a single source, nothing corroborates it

Work down the review sites and time the ask

Coverage on the big review sites was worth at least half of all copies sold for one app, and getting it needed no clever pitch: emailing the sites that would plausibly want to write about it was enough. A mention on one large site plus social posts produced seventy four sales, while a single review two days later produced five hundred and ninety eight in a day. Aim the push at a moment when people are already shopping for what you sell.

The method

1. 01

   Get app reviews by simply emailing the sites that would plausibly want to write about it: no complicated pitch needed.

2. 02

   Work through the list of app review sites methodically after release: coverage on the big ones was worth at least half of all copies sold

3. 03

   Aim the review push at a calendar moment when people are already looking for what you sell

What it returned

• 74

  A MacLife mention plus a Facebook share and a Hacker News post together produced only 74 sales; an App Advice review two days later produced 598 sales in one day and pushed the app to #18 in top paid productivity apps

• Emailing interested sites about his app Commit led to reviews that grew into coverage on TUAW and Lifehacker

• The App Advice review of a habit-tracking app landed just before New Year's resolutions

Sources

• How my behavior changing iPhone app made $1,673 in the first 3 weeks.Nathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · So, what did I learn? · 2012-01-11
• An Unstoppable CombinationNathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · Learning Marketing · 2013-01-10