandable.

Do make the purchase process super obvious to the user. Users should never feel they purchased something by accident, nor should they be unsure what’s going to happen once they click the purchase button. Plus, refunds are a pain to process and should be avoided at all costs.

Do test different pricing. Try to offer a variety of items at different prices. A user may not want to fork over $20 for a fully featured app, but it’s possible that they will pay for a lite version at a reduced price. Don’t take the option off the table.

Note: Pricing is one area where iOS and Android differ. Apple prices by “Tiers,” with tier 1 starting at $.99. Apple then converts that into the local currency for international markets. Android has no tier system; developers set an arbitrary amount. Android just deployed currency conversion, but not everything is supported. Developers should pay careful attention to Google’s guidance on this.

Do evaluate a freemium revenue strategy whereby the app is free with in-app purchasing options. People have unpredictable ideas about how much apps are worth. Some are unwilling to pay even $0.99, but that may change once the user is hooked. Once they are engaged, users are less cautious about spending money on additional features and content. Developers using the freemium model can hedge their bets against subjective valuations of their apps.

Note: In-app purchases can increase the per-user value of a simple app download. Free apps have greater reach and up to 10 times more users than paid apps, by some counts. With greater reach, conversion rates also go up. With that tenfold increase in exposure, a free app has the opportunity to attain the same revenue as paid apps by converting only one-tenth of its user base. Remember, revenue from app downloads can only be collected once per user. In-app purchases allow ongoing revenue from each user.

Do repurpose existing and archived content to leverage the long tail on the mobile channel. Most companies will have some content they can turn into an in-app purchase. A news app, for example, could offer back issues, or even single articles, as in-app purchases. For example, an app for a recording artist could sell live versions of songs or outtakes from a recording session. Many brands have existing content that engaged fans will pay for. The mobile channel offers an easy way to tap into that demand.

Do consider the size of the app. There are two ways to add content to an app after the initial download: unlocking hidden content for users post-download, and offering additional content as in-app downloads. Most apps are limited in size. iOS directs users to a WiFi network for apps over 20MB, whereas Android limits apps to 50MB. Apps that contain hidden content are less dynamic than those with content downloaded later. Because the app already exists in its entirety, the only way to add or change the content is by updating the app. Developers should be aware these additions will increase the complexity of the app.

Do think about subscriptions. Subscriptions are a realistic and viable revenue model for any app. A smart strategy is to offer some content for free to generate demand and prove an app’s value to users. Developers can offer premium content or unlimited access to content through subscriptions to drive revenue further than an ad network could do alone.

The Don’ts

Don’t underestimate the market. According to independent metrics firm AndroLib, the rate of Android application growth has been on a nonstop increase for months, and it shows no signs of slowing down. Gartner predicts Android will command 49.9% of the smartphone market by 2012. There is huge potential.

Don’t offer an app that can’t stand on its own without additional features. Ideally, an app pleases users as-is and whets their appetite for more content. A useless app — or one with disingenuous pricing — will not motivate users to make in-app purchases. Similarly, a free app that only works well with a $9.99 in-app purchase is a big turn-off and a disincentive to users to pay for more.

Don’t grumble about the fees that Google or Apple will take from the transaction. These markets offer distribution to an enormous audience, and is well worth the 30% revenue share

Don’t Make the free version of the app so featureless or devoid of interesting features that users lose excitement. Developers must strike a balance between what makes the app good enough to engage users and what makes users want to pay for more.

Don’t neglect your app. New content and features drive increased app usage from existing customers, many of whom are likely to purchase additional in-app content. Angry Birds does this to great effect by continuously adding new levels. At the end of the day, delighting users should be the ultimate goal of developers. It’s critical to driving increased monetization.

Don’t think in-app purchase or in-app billing (IAB) is easy. These are complex features that require significant investment in developer knowledge and time. The revenue is worth the effort, but don’t underestimate the engineering required to properly integrate IAB.

Key Differences Between iOS and Android

Google IAB uses Google Market/Checkout for all transactions. All terms and conditions of that system apply to Android IAB. Accordingly, app developers have to be responsible for their own taxation and related reporting. This varies from iOS, where Apple does all business on behalf of the apps. In addition, Apple handles all international taxation and related matters and cuts the app publishers a check at the end of the process.

Google IAB requires users to have a Checkout/Google account to complete the purchase. This will manifest as a Google branded pop-up in the app, which will include all the credit card and related purchasing info associated with the account. iOS in-app purchase is tied to the user’s iTunes Account, and does not have any branding associated with IAP. Note that although IAB might be Google/Checkout account based (and likely will continue to be) the payment options are expanding. Developers are advised to stay up to date with changes on the platforms.

Google’s in-app purchasing APIs lack the ability to transmit all details of an app’s inventory (such as its price) to the app. iOS, on the other hand, is easier to set up, as the price and description are pulled directly from the developer’s iTunes Connect account.

Neither system is particularly friendly for identifying your end-users, making refunds a challenge. Google has a leg up here because app publishers will have all the tools of Market/Checkout at their disposal. These tools enable canceling purchases, processing refunds, and so on. Apple offers none of this.

Apple’s currency conversion is more straightforward and easier to understand. Google has only just begun to roll this out.

Regardless of what platform you use, in-app purchasing is a huge market waiting to be conquered. Share your own tips or experiences in the comments below.(source:mashable


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