Can you still make money from Android? How to beat the odds

There are many good reasons to become an Android developer and start building your own application. A sense of accomplishment you get from completing a game or utility alone makes all the hard work worthwhile, plus provide something truly useful to the platform is also a source of great satisfaction. Most of us would be lying though if we say we're not the least bit interested in the financial side of things. It's not uncommon to hear the success stories of people who make millions of dollars of software and hard not to let your imagination run away with you when dreaming about how successful your own applications can be ...

Most of us would be lying though if we say we're not the least bit interested in the financial side of things.

But how realistic are the dreams? How likely is it that you can release the next Flappy Bird and retire to your own private island? Even a viable business model again? In this post I will honestly share my own experiences as well as discuss some of the current statistics and the different options for developers. 

My own experience

Before we jump into the numbers and statistics, I thought I would outline some of my own personal experiences. That's because I can say for a fact that it is still possible to make money from Android.

Unfortunately, I'm not a billionaire businessman application with its own island. Instead, I have a small flat in London and still shop at Primark. However, I have made approximately $ 70,000 of applications over the last six years. Spread over time it's not really a lot (not life changing for sure!) And I put in a lot of work to get there ... but it was definitely better than a kick in the teeth! And if I could get that much, it is probably possible to get more!

The first application I've ever released about six years ago and is basically a slightly edited version of some code I found in the public domain. That keyboard and I just resize button and released (I have permission!) To experiment with the process of creating an application and to see if it is something that I can get the hang of it. It costs $ 25 to register as a developer but to my surprise I started to get some immediate download! I'm charging for apps because I do not know any better at the time and that means I'm making a few dollars per month from very little work.

This was enough to convince me that it's worth learning Java and get to grips with the Eclipse and the Android SDK. I released a few other things (including the game that I worked very hard on) but never got more than a few downloads for each.

Then I had my 'eureka' moment. I have an idea for a tool that will meet the great demand and released a very rough version of it, which I sell for around $ 1.20 with a name that people will search for. Overnight and with zero marketing, I started to get around 10 downloads per day. With a few more updates is up to 30, 60 and then 100 downloads per day. At its peak, I get about $ 70 per day of applications on top of the money I earned from my other businesses. The best thing is that this is a 'passive income' which means that I do not swapped 'hours for the money' and that I could take the day off and still have an income. This application is sold purely on the strength of ideas and of course does not include the code flashy or impressive.

I will never forget the moment I realized it off - I was at a house party and become very unsociable just looked at my account and refreshing the page! It also sent me a little crazy but that's a story for another time ... applications that continue to have subsequent success also because I was approached by an Indian company to make a deal for my application to be pre-installed on their devices. So yes, basically become bloatware ...

Sales for the application starts a silent end though and today sell for about 3-5 days. Not a huge amount of money but it would still be very welcome.

His next project is to work on an application with known YouTube users which means we have an audience that is ready to promote it to. We split the profits 50/50 for applications and sales have trailed off again for one that lately - but in the first few months it managed to get a few thousand paid downloads. Now I'm working on a few projects that I plan to release at around the same time and in the meantime to build my own audience so I can promote their own.

Then vs. Now

The first application that I created to make money though) becomes very attractive and b) do not have the marketing. It will not work today however. Unfortunately, the 'app gold rush' ended and the market is now so saturated with the application. Once upon a time, you can unleash Parkour application and may be just one of several applications in that niche. If someone loves parkour, they might find your application and they may be willing to pay for it. I know because it was something else that I did! Today there are many applications parkour in store:

When I released the greatest hits me, I'm pretty lucky to happen upon a niche that still has not been filled - even as the Play Store is getting bigger by the day. Sales slowed down mainly because of a bunch of copycat apps I started to steal market share (and they are free).

Today, you are competing with thousands and thousands of apps no matter your niche, which means you need some kind of marketing to stand out. The only way to get around that have a selling proposition truly unique (USP) - but in this case you still need marketing just to communicate what your app is about and to make people aware of it. You can do this by spending money on advertising (in-app, on Facebook or on Google in many cases) but is then fed into your profit margin.

But it's not all bad news. While the mobile app industry is now much more competitive, it is also true that a larger audience and more willing than before to put the money to download. And now there are also more ways to monetize applications than ever before, such as 'in-app purchase' option and interstitial ads are becoming more and more popular.

The problem is, you are still competing with large businesses that have far more influence marketing and to dispose of millions of dollars in their marketing strategies. According to estimates from IDC, the global application market is now worth $ 34000000000 and this is expected to increase to $ 77000000000 in 2017. However, most of the market share belongs to a well-established names such as Facebook and Google.

If you look at this list (admittedly outdated) of the most successful apps in Android in Wikipedia and you'll find you need to scroll down far enough to find something you've never heard of. But then again, you might seek consolation in remembering that at one time names like Rovio and indie developer Mojang. Now the stuff of legend that the actual Angry Birds Rovio's last attempt in the game after 51 failed title.

Monetization options and overhead

Your experience may vary drastically depending on how you approach the development of applications and monetization. For starters, all I paid apps without ads, while some of the biggest earners in so far as free downloads (like Angry Birds).

I will say this though: if you intend to make money from advertising then you need to ensure your application is something that people will want to use regularly and for a long time. Most mobile ad networks like AdMob Google's own work on the 'PPC' or basic 'RPM'. It means 'Pay Per Click' or 'Revenue Per Impression' which in turn means that advertisers pay you only when someone clicks on an ad or when they watch a short video without skipping it. This is why free applications such as Sonic Runners (one of my favorites) force you to watch video on extra lives etc.

I managed to make $ 70 per day from my best application when it was at the peak of its popularity. In order to obtain that of the impressions I would likely need about 100K active users open the app every day. Now ask yourself: how many applications you really use every day? In all likelihood it may be only a chosen few, they become Facebook, Twitter, camera, WhatsApp ... Most applications we download get opened once and then discarded. Specifically, 77 percent of users never use the app again 72 hours after installing! Then there's the question of how you can include ads in your app without driving away your users. Interstitial ads (ads that show on the screen) to help developers increase their income but they are also much more invasive for users.

Most applications we download can be opened once and then discarded. Specifically, 77 percent of users never use the app again 72 hours after installing

And in any case, Google or ad network you will take a cut of your profits. And the same goes for charging for downloads where Google takes a commission of 30%. So, if you sell an app for $ 1, you only took home 70 cents for each sale. And once you make a free application, it is not possible to change it back to paid.

Now, it appears that in-app purchases are where the real excitement lies. A report from App Annie stated that: "in-app purchase (IAP) as part of the application store revenue continued to grow in 2015 as a subscription revenues created a tremendous advantage, thanks to strong demand for video, music and dating application." Certainly in-app purchases are naturally lend themselves better for some applications than others, so you may need to think carefully about this before you invest a lot of time and effort into your next idea.

Android vs iOS

The elephant in the room at this time is iOS. It was a known fact that iOS tend to make more money compared to Android. Although there is much more active Android devices and the Play Store to get more downloads, iOS apps still make more income and therefore more profits for developers respectively. Reports from App Annie found out that iOS continues to carry 75% more revenue than the Play Store despite a much higher number of downloads on Android. This is simply because Apple users tend to be happy to pay a little more for their devices, just as they are happy to pay a little more for their hardware. 

 It is all about demographics though. You can potentially get around the problem by simply targeting the wealthy demographic in Android with the function of your application - for example business applications typically can charge more than fun app. Note also that Apple charges developers a recurring $ 99 fee / year (although the commission is the same). It's also much more difficult to get an application to the App Store and it means you can invest a lot of time and effort to create an iOS app only to have it rejected ...

Of course the best answer is to create cross-platform applications. Quite released apps for both operating systems can significantly increase your market and your income, but again this is much easier if it was part of the plan from the beginning.

conclusion

Make money from the Android app would still be possible but you have to be smart about how you market your products and money. This means understanding the market and have a plan for your business model before you even settle on an idea. In some ways to make money from Android apps more difficult than before but in another way, there has never been a better time to jump in and get involved. The key is to be flexible and dynamic and change your approach to stay competitive. The audience is definitely there, the challenge is just to know how to reach them. For some suggestions, see this article I wrote about how to make your Android app stand out.

Remember also that we also have some new emerging markets in this field. Android developers can build applications for smartwatches and virtual reality devices and find much less competition in new areas.

In the end, a lot of people who will build mobile applications that do not get a single download or who do not get them anything. Meanwhile though, somebody else will have the runaway success that is taking the world by storm. Then there will be those who produce little good of passive income on the side but never reached critical mass. Unfortunately there is no 'average' benefit that independent application developers can expect to make, so be smart and do not give up the day job until you are sure you have a hit on your hands.