For version 1.2 of the Mixologist Sticker Pack, I wanted to do more than just add a few more new drinks.[1] Taking a lesson from my friend Curtis Herbert, I wanted to add something to the app that improved it as a business. In this case, I wanted a link to my other sticker pack, the Leo Collection, inside the Mixologist. Seems like a no-brainer to let the customers of one of my sticker packs know about my other packs, right? After all, these are people who have…

The bar for iMessage sticker pack screenshots is really low right now. Take a look at some of the sticker packs on the App Store, and you’ll soon see what I mean. Many sticker packs have one or two screenshots max; many are obviously hastily snapped from within iMessage without much thought to presentation. It’s a huge missed opportunity. I can’t tell you how many sticker packs I’ve passed over because of poor quality screenshots. I know making screenshots of iMessage is a huge pain. The…

Indies love to fall on their sword and die with dignity. I love Ned Stark[1] as much as the next guy, but in the end Varys is right: Ned died because he sucked at playing the game. Worse, he had an opportunity to help the realm, but instead his pride got in the way, and Westeros ended up with Joffrey. The latest controversy in the indie community is over Apple’s new App Store ad system. Is it or is it not ethical to bid on keywords that are…

Sometimes, the timing of a thing just works. When I talked with Curtis Herbert a few weeks ago about wanting to expand my horizons with the client work I’ve been doing up until now, he immediately piped in that he was thinking along the same lines. We both wanted to do more than just design and build things for people. We wanted to share our business experience in mobile apps and services with others. I’ve known Curtis for a long time. I know he’s a solid coder…

TextExpander, a long-time utility for Mac and iOS, switched its pricing to a subscription service this week. Of course I have thoughts. I’m a long-time supporter of subscription pricing. Subscriptions are going to be the primary way we pay for productivity apps eventually. It’s going to happen. It has to happen. Upgrade pricing has been rejected by most consumers[1], and many businesses tend to prefer the predictable monthly costs of a subscription. As Adobe and Microsoft have shown, subscriptions may be a hard sell at first, but…