Exclusive Interview With Star Walk iPhone App Developer

Erika, thank you for talking with us, firstly can you tell our readers how your app, Star Walk, was originally thought of, what were your thoughts behind the marketplace, specifically?

Of course Joanne, well Star Walk was our first "experiment" for the App Store. We pretty much followed our CTO passion and decided to develop an astronomy application for everybody, the aim being to give everybody the possibility to learn a bit more about the fantastic world of the universe.

We had already developed a similar astronomy application for Windows Mobile and we saw the potential that the iPhone could give to that, the enhancements and the possible features that we could add. So Star Walk was born, we had a lot of doubts about how successful it was going to be because we didn’t know how many astronomy fans like us were out there.

Our main decision was to make it as beautiful as possible and as smooth as we could because we were sure that the Apple audience would appreciate those two characteristics.

Erika, can you tell us how you came up with the colors and themes ideas?

Again it was all about the beauty of it. We tried different colors and themes. Our General manager was once a designer and has a great sense of what goes with what and how it should all go nicely together, so after many tries we chose what we thought was simple, clear and straightforward for everybody and still beautiful.

Erika, who do you see as the main target market for this game?

Anybody who looks up in the sky and asks himself/herself what is that up there is a possible Star Walk fan. The universe is so fascinating that our target market can reach all kids and all adults curious about the stars and the sky.

How long did it take from the original planning to the production process?

In all Joanne, it took us around 2 months to develop the first version

How do you view your sales, is there a good solid market for this style of app?

Joanne, we are satisfied with our sales so far, we think that the Education category offers a solid market platform for interesting, stimulating and captivating apps and the audience is very responsive. Sales always need to be kept up with new updates, features otherwise there is a big risk to lose users and fans.

Erika, what has been the hardest obstacle you have had to overcome regarding this app development?

Probably the build up of the information base, I think this is a problem for most developers who look into information hungry apps.

Would you consider developing apps for third parties?

Yes Joanne, we are considering and we are doing it, being a medium size development company we have had the opportunity to develop for third parties with great experiences.

Erika, what have you learnt from the App Store since you launched your app?

Well Joanne, a lot but we would like to learn more. First of all that people are very reactive for any kind of promotions/discount available, second of all that the description on the app store doesn’t get read at all but what counts are the keywords and other people’s review, third that if your app is good and you put a lot of effort in it Apple and the App Store at some point will notice it. We kept trying and we managed to get to the top also because we believed in the app and its potential.

What about Apple Erika, have they supported you well with your app? If so, in what way?

Joanne, as mentioned above, we have been trying hard and at some point Apple noticed us and supported our app. Apple doesn’t really tell you what is going to happen or why, it has its own schedule and its own decisions to make and if you are lucky enough to be selected you will find out last minute what they need and what they will do, nothing else. But anything they do, helps your sales a lot, so we can’t complain. Again we learnt that it is all down to how good, innovative and beautiful your app is and they will notice it.

What next, are you developing another app? Would you go for the same genre again, if not which?

Joanne, we have a pipeline for our apps, and we are trying to prioritize them depending on what we think it is the market appeal. We are focused on the education category and on those categories that we think can be useful and helpful for the iPhone users. We believe that this is our call and we want to make it our strengths. Soon to come another astronomy app with a different hint to it and that in my opinion could fascinate more than Star Walk.

Thank you Erika for this really informative and interesting interview, I know I am not alone when I say I can’t wait to try out your next app – keep them coming. Best Joanne