8.6. While You Wait

Congratulations! You’ve officially submitted your first app to the iTunes App Store! Now what? You’ll probably have to wait a week or two to hear back from Apple. Here are some things you can do in the meantime to keep yourself busy:

• Set up a nice-looking web page for your app that is located at the URL that you submitted to Apple. Be sure to include the following elements:

  • A video of your app in action. Loren Brichter (http://twitter.com/atebits) has posted a great tutorial on making beautiful iPhone screencasts at http://blog.atebits.com/2009/03/not-your-average-iphone-screencast/.

  • A brief description of your app. Just a paragraph or two and 5–10 bullet points.

  • An iTunes link to purchase your app.

  • A few testimonials, with a link to more if you have them.

  • A support email address. You could opt to set up a support forum instead, but you’ll learn more about your customers via email.

• Send personal email messages to bloggers who you think would be interested in your app. Target blogs that are relevant to the market for your app, and blogs that are about the iPhone in general.

• Clean out your inbox. You’ll probably get about 5–20 email messages per 100 sales, so if your app is popular, you’re going to be getting a lot of email. Start with a clean slate!

• Start working on your first upgrade. The more popular apps seem to upgrade about twice a month, which causes a steady buzz and lots of customer goodwill.