iOSDev UK: Handling the Press

Chris Phin, Editor, Tap! Magazine, @chrisphin

Or, “How to get five-star reviews, sell millions of apps, and retire six months from now — guaranteed!”

• Getting an app noticed:
  • Exposure
  • Endorsement
  • Tap! magazine really want to embrace developers
  • Purchase
  • 91% of readers buy recommended apps
• UK magazines make money from selling issues
  • In the US it’s more based on advertising
• How reviews are chosen?
  • Gut feeling from the editors
  • Fitting in to specific sections
• How to piss off an editor?
  • Not knowing the magazine title or anything about it…
  • Unfocussed pitching
  • Aggressiveness
  • Choosing the wrong comms channel (email/SMS/phone)
• How to make an editor happy?
  • Devs with passion & high standards
  • Personal connection — trust other devs’ feelings
• Freelancers
  • e.g. Craig Gennell — Tap! mag contributing editor for games
  • Some are integral part of team; some are chancers…
  • But help them as much as possible
• Press releases
  • Same rules as any other content — first line should be who made the app, its name and what does it do
  • Links — to the web site and the app store
  • Contact details
  • include twitter
  • After all this, can put in description of company (but not before)
• Website
  • What it is — in as few words as possible
  • Price — including details of promotions (if poss)
  • Screenshots — equinux.com does a good media room
  • Contact details — again, specific media details if poss
  • Contact forms not so good as the sender can’t track the outgoing email
  • So have an obfuscated email address on the page
  • Reviewers’ guide
  • Often hooked around a narrative
  • Opportunity to guide the review — pick out USPs, etc
• What to do when you get a review
  • Read it! Not just the score…
  • Take any feedback
  • app reviewers see a lot of apps, so maybe a little more informed
  • but they are just another individual user!
  • Shout about good reviews
• Other ways to get in a magazine
  • Not just full reviews: app roundups, features, updates
  • Building relationships leads to tweets etc

Q&A

• innovative ways of catching attention
  • direct mail involving cookies!
• press area
  • often include reviews from other magazines (but that’s not useful for reviewers)
  • screenshots, hi-res logos, videos
  • useful to have a zip
• beta builds
  • interesting from bigger apps (well-known, anticipated)
  • Chris loves TestFlight
• mailing out
  • really targeted, passionate, individualized approach to 5 or so key targets
  • mailshot out the rest
• screencasts?
  • prefer image galleries as can skim them
  • otherwise, 20 seconds max!